Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education最新文献

Purpose

This study aims to present how an inter-organisational cooperation network can contribute to the competitive performance of higher education institutions (HEI) and also to students’ academic performance. The intention is also to examine how knowledge-sharing processes should develop to meet the needs of maintaining cooperation networks.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopts a qualitative approach, using the case study (network) method. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews, group interviews and documentary analysis. The convenience sampling technique was used. Data analysis was carried out through a data triangulation process.

Findings

The general benefits arising from cooperation networks are encouraging. The HEIs improved not only through creating an environment that supports learning processes and knowledge-sharing efficiently, but also through cooperation between students and lecturers.

Practical implications

The cooperation network experience studied here can be used by other universities or HEIs as an approach/strategy to launch a cooperation initiative in order to increase levels of knowledge, learning, innovation and competitiveness. The results also help university or HEI leaders to understand the importance of academic cooperation networks, letting them form innovative teaching strategies that stimulate academic and competitive performance, as well as economic growth.

Originality/value

The central elements of originality lie in advancing a new vision of cooperation networks, creating a new, innovative framework that considers the dimensions presented from the theoretical and practical point of view. The framework helps to understand what is necessary for network cooperation to develop and create value for HEIs. Combining different perspectives of the cooperation network inevitably represents a significant innovation.

Purpose

This study aims to determine the influence of knowledge-oriented leadership (KOL) on innovation capability (IC) and internationalization of higher education (IoHE) and examine the role of IC as a mediating variable.

Design/methodology/approach

Following a quantitative and cross-sectional research design, data were collected through self-administered questionnaires by the vice-rectors, and heads of international affairs from 120 public and private universities in Indonesia. Partial least squares structural equation modelling data analysis techniques were applied to test the hypothesized relationships.

Findings

The study’s results indicate that KOL directly influences IC and IoHE. In addition, the study’s findings reveal that IC can mediate the relationship between KOL and IoHE.

Practical implications

This study highlights the importance of the role of KOL in IoHE. The findings of this study suggest that by demonstrating knowledge-oriented behaviors, higher education (HE) managers can effectively manage their knowledge assets, and ensure increased innovation leading to IoHE.

Originality/value

This is the first study to examine the relationship between knowledge-oriented leadership, IC, and IoHE. So far, research linking leadership to IoHE has been rare, because each has a broad scope.

Purpose

This study aimed to investigate the process of nominalization in English, German, and Indonesian, utilizing a contrastive analysis approach, and to apply the findings to teaching English to Indonesian learners of German.

Design/methodology/approach

This mixed-method study used an exploratory sequential design. The qualitative method used contrastive analysis to focus on the nominalization process in English, Indonesian, and German, and the quantitative method assessed student responses related to the developed English teaching material.

Findings

The study found similarities and differences in the nominalization process between the languages, with nominalization occurring by adding various affixations. Most students considered the learning materials developed based on the findings of contrastive analysis to help understand the nominalization process in English.

Practical implications

The study’s findings hold significant implications for the global application of foreign language teaching, particularly in English as the first foreign language (FL1) or as the second foreign language (FL2). The research suggests that an effective method of teaching English grammar involves providing examples equivalent to those used in the learner’s first language or other languages. These results may contribute to developing pedagogical practices and enhancing language learners' proficiency in FL1 and FL2 contexts.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the existing literature by comparing the nominalization process in German, Indonesian, and English and explaining how the results of contrastive analysis can be applied in teaching English to Indonesian students majoring in German.

Purpose

This paper investigated the intrinsic and extrinsic sources of academic well-being among university teachers at one university in Qatar, to understand how different factors influence their well-being within academia.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on systems theory, this study employs Q methodology research. Data were collected and analyzed using 35 statements (Q-items) related to academic well-being. Twenty-one university teachers participated in the study, providing a range of perspectives on the factors that influenced their academic well-being.

Findings

The analysis revealed two distinct perspectives among the participants concerning the sources of academic well-being. Factor 1 (F-1) emphasized workplace conditions as the primary source of well-being, whereas Factor 2 (F-2) highlighted individual conditions. Additionally, a significant portion of participants did not align strongly with either factor, indicating diverse and individualized sources of well-being that suggest a complex interplay of various elements affecting academic well-being.

