RETENTION OF EDUCATORS: THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP, EMPOWERMENT AND WORK ENGAGEMENT

Year 2016, Volume: 8 Issue: 1, 187 - 202, 01.06.2016

A. S. Stander M. W. Stander

Abstract

The teaching context in South Africa is continuously transforming. Consequently, there are numerous challenges that educators have to face, such as a lack of resources and funds, teacher turnover, dealing with discipline, lack of learner motivation and shortage of skilled personnel. It can be expected that educators will be negatively influenced by the above challenges and will therefore show turnover propensity, require the education profession to re-think and re-design its existing management processes in order to retain staff. The aim of this research was to investigate the extent to which leader empowerment behaviour (LEB), psychological empowerment (PE) and work engagement (WE) predict educators’ intentions to leave (IL) the teaching profession. A cross-sectional survey design was used to achieve the research objectives, utilising four standardised questionnaires, namely the Leader Empowering Behaviour Questionnaire, Measuring Empowerment Questionnaire, Work Engagement Survey and Intention to Leave Questionnaire. Results showed that significant positive correlations were found between LEB, PE, WE and negative relations between IL and the other constructs. LEB and PE predicted a high percentage of the variance in WE, while LEB, PE, and WE predicted 28% of the variance in IL. PE indirectly influenced the relationship between LEB and WE, while WE had an indirect effect on the relationship between LEB and IL. The results indicate that school principals that empower educators can play a significant role in educators’ wellness and their willingness to stay in the profession

Keywords

Leader empowerment behaviour, psychological empowerment, work engagement, educators, intention to leave

