Taxonomies of higher educational institutions predicted from organizational climate

Abstract

An important step in the process of organizational research is its classification into meaningful taxonomies (McKelvey, 1975). This article briefly describes the application of Jones and James' (1979) Perceived Climate Questionnaire involving senior-level staff from Australian higher educational institutions. Discriminant analysis using climate factors as the basis for testing hypothesized taxonomies of these organizations, involving leadership, work group, and organizationwide attributes, demonstrates their ability to successfully predict logical groups of organizations in the sample. The results both reinforce the relevance of contemporary management theories and demonstrate the importance of leadership styles in further organizational effectiveness studies in higher education.