Predictive Variables of Faculty Retention in the Counselor Education Field: A Gender Perspective

Cheryl Neale-Mcfall,Mary A Hermann,Emeline Eckart

doi:10.11114/jets.v8i10.4989

Cheryl Neale-Mcfall, Mary A Hermann + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.11114/jets.v8i10.4989

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Abstract

Faculty, especially women faculty, continue to leak from the academic pipeline. Considering the costs related to faculty turnover, researchers have recommended continued exploration of faculty experiences with occupational satisfaction and retention. Accordingly, utilizing quantitative methodology and content analysis, the authors examined the reported experiences of 218 professors in the Counselor Education field. Predictive variables related to faculty retention were identified. These variables included lack of support from administration, lack of support from colleagues, having to work harder than colleagues to be taken seriously, gender, and partner job status. Data also revealed significant differences between gender and partner job status, gender and workload variables, and gender and retention variables. These results provide information on the experiences of both men and women faculty, and highlight gender inequities in higher education.

Highlights

For several decades, researchers have explored gender inequities in the academy (American Council on Education, 2005; Hermann & Neale-McFall, 2018; Mason & Goulden, 2004; Misra et al, 2011)
Researchers have identified some of the factors that contribute to the leaky pipeline for women in the academy, including that women provide more teaching and service than men—work that is less valued in the university reward system (Hermann, Haskins, Neale-McFall, Ziomek-Daigle, & Eckart, in press; Hermann & Neale-McFall, 2018; Sallee, 2014; Webber & Rogers, 2018)
The reward system in academia continues to reflect the ideal worker standard, a professor who can devote all of his time to work-related tasks (Halpern, 2008; Philipsen & Bostic, 2010; Ward & Wolf-Wendel, 2012)

Summary

Introduction

Researchers have explored gender inequities in the academy (American Council on Education, 2005; Hermann & Neale-McFall, 2018; Mason & Goulden, 2004; Misra et al, 2011). As researchers have examined the leaky pipeline for women academics, they have explored various factors that correlate to professors’ occupational satisfaction (Hermann et al, in press; Alexander-Albritton & Hill, 2015; Hill et al, 2005; Magnuson et al, 2009; Neale-McFall et al, 2018). Factors that negatively impact faculty’s occupational satisfaction include lack of support from colleagues and administrators (Hermann et al, in press; Hill et al, 2005; Magnuson et al, 2009; Neale-McFall et al, 2018). Research Questions for this study included: 1. Is there a significant relationship between gender and partner job status?

Participants

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Data Analysis

Discussion

Findings

Limitations and Implications for Future Research