Administrative Support Staff Research Articles

The Scale Validation of Family Takāful Awareness: An Exploratory Factor Analysis

Family takāful awareness is gaining interest from stakeholders, including Takāful operators and researchers. However, the instrument for evaluating administrative support staff awareness needs some revalidation. Hence, the purpose of this study is to validate the factor structure assessed by its determinants, including attitude, subjective norm, and product knowledge. A valid sample of 368 administrative support staff from Malaysian public universities participated in the primary data collection through a structured questionnaire. The validity and reliability of the measures were assessed, showing strong reliability with Cronbach's Alpha values above 0.70. Thus, 21 modified items were used to gauge Family takāful awareness. This study offers initial support for the reliability and validity of the instrument employed, suggesting its effectiveness in gathering data on family takāful awareness. Incorporating additional factors and conducting comparative studies can provide deeper insights into family takāful awareness among administrative support staff at Malaysian public universities.

Educational resources leveraged by students at a private higher education institution during COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction: The initial response of higher education institutions (HEIs) to the Covid-19 pandemic was to shift to online learning as a contingency. However, not all students were equipped with the appropriate resources to make this shift. Research problem: There is scant contemporary research outlining the types of educational resources leveraged by students at a private HEI (PHEI) in South Africa during the Covid-19 pandemic. This limits the ability of PHEIs to develop targeted approaches for student success during similar disturbances. Methodology: Using a quantitative research design, an online survey was administered to second-year to postgraduate students at a PHEI in South Africa. Of the 44 715 total student population at the PHEI, a sample size of 387 was targeted, with a total of 239 students responding to the survey. Key findings: The study found that most students had access to resources during emergency remote learning (ERT), with family playing a key role in providing human and financial resources to the student, while the PHEI provided key material resources. Textbooks, data/Wi-Fi, laptop/computer, and mobile phones/smartphones were considered critical, with administrative and academic support staff, online lecturers, videos, and textbooks/eBooks playing a key role in the students’ academic performance. Conclusion: By understanding the educational resources (i.e. human, material and financial) that were leveraged by students during Covid-19, PHEIs can streamline decision-making regarding operations, assistance provided to students, and manage online learning in a manner that mitigates pitfalls should events similar to the pandemic occur.

A Phenomenological Study on How University Employees Experienced Working From Home During a Pandemic

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how employees at a midsized public university in the U.S. South experienced working from home during the coronavirus pandemic of 2020–2021. Most employees in higher education settings were affected by the pandemic. Administrative and clerical and support staff had to determine how to provide the university with services while working from home. Now that we have experienced working from home, will that experience change the future of how staff work in higher education? For many, this was a first-time experience working from home, and it created a new set of challenges to completing everyday work tasks. Most participants found that working from home did not increase their overall productivity or job satisfaction, and few participants felt lonely or isolated when working from home. Overall, the negative aspects and benefits seemed to balance out in a series of trade-offs. The majority of participants would want to work from home again or at least be given the option to work from home part-time or on a hybrid schedule. Recommendations for further research include (a) developing scales of productivity and employee satisfaction among at-home employees, (2) interviewing the same participants from this study who were still working from home in the future to determine if their feelings about the experience changed, (c) asking more in-depth questions on the supervisors’ style during the work-from-home experience, (d) pursuing questions on worker engagement.

Motivation of Learning English Language by The Administrative and Academic Support Staff at Workplace in A Private Sector University in Karachi

Introduction: Recently, institutions have promoted English language ability among personnel to improve communication with students and professors. Many employees may lack motivation to learn or use English at work. Language learning motivation might be integrative, instrumental, or both. This study examines administrative and academic support staff's English learning motivation at a Karachi private institution. Problem Statement: Some university staff may lack motivation to study English, despite its relevance. Staff English language acquisition strategies can benefit from understanding motivation. Methodology: This quantitative study assessed administrative and academic support staff English learning motivation. Data was acquired using a modified Kitjaroonchai (2012) questionnaire. Participants' motivation mean scores were interpreted using Degang (2010). Mean scores and standard deviation were used in data analysis. Results/Findings: The study found that most participants were very motivated to learn English interactively and instrumentally. This implies that Karachi's private university's administrative and academic support staff value language acquisition. Future Direction: Future research could identify the causes of this study's high motivation. Interventions to improve English language learning and staff assistance could also be tested. Understanding and tackling motivation hurdles can help university personnel learn English

Management of human talent and work performance of administrative staff in academia

Purpose: to examine the relationship between talent management and job performance among administrative support staff, with the aim of proposing improvements for the Directorate of School Services at Juarez University. By means of an adequate management of human talent to assess work performance to stablish efficiency standards for staff. Methodology: The design of this research is non-experimental with a quantitative approach, involving correlation analysis, descriptive methods, and a cross-sectional design. Data was collected through a questionnaire. Findings: There is a moderate positive linear correlation (Spearman’s Rho: 0.426) between an improved management of human talent and a better job performance. According to the perception of workers, selection of personnel and job training are crucial to attain better work performance and achieve goals efficiently. Implications: To provide quality service and achieve high performance standards, organizations must improve personnel preparation and training. Additionally, it is crucial to count on a transformative leadership to create a strong organizational culture. Originality: This study highlights the relevance of human talent management to improve job performance.