References

• Amundsen, S. & Martinsen, Ø.L. (2015). Linking empowering leadership to job satisfaction, work effort, and creativity: The role of self-leadership and psychological empowerment. Journal of Leadership & Organizational studies, 1-20.
• Anitha, J. (2014). Determinants of employee engagement and their impact on employee performance. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Vol. 63, No. 3:308-323.
• Arnold, J.A., Arad, S., Rhoades, J.A. & Drasgow, F. (2000). The empowering leadership questionnaire: The construction and validation of a new scale for measuring leader’s behaviours. Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. 21, No. :249-269.
• Austin, M.S. & Harkins, D.A. (2008). Assessing change: Can organizational learning
• “work” for schools? The Learning Organisation, Vol. 15, No. 2:105-125. Aytaç, T. (2015). The relationship between teachers' perception about school managers' talent management leadership and the level of organizational commitment.
• Eurasian Journal of Educational Research, No. 59:165-179. Bakker, A.B., Demerouti, E. & Sanz-Vergel, A.I. (2014). Burnout and work engagement: The JD–R approach. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behaviour, Vol. 1, No. 1:389-411.
• Basford, T.E., Offermann, L.R. & Wirtz, P.W. (2012). Considering the source: The impact of leadership level on follower motivation and intent to stay. Journal of
• Leadership & Organizational Studies, Vol. 19, No. 2:202-214. Bersin, J. (2016). Predictions for 2016: A bold new world of talent, learning, leadership, and HR technology ahead. Deloitte Consulting LLP.
• Bhatnagar, J. (2012). Management of innovation: Role of psychological empowerment, work engagement and turnover intention in the Indian context. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 23, No. 5:928-951.
• Billingsley, B.S. & Cross, L.H. (1992). Predictors of commitment, job satisfaction, and intent to stay in teaching: A comparison of general and special educators.
• Journal of Special Education, Vol. 25, No. 4:453-471. Conger, J.A. & Kanungo, R.N. (1988). The empowerment process: Integrating theory and practice. Academy of Management Review, Vol. 13, No. 3:471-482.
• Cunningham, P. (2007). Power, empowerment and influence. (In Werner, A., ed. Organisational behaviour: A contemporary South African perspective. 2nd ed. Pretoria, South Africa: Van Schaik. p. 199-229).
• De Klerk, S. & Stander, M.W. (2014). Leadership empowerment behaviour, work engagement and turnover intention: The role of psychological empowerment.
• Journal of Positive Management, Vol. 5, No. 3:28-45. De Villiers, J.R. & Stander, M.W. (2011). Psychological empowerment, work engagement and turnover intention: The role of leader relationships and role clarity in a financial institution. Journal of Psychology in Africa, Vol. 21, No. 3:405-412.
• Du Plooy, J. & Roodt, G. (2010). Work engagement, burnout and related constructs as predictors of turnover intentions. South African Journal of Industrial Psychology, Vol. 36, No. 1:1-13.
• Hayes, M.H. (2009). Statistical digital signal processing and modeling. New York,
• NY: John Wiley & Sons. IBM Corporation. (2012). IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows. (Version 21.0).
• Armonk, NY: IBM Corporation. Kearney, J.E. (2008). Factors affecting satisfaction and retention of African
• American and European American teachers in an urban school district: Implications for building and maintaining teachers employed in school districts across the nation. Education and Urban Society, Vol. 40, No. 5:613-627. Kerr-Phillips, B. & Thomas, A. (2009). Macro and micro challenges for talent retention in South Africa. South African Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 7, No. 1:1-10.
• Konczak, L., Stelly, D. & Trusty, M. (2000). Defining and measuring empowering leader behaviours: development of an upward feedback instrument. Education and Psychological Measurement, Vol. 60, No. 2:301-312.
• Mendes, F. & Stander, M.W. (2011). Positive organisation: The role of leader behaviour in work engagement and retention. South African Journal of Industrial Psychology, Vol. 37, No. 1:1-13.
• Menon, S.T. (2001). Employee empowerment: An integrative psychological approach. Applied psychology: An International Review, Vol. 50, No. 1:153-180.
• Muthén, L.K. & Muthén, B.O. (1998-2015). MPlus user’s guide. 6th ed. Los
• Angeles, CA: Muthén & Muthén. Nel, T., Stander, M. W., & Latif, J. (2015). Investigating positive leadership, psychological empowerment, work engagement and satisfaction with life in a chemical industry. South African Journal of Industrial Psychology, Vol. 41, No. 1:1
• Preacher, K.J. & Hayes, A.F. (2008). Asymptotic and resampling strategies for assessing and comparing indirect effects in multiple mediator models. Behavior
• Research Methods, Vol. 40, No. 3:879-891. Quinn, R.E. & Spreitzer, G.M. (1997). The road to empowerment: Seven questions every leader should consider. Organizational Dynamics, Vol. 26, No. 2:37-49.
• Quiñones, M., Van den Broeck, A. & De Witte, H. (2013). Do job resources affect work engagement via psychological empowerment? A mediation analysis. Revista de
• Psicología del Trabajo y de las Organizaciones, Vol. 29, No. 3:127-134. Rath, T. & Conchie, B. (2008). Strengths based leadership. New York, NY: Gallup Press.
• Sarkar, A. & Sarkar, A. (2016). We live in a VUCA World: The importance of responsible leadership. Development and Learning in Organizations: An
• International Journal, Vol. 30, No. 3:9-12. Schaufeli, W.B., (2012). Work engagement: What do we know and where do we go.
• Romanian Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 14, No. 1:3-10. Schaufeli, W. B., Salanova, M., Gonzáles-Romá, V. & Bakker, A. B. (2002). The measurement of engagement and burnout: A confirmatory factor analytic approach.
• Journal of Happiness Studies, No.3:71-92. Schreiber, J.B. (2008). Core reporting practices in structural equation modeling.
• Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy, Vol. 4, No. 2:83-97. Schreiber, J.B., Nora, A., Stage, F.K., Barlow, E.A. & King, J. (2006). Reporting structural equation modeling and confirmatory factor analysis results: A review.
• Journal of Educational Research, Vol. 99, No. 6:323-338. Schulze, S. & Steyn, T. (2007). Stressors in the professional lives of South African secondary school educators. South African Journal of Education, Vol. 27, No. 4:692
• Sjöberg, A. & Sverke, M. (2000). The interactive effect of job involvement and organisational commitment on job turnover revisited: A note on the mediating role of turnover intention. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, Vol. 41, No. 3:247-252.
• Spector, P.E. (2008). Industrial and organizational psychology: Research and practice. 5th ed. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley & Sons.
• Spreitzer, G.M. (1995). Psychological empowerment in the workplace: Dimensions, measurement and validation. Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 38, No. 5:1442
• Spreitzer, G.M., Kizilos, M. & Nason, S. (1997). A dimensional analysis of the relationship between psychological empowerment and effectiveness, satisfaction, and strain. Journal of Management, Vol. 23, No. 5:679-704.
• Stander, M.W., & Rothmann, S. (2008). The relationship between leadership, job satisfaction and organisational commitment. South African Journal of Human
• Resource Management, Vol. 7, No. 3:7-13. Swars, S.L., Meyers, B., Mays, L.C. & Lack, B. (2009). A two-dimensional model of teacher retention and mobility: Classroom teachers and their university partners take a closer look at a vexing problem. Journal of Teacher Education, Vol. 60, No. 2:168
• Takase, M., Maude, P. & Manias, E. (2006). The impact of role discrepancy on nurses’ intention to quit their jobs. Journal of Clinical Nursing, Vol. 15, No. 9:1071
• Taplin, I.M. & Winterton, J. (2007). The importance of management style in labour retention. International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, Vol. 27, No. 1/2:5
• Thomas, K.W. & Velthouse, B.A. (1990). Cognitive elements of empowerment: An
• “interpretive’ model of intrinsic task motivation. Academy of Management Review, Vol.15, No. 3:666-681. Van Niekerk, E.J. & Van Niekerk, P. (2006). Strategic management in South African education: The leadership dimension. Africa Education Review, Vol. 3, No. 1-2:84
• Wallach, A.V. & Mueller, C.W. (2006). Job characteristics and organisational predictors of psychological empowerment among paraprofessional within human service organisations: An exploratory study. Administration of Social Work, Vol. 30, No. 10:95-110.
• Wang, J. & Wang, X. (2012). Structural equation modeling: Applications using
• Mplus. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons. Xaba, M.I. (2003). Managing teacher turnover. South African Journal of Education, Vol. 23, No. 4:287-292.