Academia is a demanding profession, as evidenced by a body of research that documents the
debilitating impact of occupational stress and burnout on the personal and professional
welfare of academics. In particular, high levels of these pathological phenomena, left
unchecked, undermine the quality, productivity and creativity of the academics' work in
addition to their health, well-being and morale. Despite these indicators of "weaknesses" and
"malfunctioning", academics know that there is times that they operate in a "milieu" of work
- there is an intense focus and pleasurable emotions, accompanied by high levels of
enthusiasm. Especially, with the upcoming positive paradigm in Occupational Health
Psychology, "positive" trends such as work engagement, optimism, organisational
commitment and life satisfaction are also commonplace among academics. The first step in
the enhancement of work wellness is the successful diagnosis of stress, burnout and work
engagement. However, to measure these constructs, it is important to use reliable and valid
instruments, and at the same time, take into account the cultural diversity in a multicultural
setting such as South Africa. Clearly then, an assessment of this type should be concerned
with the issue of construct equivalency. Furthermore, little information exists regarding the
causes and effects of occupational stress, burnout and work engagement of academics in
South Africa.
The general aim of this study was to standardise an adapted version of the Maslach Burnout
Inventory-General Survey (MBI-GS) and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) for
academics in South African higher education institutions, to determine their levels of
occupational stress, organisational commitment and ill-health, and to test a structural model
of work wellness for South African academics.
A cross-sectional survey design was used, with stratified random samples (N = 595) taken of
academics in six South African universities. The Maslach Burnout Inventory - General
Survey, Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, Job Characteristics Inventory, the Health and
Organisational Commitment subscales of the ASSET, The Life Orientation Test and
Satisfaction with Life Scale were administered. Cronbach alpha coefficients, exploratory
factor analysis, Pearson correlations, multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), one-way
analysis of variance (ANOVA), t-tests and multiple regression analysis were used to analyse
the data. Structural equation modelling was used to test a structural model of work wellness.
Exploratory factor analysis with target rotations resulted in a three-factor model of burnout,
consisting of Exhaustion, Mental Distance and Professional Efficacy. The scales showed
acceptable internal consistencies and construct equivalence for two language groups.
Practically significant differences were found in the burnout levels of academics with regard
to their age, marital status and working hours.
Exploratory factor analysis with target rotations resulted in a two-factor model of work
engagement, consisting of Vigour/Dedication and Absorption. The scales showed acceptable
construct equivalence for two language groups (Afrikaans and English). One scale, namely
Vigour/Dedication showed acceptable internal consistency. Practically significant differences
were found between the work engagement of academics with different job levels and
qualifications.
Compared to the normative data, academics reported significantly high levels of stress
relating to pay and benefits, overload and work-life balance. Academics also reported high
levels of psychological ill-health, but experienced high levels of commitment both from and
towards their organisation. Organisational commitment did not moderate the effects of
occupational stress on ill-health. Analysis of variance revealed differences between the levels
of occupational stress and ill-health of demographic groups.
Regarding a model of work wellness, the results showed that job demands contributed to
burnout, while job resources contributed to work wellness (low burnout and high work
engagement). Burnout mediated the relationship between job demands and ill-health; work
wellness mediated the relationship between job resources and organisational commitment.
Dispositional optimism moderated the effects of a lack of job resources on work engagement.
Work wellness and health contributed to life satisfaction.
Recommendations for future research were made. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:nwu/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/713 |
| Date | January 2005 |
| Creators | Barkhuizen, Emmerentia Nicolene |
| Publisher | North-West University |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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