Work Challenges, Opportunities, and Job Performance of Non-Teaching Personnel in a Private Higher Education Institution

The research aimed to investigate the relationship between work challenges and opportunities and their effect as predictors of job performance of non-teaching personnel at a Higher Education Institution (HEI) in Bacolod City. While most research on HEIs focuses on faculty and students, this study aimed to shed light on the experiences of non-teaching staff. The study examined the level of challenges, opportunities, and job performance of the respondents and the relationships among these three variables. It also sought to determine if work challenges and opportunities could predict job performance. The study used a descriptive-correlational design and selected 153 permanent non-teaching personnel, including administrative heads and support staff, who had worked for six months or longer in the HEI. The findings showed that respondents faced mild workload challenges, job-related stress, communication, and working conditions. They were provided ample opportunities for training, mentorship, and recognition of learning. Regarding performance, the respondents excelled in task, contextual, and adaptive performances. The study revealed no significant relationship between challenges and job performance. However, a significant relationship was found between the opportunities provided and job performance. Finally, the study determined that opportunities were significant predictors of job performance. In conclusion, the study suggests that when opportunities are effectively leveraged, the job performance of non-teaching personnel can be enhanced.

IMPLEMENTATION OF QUALITY EDUCATION THROUGH HUMAN RESOURCES IN VOCATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

The research aims to investigate the Implementation of Education Quality, especially the quality of education at the Vocational High School level. The data collection method was carried out using questionnaires and interviews. The data analysis techniques use descriptive methods. The results showed that the quality of human resources and infrastructure is important to support the success of the teaching and learning process. Human Resources at State Vocational High School 13 Jakarta (SMK Negeri 13, Jakarta) have supported the school's success, both in the teaching and learning process and school operations. The principal, vice principal, teachers, and administrative support staff have been able to provide services according to student expectations, such as teachers and employees being fair in treating every student, the principal serving and solving every problem faced by his students, programs prepared by the principal to hone students' interests and talents are always updated to realize continuous improvement and to improve student achievement.

Factors influencing staff attitudes to COVID-19 vaccination in care homes in England: a qualitative study

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately affected people living and working in UK care homes causing high mortality rates. Vaccinating staff members and residents is considered the most effective intervention to reduce infection and its transmission rates. However, uptake of the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in care homes was variable. We sought to investigate factors influencing uptake of COVID-19 vaccination in care home staff to inform strategies to increase vaccination uptake and inform future preparedness.MethodsTwenty care home staff including managerial and administrative staff, nurses, healthcare practitioners and support staff from nine care homes across England participated in semi-structured telephone interviews (March-June 2021) exploring attitudes towards the COVID-19 vaccine and factors influencing uptake. We used thematic analysis to generate themes which were subsequently deductively mapped to the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behaviour (COM-B) model. The Behavioural Change Wheel (BCW) was used to identify potential intervention strategies to address identified influences.ResultsEnablers to vaccine uptake included the willingness to protect care home residents, staff and family/friends from infection and the belief that vaccination provided a way back to normality (reflective motivation); convenience of vaccination and access to accurate information (physical opportunity); and a supporting social environment around them favouring vaccination (social opportunity). Barriers included fears about side-effects (automatic motivation); a lack of trust due to the quick release of the vaccine (reflective motivation); and feeling pressurised to accept vaccination if mandatory (automatic motivation).ConclusionsWe identified influences on COVID-19 vaccine uptake by care home staff that can inform the implementation of future vaccination programmes. Strategies likely to support uptake include information campaigns and facilitating communication between staff and managers to openly discuss concerns regarding possible vaccination side effects. Freedom of choice played an important role in the decision to be vaccinated suggesting that the decision to mandate vaccination may have unintended behavioural consequences.