Research limitations/implications

The study’s sample size is limited to twenty-one university teachers at a single institution, which may affect the generalizability of the findings. Future research should consider a larger, more diverse sample to explore the universality of the findings across different academic contexts.

Practical implications

The implications for university teachers, researchers, leaders and policymakers include a better understanding of the sources that contribute to academic well-being and the need for adopting systems thinking in addressing these sources.

Originality/value

This study employs a unique application of Q methodology within a systems theory framework to explore the sources of academic well-being among university teachers. Unlike previous research that has primarily focused on anxiety, stress and burnout, this study provides a holistic perspective by capturing the complex interplay between organizational structures and individual identities.

Purpose

This qualitative case study explores the challenges that architecture students encounter in grasping the concept of fair PA. The study also delves into the students' viewpoints on this matter and the strategies they utilize to navigate it.

Design/methodology/approach

Around 29 architecture students took part in the PA process. Data was gathered by observing PA sessions and conducting interviews with students. The data was then analyzed using the thematic method.

Findings

The study uncovers fairness challenges from the perspective of architecture students, such as concerns regarding collusion, power dynamics within friend groups, limitations of participatory culture, and overwhelming responsibility. The study suggests that a multistage PA process can be an effective approach to addressing fairness challenges. Furthermore, it sheds light on the obstacles that architecture students face in comprehending fairness and their viewpoints and tactics regarding fairness during PA.

Practical implications

The findings indicate that increasing students' engagement in learning activities during the critique and assessment process in the DS can enhance their understanding of fairness in PA and boost their satisfaction with final course grades.

Originality/value

This study investigates the relationship between architecture students' engagement and assessment fairness, by focusing on the role of perceived fair PA within design studio settings.

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to conduct a comprehensive examination of the concept of green human resources management (GHRM) within the context of higher education institutions (HEIs). The GHRM concept has emerged from the broader environmental management concept in the last decade. Its adoption has diffused in many sectors, particularly manufacturing, but empirical studies in HEIs are lacking. HEIs, as the epitome of knowledge creation and dissemination, should lead the GHRM initiative as an example to the corporate world and the public.

Design/methodology/approach

The approach applied is based on the systematic literature review approach to draw inferences, analyze and summarize past studies based on the PRISMA method. Several research streams were identified: (1) academic and non-academic GHRM, (2) theoretical foundation, (3) qualitative and quantitative studies, and (4) green training and development.

Findings

This review discovered that GHRM implementation in HEIs leads to better sustainability efforts within academic institutions. It is relevant to stakeholders, policymakers, and HEIs’ top management to strategize in making the academic institution the torchbearer of sustainable practice and a role model for other sectors and communities.

Practical implications

This study provides implications towards the application of GHRM in HEIs to elevate academic institutions as the torchbearers for sustainability development. The implicit findings based on the research streams produced can benefit future studies in HEIs to adopt best practices in green activities, particularly GHRM. The implication of GHRM in HEIs would impart individual green, cautious, and sustainability practices holistically and comprehensively, improving behavior towards overall higher education activities involving academics, students, administrative staff, and the overall community ecosystem.

Originality/value

This study makes a significant contribution to the existing literature by systematically elucidating the role of GHRM in HEIs, providing insights for academics and policymakers seeking to promote sustainable practices.

Purpose

This study aims to examine the influence of performance appraisal on Innovative work behavior of employees in public sector universities of Pakistan, by using the Ability, Motivation, and Opportunity framework.

Design/methodology/approach

A newly developed framework has been created to explore how performance appraisal, self-efficacy, and organizational climate influence employees' innovative work behavior. The study collected data using a self-administered questionnaire from employees who work in public universities in Pakistan.

Findings

The findings of this study revealed a positive correlation between performance appraisal and innovative work behavior. It is observed that self-efficacy mediates the relationship between performance appraisal and innovative work behavior and organizational climate moderates the relationship between self-efficacy and innovative work behavior.

