Support staff perceptions of work environment and psychological ambiance: A study of universities and research institutes in the Mid Atlantic Region.

摘要

The purpose of this study was to investigate and compare support staff perceptions of work environment and psychological ambiance based on gender, age, race, years of service, responsibility and educational background amongst universities and research institutes in the Mid-Atlantic Region. To facilitate the understanding of this phenomenon, research questions were defined to examine and compare the perceptions of support staff members' work environment and psychological ambiance based on the aforementioned.;The targeted population for the study consisted of support staff at four universities and research institutes willing to participate in the study, and the sample population was 100 from each institution bringing the total survey sample population to 400. A stratified random sampling technique was utilized, following the model of Best and Kahn (2003). The Work Environment Scale (WES) Form R, third edition developed by Moos (1994b) was employed for data collection. Upon the approvals from the Human Resources Department of those institutions and the researcher's Institutional Review Board (IRB), the instrument or survey questionnaire packages were mailed to the selected study subjects.;Frequencies, percentages, descriptive statistics, means and standard deviations were utilized in the analyses of demographic data. The study employed multiple linear regression analysis to determine whether significant differences exist in the perceptions of support staff members' work environment and psychological ambiance based on gender, age, race, years of service, responsibility and educational background.;Major findings in the study show that: (a) the professional staff (PS) variable has statistically significant impact on the work environment score compared to non-professional staff; (b) African Americans (AA) in the study significantly contributed to the work environment score compared to non-African Americans; (c) A statistically significant contribution was found in the psychological ambiance score for African Americans (AA) in the study; and (d) The analysis showed no statistical significance in the support staff and supervisor or leadership support. The aforementioned findings mean that the higher the level of education of the support staff, the more likely that they would have a negative view of their work environment. For example, professional staff (PS) has the highest negative view of their work environment compared to non-professional staff. The result is also an indication that the higher the level of support staff education, the more likely that they will be outspoken about their work environment. African Americans (AA) in our study show a high negative view of the work environment and psychological ambiance compared to non-African Americans.;Additionally, those with high school (HS) diplomas have a positive view of their work environment compared to those with college degrees. The result suggests that those with a high school diploma are less vocal about their work environment and this may be attributed to fear of reprisal or job security.;As a cross-sectional study, some evidence of multicollinearity was discovered and variance inflation factor (VIF) analysis was conducted to examine the severity. The literature indicated that linear regression analysis using the regression model was never performed with the WES in higher institutions settings; even so, limited study was done on work environment and psychological ambiance of support staff in the higher education arena. The information gained from this research will serve as a foundation for others to follow.