Prevalence of Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders among Primary Health Care Workers in Minna, Niger State

Work related musculoskeletal disorders are conditions that health care providers are themselves highly prone to from their daily activities of handling patient care. This study was conducted among primary healthcare workers in Minna, Niger State to determine the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) resulting from performing occupational duties in PHC centers. The objective of this study was to investigate the proportion of healthcare workers affected by work-related musculoskeletal disorders and the most common disorder affecting this category of people. The NMQ was used to gather information from respondents. A total of 334 workers of the PHC centers were selected through purposive sampling which comprised of clinicians with the exception of administrative and other support staff. After analysis of data lower back pain showed the highest prevalence (41%) followed by shoulder pain (18%) and neck (14%). The majority of PHC workers in Minna metropolis are affected with low back pain. It is the most common WRMSD among clinicians. This is also in alignment with the global menace of low back pain as one of the most common reasons for individual work absenteeism. High-quality experimental studies, such as randomized controlled trials (RCTs), are needed to investigate specific etiological factors responsible for these disorders and objective means to quantify the level of discomfort from these disorders. Keywords: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders, Low back pain, prevalence, Healthcare worker, clinicians, primary health care centers, Minna metropolis, Niger State.

Featured collection introduction: Water resources planning and management under changing conditions—Experience of Illinois

Pioneering work by John Stall on hydraulic geometries of streams and rivers was completed in the 1960s Water and Atmospheric Research Monitoring (WARM) program at the ISWS expanded data collection to define the environmental and socio-economic impacts of weather and climate impacts, including: The ISWS, along with the Illinois Natural History Survey (est. 1861) and Illinois State Geological Survey (est. 1905), were transferred out of the University of Illinois in 1917 to be administered by the Illinois Department of Registration and Education, eventually being transferred to the Illinois Department of Energy and Natural Resources and then to a new Illinois Department of Natural Resources. In 2008, the Scientific Surveys came home to where it all started, the University of Illinois, under the umbrella of the Prairie Research Institute with the addition of the Illinois Sustainability and Technology Center and Illinois State Archeological Survey. Together, the Prairie Research Institute has over 800 scientists, technicians, post-docs, research affiliates, visiting scholars, students, and administrative support staff, conducting transformative science that benefits the people, economy, and environment of Illinois, the nation, and the world. From their inception, the Scientific Surveys have always been located on the University of Illinois campus and continues to capitalize on the mutual benefits of collaboration with faculty and staff. The papers presented in this special issue marking the 125th anniversary founding of the ISWS are but a representation of the current contributions and research being conducted by ISWS scientists and colleagues, aiming to demonstrate what Illinois experiences in water resources planning and management under changing conditions, especially changing climate. They build on water supply planning legacy by incorporating future demands and climate uncertainties in Illinois, including the major updating of Illinois precipitation frequency standards. The theme of understanding uncertainties and bias continues in evaluating groundwater static head measurements to understand water-level variability. Of course, projecting climate change impacts is paramount to many water resource issues and authors discuss which climate ensemble approaches produce less uncertain climate model outputs. Nutrient losses in US agricultural lands are an issue not only for loss of crop production but downstream impacts. Winter cover crops have much promise for reducing nitrate, phosphorus, and sediment loads. Authors present possible detrimental impacts on storage volumes for downstream reservoirs in drought years. An Illinois River watershed analysis presents evidence that spatial and temporal shift in phosphorus loading affects recent increases in phosphorus despite point and nonpoint source efforts. The ISWS has long-term datasets which contributed to improved model calibration to capture chloride accumulation in shallow aquifers. Reservoirs serve populations and industry so understanding outflows from them is important for water resource planning and management. Comparing performance of three machine learning models shows promise for simulating reservoir outflow. Finally, colleagues in Illinois and China test a theoretical framework to better understand bivariate return periods of hydrological events, which is important for design criteria of hydraulic structures. The ISWS continues to evolve and adjust research needs, as demonstrated by the first 125 years, and look forward to providing science-based information to societies in the next 125 years. For further reading on ISWS history, the following publications are recommended:

Examining high-performance work practices in academia: role of administrative workload and support staff

PurposeThe study aims to explore the effectiveness of performance-oriented practices like high-performance work practices (HPWPs) in higher education (HE), given its explicit focus on performance these days.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses hierarchical linear modeling using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS 22.0) to test the hypotheses. An intertwined framework of the ability–motivation–opportunity (AMO) model and the job demand-resources (JD-R) model was proposed. The study considered strategic hiring, recognition and participatory decision-making as ability, motivation and opportunity-enhancing practices respectively. Further, the study addressed the impact of institutional level moderators, like administrative workload (AWL) and support staff (SS).FindingsThe findings based on the responses of 385 faculties and 443 students from 36 Indian institutes, indicated that HPWPs enhanced the education performance (EP) of HE institutes. Further, results revealed that both AWL and SS had differential effects on the relationship between HPWPs and EP. Contrary to authors’ expectations, SS showed a negative effect of the relationship between HPWPs and EP.Research limitations/implicationsThe increased AWL was debilitating the beneficial effects HPWPs. The negative interaction effect of SS sheds light on the hidden issues surrounding SS in HE institutes. Based on findings, the study offered important theoretical and practical implications.Originality/valueTo the best of authors’ knowledge, the impact of innovative human resource (HR) practices in academia remains relatively under-researched, and the current study is an attempt to fill this void.

