Faculty and Staff Perceptions of Value: A Qualitative Approach to Identifying Institutional Influences

Current higher education research explores everything from learning outcomes and classroom technology to shared governance and administrative/faculty dynamics. There is little, if any, research about organization-based self esteem (OBSE) within this industry and how to leverage its benefits to improve faculty and staff retention and engagement. This qualitative study presents a theoretical model of OBSE institutional factors developed from semi-structured interviews at a small, liberal arts university. Using the Gioia coding method, three key factors influencing OBSE were identified: position ignorance, recognition source, and intergroup relationships. Though OBSE research establishes recognition source as a known variable of perceived value, this paper proposes two new impact sources of position ignorance and intergroup relationships. By finding ways to improve employee OBSE, higher education institutions can create a more engaged population with improved culture.