Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University.

Popular media reports indicate that there is a national teacher shortage. Scholars have written that there is either a recruitment crisis, a greying of the teaching population, or that teachers are leaving the profession due to dissatisfaction. This dissertation attempts to answer two central questions related to the lattermost: what are the components that go into the calculus of job satisfaction for public and private school teachers and what role does job satisfaction play in a teacher's decision to leave the profession. Drawing on the literature of job satisfaction and organizational exit behaviors, I develop hypotheses designed to test three related research questions concerning the relationship between sector of employment, job satisfaction, and turnover behavior. Findings indicate that although private school teachers report greater overall job satisfaction, they are nearly twice as likely to leave the profession as public school teachers. Findings indicate that sector of employment affects job satisfaction, and that the relationship between sector of teacher employment and job satisfaction is mediated by organizational perceptions including school environment, school structure, professional development opportunities, and employment conditions. Findings further indicate that job satisfaction, net of other factors, does not predict quit behavior; however, occupational pulls outside of teaching do increase turnover.

This thesis examines the implementation of Just In Time manufacturing through team leaders. Western industry has failed to achieve the performance benefits experienced in Japan with the introduction of Just In Time, a manufacturing system based on the relentless elimination of waste. Criticism is emerging of the experience of employees of Just In Time. It is argued that stress levels are high and motivation is low. However, Just In Time relies on a new, more active, role for employees. A contradiction is apparent between the needs of Just In Time, in terms of the role played by employees, and the reality of their experience of a Just In Time working environment. Resolving this contradiction, while improving industrial performance, is the subject of this research. The research draws on knowledge from a wide range of fields. Work on Just In Time is combined with work on employee motivation, and the management of change. The role of the team leader emerges as a critical factor in the review of the literature. The implementation of Just In Time, through a focus on team leaders, utilising knowledge gained from socio-technical systems is tested in a year long, action research project with Alcan Aluminiurn at their Banbury extrusions factory. Survey evidence is gathered to analyse its impact. The results suggest that companies will benefit from the utilisation of the approach developed; the implementation of Just In Time through team leaders. There is substantial scope for further work to develop this approach to the implementation of Just In Time and to explore its application in other forms of change.

The present study was conducted to evaluate perceptions of the importance of various factors that may determine the wage or salary level in jobs. Items describing various job characteristics reflecting the factors of Skill, Effort, Responsibility, Working Conditions, and Organizational characteristics were rated by 510 subjects from a variety of organizations. Results indicated that the items did not cluster into the five categories noted above. Instead, three factors were identified and labeled Job Complexity, Accountability, and Work Context. There were few gender or occupational differences in the ratings of the items. The implications of the results for the development of equitable wage and salary systems are discussed.

M.B.A. / This research project is concerned with the behavioural changes of contract managers while working on 'remote' project sites. While working on such a project, the researcher became aware that the behaviour of certain contract managers changed over the course of the project, and that this behaviour was not the same as they demonstrated when at home or in the office environment. In many instances these behavioural changes were of a negative nature, the consequences of which often resulted in high costs being incurred by both the firm, in terms of productivity, and the individuals, physically and emotionally. The researcher explores a number of the most notable changes that were observed on site, and then undertakes research, by way of an ethnographic study, to determine whether these observations are valid in terms of being common to other contract managers on other remote sites. The research identified that a number of behavioural changes were indeed valid and that certain factors of concern to the majority of contract managers, acted as stressors that affected or influenced their behaviour. The research further confirms that both individual factors, such as personality and attitudes, as well as situational factors combine to influence the degree of behavioural change that an individual exhibits. In light of the findings, the researcher then offers a number of recommendations that senior management can implement to aid in restricting certain negative behavioural changes.

M.B.A. / The aim of this research is to analyse whether a link exists between employee satisfaction (for the stores studied) and profitability, for the selected Edgars stores analysed

This then was the object of this study, to determine 1) whether there is a pattern of attitude change common to teachers; II) whether early experience brings about different patterns of change among teachers; lll) whether specific life crises and events bring about these changes; lV) whether changes in attitudes occur at different stages in the teacher's career (Introduction, p. 12)

An overview of job analysis methods and literature review are presented as a basis for the investigation of job analysis data. Item analysis is a sufficient means of reviewing job analysis data but the information provided by item analysis (reliability measures) is limited. An exploration of alternative methods for evaluating the validity of a job analysis instrument is offered. Standard methods for assessing the reliability of the job analysis questionnaire are applied in this study. Interrater agreement and individual item measurement are evaluated using Generalizability theory (Cronbach, Gleser, Nader, & Rajaratnam; 1982) through a generalizability analysis program (Crick & Brennan, 1983). A discussion of the various types of analysis employed concludes each section.

The study investigates factors that contribute to job satisfaction/dissatisfaction in a case study of two Public Senior Secondary Schools as perceived by teachers of Libode District in the Eastern Cape. The point of departure of the study is the fact that the researcher has observed high rate of resignations and transfers of teachers. The study was conducted through a case study design. A total of thirty-five sample subjects from both schools were selected using purposive methods. The instruments used to collect the data were the questionnaires and interviews. The targeted population was teachers teaching in both schools at the area of the research site. Pilot study was done. Ethical issues were taken into consideration. The data collected was, analyzed and interpreted within a specified time frame. The findings were based on the data collected; thereafter the conclusions and recommendations were drawn based on the findings of both the quantitative and qualitative methods. The main findings of the study indicated clearly that poor working conditions, low salaries and ill discipline of learners contribute to job dissatisfaction. Findings were discussed in the context of the main and sub research questions and recommendations were made. The study will help the Department of Education to identify teachers' concern regarding job satisfaction/dissatisfaction.

Background: Over the past decade Local Authority Educational Psychologists in England have been increasingly required to engage in multi-agency work. There has been limited research within the UK context looking at factors which facilitate or are barriers to EP job satisfaction and approbation. This qualitative study elicits Educational Psychologists‟ views of factors that influence approbation, job satisfaction and dissatisfaction when working within this context. Methods: 27 Main grade and senior Educational Psychologists working in the North West of England participated in a combination of focus groups and individual semi-structured interviews using a set of predefined questions. Interviews were audio taped and transcribed before being analysed using inductive, explicit thematic analysis. Results: Five themes of approbation, autonomy, job satisfaction, job dissatisfaction and multi-agency working were identified as relevant to the study. Conclusions: In-depth Educational Psychology interviews allowed examination of the factors related to approbation, job satisfaction and dissatisfaction. This resulted in a number of implications and recommendations for future policy and practice.