Identifying and prioritising the key components of a Quality Improvement Network for allied health professionals and psychological therapists: a group concept mapping project

IntroductionDespite growing enthusiasm for quality improvement (QI), the complexities of modern healthcare continue to create gaps in our ability to consistently deliver the most effective and efficient care for patients,...

Coping is crucial : exploring relations between K-12 educators and staff coping strategies, perceived stress and psychological wellbeing

This causal comparative study explored K-12 educators’ and school staff’s self-reported levels of well-being, perceived stress, and use of coping strategies. An online survey was administered to 686 educators consisting of teachers, school administrators, professional support staff, administrative support staff and other school staff in a medium-sized schoolboard in Southern Ontario, Canada. The results show that educators reported overall low scores of wellbeing and higher levels of perceived stress as compared to the general population. Female educators reported significantly higher perceived stress than their male colleagues. A k-means cluster analysis of the educators’ coping strategies identified four unique clusters which were significantly different from each other. It was shown that participants in two of the clusters, consisting of approximately 32% of the participants in this study, used maladaptive coping strategies more frequent and that the participants in these two clusters exhibited significantly poorer wellbeing and significantly more perceived stress than their colleagues in the other two clusters. The limitations and practical implications of this study are discussed.

THE WORLD BANK’S KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY POLICY OBJECTIVES IN CAMEROON’S PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES 1993-2016: CASE STUDY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BUEA

In conjunction with the neoliberal prescriptions of the Berg Report of 1981, most African countries adopted the World Bank’s knowledge economic policy as a defining tool for university’s contribution to economic development amid a wide range of challenges. Through the lens of the international regime theory and non-positivist theoretical approach, this study uses a case study design and qualitative research paradigm to investigate how Cameroon’s public universities responded to the knowledge economy objective and how it affected their processes between 1993 and 2016. Using semi-structured interviews to collect primary data from academics, top management, and administrative support staff at the University of Buea, including documents and secondary data sources, results indicate that overall, reduced, and irregular public expenditure has weakened the ability of Cameroon’s public universities to create, valorise, disseminate, and apply knowledge to enhance economic development. Particularly, the policy has induced a complex-type relationship between the higher education governing structure and public universities, giving rise to new and confusing dimensions in the character of public universities in Cameroon. Hence, the study concludes that international education policy strategies could be a potential source of diversion and confusion in the national education systems of receiving countries.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0269/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

Multi-Scale Toolbox: An Automated ArcGIS Tool for Evaluating Pupil–Teacher Ratios in U.S. Public School Districts

Due to the teacher shortage in the U.S., an automatic toolbox with secondary development based on the ArcPy package was created to explore the spatial imbalance of the pupil–teacher ratio. It consists of four tools (or toolsets) for multi-scale spatial visualization, a sensitivity analysis with a heat map, the ordinary least squares regression with spatial autocorrelation, and the random forest tree regression. This study demonstrated the application of the toolset in the evaluation of educational resource spatial misallocation. Firstly, multi-scale analysis results showed that, the loss of teachers was mainly distributed in Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, and California from the state level, while it focused on such counties as Terrebonne Parish, Concordia Parish, and Bienville Parish in Louisiana in the county level. Secondly, it was found through heatmap sensitivity analysis that pupil–teacher ratios were highly related to low levels of student support services staff, free lunch programs, and low levels of local education agency (LEA) administrators. Then, the OLS tool was used to automatically calculate the spatial weighted matrix, the Moran I, R2, and AICC indices, AdjR2, F-Stat, F-Prob, and the Wald statistic, which showed whether the model was significant or not. This was followed by random forest tree regression modeling, which found that the LEA administrative support staff and the totally free lunch number highly impacted pupil–teacher ratios. Besides, the designed tool provided ribbons for the Common Core of Data (CCD) to link to other data sources.