Originality/value

The current study is novel and unique for several reasons. But the main contribution of this study is the validation of self-efficacy's mediating impact on innovative work behavior as well as the validity of the organizational climate as moderating effect in Pakistan’s public sector universities, where a large number of students have been enrolled and they can get advantage from their teacher's improved innovative behavior.

Purpose

In this study, we evaluated university students’ attitudes towards environmental issues, with a particular focus on the cohort’s understanding of climate change and knowledge of environmental issues. We also explored whether students’ gender or university major (natural sciences vs humanities and social sciences) impact attitudes to environmental issues.

Design/methodology/approach

We surveyed undergraduate students (n = 1,310) using an online questionnaire comprising 17 statements that reflect attitudes towards environmental concerns. This questionnaire was constructed using a 5-point Likert Scale and was tested for reliability and validity to ensure its precision and consistency in assessing the targeted constructs.

Findings

The results revealed that the surveyed students had a medium level of positive attitudes towards the environment. While no significant differences based on gender were observed, students from different university majors significantly differed in the degree to which they endorsed positive attitudes towards the environment, with those majoring in natural sciences reporting stronger attitudes to environmental issues. These findings warrant the implementation of mandatory courses on the environment at UAE universities so as to enhance students’ awareness and foster positive attitudes towards the environment.

Originality/value

Unlike previous studies that may have focused narrowly on specific environmental attitudes or behaviors, this research offers a broad yet detailed assessment by incorporating factors such as students' academic majors and gender. By comparing attitudes across different fields of study—natural sciences versus humanities and social sciences, the study provides new insights into how educational background and demographic variables shape environmental perceptions. This approach allows for a more nuanced understanding of the factors that influence environmental attitudes among young adults, potentially guiding more targeted educational interventions.

Purpose

Success in the transition between the university and the labor market is an important indicator of the adaptation of newly graduates to the worker’s role in life. This study aims to describe the validity and reliability of the University-to-Work Success Scale based on its internal structure and relationship with measures of career success, protean career orientation and life satisfaction in newly Portuguese graduates.

Design/methodology/approach

Using an online protocol, responses were collected from 576 graduates for less than twelve months (74.1% women), aged between 20 and 64 years (M = 25.8, SD = 6.693). Instruments included a socio-demographic questionnaire and measures of transition success, career success and life satisfaction.

Findings

The internal structure of the scale was evaluated through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses that supported a four-factor hierarchical structure with a good fit. The reliability of the factors evaluated by Cronbach’s Alpha was satisfactory. The scale consists of 29 items divided into four subscales (professional insertion and satisfaction, confidence in the future of career, income and financial independence and adaptation to work).

Practical implications

These results support the use of the scale as a valid and reliable measure to assess success in the transition between university and the labor market in newly Portuguese graduates.

Originality/value

This study is very important because this measure can serve as a basis for both preventive and corrective career interventions and policies. The preventive approach can help graduates in their transition to the labor market by promoting career resources. The corrective approach can include re-evaluating organizational integration practices after employment, with an emphasis on promoting gender equality.

Purpose

The aim of this research is to examine gender differences in the context of research productivity, research collaboration and academic promotion.

Design/methodology/approach

This research analyzes data related to 863 academics in the accounting and finance departments in Turkish universities by using OLS, Binary Logistic, Ordered Probit and Multinomial Probit Regressions.

Findings

The findings show that female academics have in overall a representation ratio of 32%, and that there are no significant differences regarding the opportunities for female academics to be employed in public compared to private, and in high-rank compared to low-rank universities. The results also indicate that female academics have lower research impact compared to male academics, and that this difference is more pronounced for professors, and in universities with low ratio of female representation, and also in public universities. In addition, female academics engage more in research collaboration and are less likely to hold the academic title of full professor than male academics.

Practical implications

The findings of this study provide significant signals about the need for improving gender policies that mitigate the conditions adversely affecting research productivity and impact by considering the supporting circumstances for female academics and improving the representation ratio, which also can play vital role in reducing discrimination and bias and contribute to better research and scientific environment.

Originality/value

To the author’s knowledge, this article is the first to examine gender effect regarding research productivity, research collaboration and academic promotion in Turkish universities.