How do we Address Faculty Burnout? Start by Exploring Faculty Motivation

Abstract

The discourse around the discontent of faculty, staff, and students has been growing since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. While much of the conversation about how to address the issues facing higher education is well-intentioned, efforts to help faculty do not go deep enough to the core of their identity. In this work, we describe a survey we designed and implemented that explores faculty motivation and perceptions of the faculty job. What we have learned through this limited sample is that intellectual engagement and a passion for education motivate faculty rather than some of the more conventional dimensions of motivation such as money or benefits. Faculty find teaching to be enjoyable, interesting, and important–arguably the best part of their job–and they have positive views of their students. These findings suggest that faculty developers might rethink their approach to working with faculty and do so in a way that aligns with the faculty motivations revealed in this research.