Supervisors’ provision of physical environment resources to administrative support staff in a public university

The purpose of this article was to apply the job demands-resources (JD–R) theory in a public university as a lens to ascertain the extent of measures undertaken by academic supervisors to provide physical environment resources that support administrative employees and enhance their performance of the demanding duties they constantly perform. Supervisors’ understanding of their role in catering to the physical environment needs of administrative employees has been ignored in previous studies conducted in the university sector. The research design was qualitative since data collection relied on semi-structured interviews with six academic heads of departments who supervised office administrative employees in a public university context. The participants’ responses indicated a high understanding of the importance of providing resources such as updated equipment and eliminating any physical environmental factors that could enhance office employees’ performance in their demanding administrative duties. The challenges expressed were mainly with the budget that proved to constrain them. This finding on supervisors is significant as it addresses a research gap in which the focus on physical environment factors has mainly been on employees’ perceptions and experiences in the business sector with less interest in the public sector and developing countries. The success of an organization requires a caring leadership that strives to provide enabling workplace physical environment resources that meet the work demands of employees.

Administrative Support and Academic Staff Turnover Intentions in Teacher Training Colleges in Kenya

Administrative Support and Academic Staff Turnover Intentions in Teacher Training Colleges in Kenya

Prevalence of Social Determinants of Health Among Health System Employees.

Introduction/Objectives:Many health systems screen patients for social determinants of health and refer patients with social needs to community service organizations for assistance. However, little is known about social determinants of health among health system employees. We sought to examine the prevalence of social determinants among employees of The MetroHealth System, a large safety-net health system in Cleveland, Ohio.Methods:We invited participants in an employee wellness program to answer the same screening questions that patients answer about 9 social determinants of health, including food insecurity, financial strain, transportation difficulty, inability to pay for housing or utilities, intimate partner violence, social isolation, infrequent physical activity, daily stress, and lack of internet access. We then determined the percentage of employees who met pre-defined criteria for being at risk for each social determinant. We also examined how these percentages varied across employee job categories.Results:Of 4191 full-time employees, 1932 (46%) completed the survey. The percentage of employees at risk for each social determinant were: food insecurity (11%), financial strain (12%), transportation difficulty (4%), inability to pay for housing or utilities (10%), intimate partner violence (4%), social isolation (48%), infrequent physical activity (10%), daily stress (58%), and lack of internet access (3%). Being at risk for specific social determinants was more common among support staff compared to staff physicians and nurses. For example, the survey participants included 436 administrative support staff, a job category that includes secretaries and patient service representatives. Among this group, 20% reported food insecurity, 20% financial strain, and 17% inability to pay for housing or utilities.Conclusions:Social determinants of health are common among health system employees, especially among workers in lower paid job categories. Health systems should routinely screen employees for social determinants and adjust salaries, benefits, and assistance programs to address their social needs.

Identifying English language needs among administrative support staff in a Malaysian Public University: A preliminary study

English skills particularly in conversation are essential in workplace situations especially in the context of higher learning institutions. Little attention is being given to examining the needs of English communication skills and issues related to administrative support staff at their workplace particularly at public universities. A questionnaire was adopted to gauge the English language needs of support staff, their English skills perception as well as usage at the workplace. Data were collected from a group of 40 support administrative staff from Universiti Malaysia Kelantan (UMK) involving three administrative departments. The findings were gathered using survey and analyzed using content descriptive analysis. The results of the study revealed that the majority of the respondents strongly agreed that having a good English ability will increase their chance of being promoted to a higher position. Data also revealed that staff use English mostly during interaction with foreign staff and students. In addition, staff perceived that they need to improve their English writing skills the most. This study hopes to give better insight towards English proficiency among administrative support staff and explicit policy on English language at workplace. Therefore, English continuous professional development programmes should be developed and introduced to assist in improving their English language abilities.

Language, hospitality, and internationalisation: exploring university life with the ethical and political acts of university administrators

ABSTRACT Drawing on the ethico-political framework of hospitality, this paper investigates the communicative practices of three administrative support staff as they attempt to manage the twin challenges of working in adherence to state and institutional language policies while communicating ethically in an internationalising workplace. Academic administrative staff rarely feature in studies on internationalisation yet are crucial to understanding the complex day-to-day realities of contemporary university life. Empirically, this study reports on 18 months of ethnographic fieldwork, including observations, interviews, and email records. The data demonstrate language work being carried out on an ethical basis, before the consideration of any particular languages, beyond the participants’ political obligations, and in excess of institutional support. The current national and institutional responses to the multilingual realities of Swedish university life, I argue, are failing to do justice to and facilitate the ethically grounded, bottom-up language policy-making as practised by this study’s participants. This paper thus promises to open up debate on hospitality within language policy and planning for internationalising Higher Education, and, in its re-evaluation of the ethical and political dimensions of hospitality, it emphasises the framework’s critical potential within sociolinguistic research, more generally.