A comparative study of perceptions of gender and leadership in Australian and Turkish universities
- Authors: White, Kate , Özkanli, Ozlem
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management Vol. 33, no. 1 (2011), p. 3-16
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- Description: This paper analyses differences in perceptions of gender and leadership though qualitative interviews with 45 senior managers in Australia and Turkey. The literature suggests that masculine models of leadership are changing with both women and many men preferring transformational leadership styles. The research found that there were different perceptions about gender and leadership in Australian and Turkish universities, reflecting different economic and social contexts. Turkish respondents mostly did not engage in discussion on the topic and did not consider women experienced discrimination as managers. In contrast, Australian respondents acknowledged discrimination and supported interventions by Vice-Chancellors (VCs) to increase women in university management. Perceptions of leadership in Turkish universities were aligned with a predominantly masculine/transactional model, and in Australia had moved from heroic masculinity to more inclusive leadership styles, consistent with a transformational leadership model.
Gender, power and managerialism in universities
- Authors: White, Kate , Carvalho, Teresa , Riordan, Sarah
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management Vol. 33, no. 2 (2011), p. 179-189
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- Description: This article explores the role of senior managers in consolidating and interpreting new managerialism in higher education in Australia, South Africa and Portugal, and perceptions of potential effects on gender. The impact of managerialism on decision-making in Australia was increased centralisation with the Vice Chancellor operating as a Chief Executive Officer; in South Africa tension existed between collegial and managerial models evident in power struggles between Vice Chancellors and faculties, plus overt risk and strong political considerations; while in Portugal decision making remained collegial with Rectors seeing themselves as primus inter pares (first among equals). The major finding was that while women as senior managers had an increased capacity to impact on decision-making in managerial universities, mainly related to 'soft' management skills, these were not valued in a competitive management culture strongly focused on research output. Thus managerialism presents a great challenge for women in senior management in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Gender, power and managerialism in universities
- Authors: White, Kate , Carvalho, Teresa , Riordan, Sarah
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management Vol. 33, no. 2 (2011), p. 179-188
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: This article explores the role of senior managers in consolidating and interpreting new managerialism in higher education in Australia, South Africa and Portugal, and perceptions of potential effects on gender. The impact of managerialism on decision-making in Australia was increased centralisation with the Vice Chancellor operating as a Chief Executive Officer; in South Africa tension existed between collegial and managerial models evident in power struggles between Vice Chancellors and faculties, plus overt risk and strong political considerations; while in Portugal decision making remained collegial with Rectors seeing themselves as primus inter pares (first among equals). The major finding was that while women as senior managers had an increased capacity to impact on decision-making in managerial universities, mainly related to 'soft' management skills, these were not valued in a competitive management culture strongly focused on research output. Thus managerialism presents a great challenge for women in senior management in higher education.
Job satisfaction of academics: Does gender matter?
- Authors: Machado-Taylor, Maria , White, Kate , Gouveia, Odília Maria Rocha
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Higher Education Policy Vol. 27, no. 3 (2014), p. 363-384
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- Description: Academic work in higher education has been influenced by global trends such as accountability, massification and deteriorating financial support. Within this broader context, the performance of academic staff as teachers and researchers has an impact on student learning and implications for the quality of higher education institutions (HEIs). Therefore, satisfaction of academic staff is critical to the effective functioning of HEIs. This article reports on a study of academic career satisfaction in Portugal and gender differences with respect to academic job satisfaction. It found that male respondents in HEIs were in higher positions than women, but less so in private institutions. It also analysed some aspects of the professional context in which women and men work in order to explain similarities and/or differences in job satisfaction. The main difference was that women were less satisfied with personal and professional development, especially the balance between work and family.
Senior women in higher education institutions : Perceived development needs and support
- Authors: Tessens, Lucienne , White, Kate , Web, Claire
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management Vol. 33, no. 6 (2011), p. 653-665
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- Description: This paper analyses a survey of leadership development needs and current challenges of senior women at two different Australian universities. It found that their leadership development needs were quite similar: over 80 per cent of respondents considered that a senior women's leadership programme would provide knowledge and skills for leadership in the current tough working environment. The preferred content included skills in people management, political awareness, operational issues and career development, and preferred format was mentoring, peer networks, coaching and 360 degree feedback, and shadowing and mentoring at another university. The qualitative responses indicated several strong themes: the impact of excessive workloads and high levels of administration on their effectiveness; the need for peer and supervisor support and networks, underpinned by effective organisational skills and administrative support; and the gendering of careers, especially academic careers, evident in male colleagues receiving more support, resources and recognition. © 2011 Copyright 2011 Association for Tertiary Education Management and the L H Martin Institute for Higher Education Leadership and Management.
Senior women in higher education institutions : Perceived development needs and support
- Authors: Tessens, Lucienne , White, Kate , Web, Claire
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management Vol. 33, no. 6 (2011), p. 653-665
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: This paper analyses a survey of leadership development needs and current challenges of senior women at two different Australian universities. It found that their leadership development needs were quite similar: over 80 per cent of respondents considered that a senior women's leadership programme would provide knowledge and skills for leadership in the current tough working environment. The preferred content included skills in people management, political awareness, operational issues and career development, and preferred format was mentoring, peer networks, coaching and 360 degree feedback, and shadowing and mentoring at another university. The qualitative responses indicated several strong themes: the impact of excessive workloads and high levels of administration on their effectiveness; the need for peer and supervisor support and networks, underpinned by effective organisational skills and administrative support; and the gendering of careers, especially academic careers, evident in male colleagues receiving more support, resources and recognition.
The gendered shaping of University Leadership in Australia, South Africa and the United Kingdom
- Authors: White, Kate , Bagilhole, Barbara , Riordan, Sarah
- Date: 2012
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Higher Education Quarterly Vol. 66, no. 3 (2012), p. 293-307
- Full Text: false
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- Description: This article analyses career trajectories into university management in Australia, South Africa and the United Kingdom (UK), skills required to operate effectively and the power of vice-chancellors (VCs) and their impact on the gendered shaping of university leadership. It is based on qualitative research with 56 male and female senior managers. The research found that the typical career path was modelled on male academic careers. Not surprisingly, in South Africa and the UK the perception of the top university leader was of a man but in Australia, where more women have been VCs, there was no such assumption. Characteristics valued in university leaders in Australia and South Africa were 'soft' leadership traits, but in the UK 'hard' aggressive and competitive leadership prevailed. VCs are enormously powerful and can shape the gender balance in management teams and thereby potentially broadening leadership styles beyond the predominant transactional model to include transformational leadership. © 2012 The Authors. Higher Education Quarterly © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.