Promotion of academic staff

✍ Scribed by Ingrid Moses

• Book ID: 104637350
• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 1986
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 824 KB
• Volume: 15
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0018-1560
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00138097

✦ Synopsis

Research studies conducted in the USA, Britain, Australia and New Zealand which examine academic staff's attitude to the promotion procedures in their institutions have all found dissatisfaction with existing promotion practices. In particular academics are reported to be dissatisfied with the undervaluing of teaching excellence in promotion decisions.

This paper discusses studies of job satisfaction and staff motivation as background to an interview study at an Australian university. Data concerning promotion issues from interviews with 104 academic staff members are presented and discussed.

Interviewed staff at that university see their institution as actively encouraging research through rewards and incentives. But they perceive the university as paying only lip-service to teaching by requiring documentation of teaching performance without rewarding good performance adequately. Many also perceive the university as interested more in publications than in scholarship and some adjust their activities accordingly.