A positive approach to management education: The relationship between academic PsyCap and student engagement
29 Sep 2016-Journal of Management Development (Emerald Group Publishing Limited)-Vol. 35, Iss: 9, pp 1098-1118
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the relationship between the positive psychological strengths of undergraduate business students, collectively known as positive psychological capital (PsyCap), and their levels of engagement, and found significant positive relationships between the academic PsyCap of 323 business students and their level of student-faculty engagement (SFE), community-based activities (CBA), r=0.30, p<0.01), and transformational learning opportunities (TLO) r= 0.19, p <0.
Abstract: Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between the positive psychological strengths of undergraduate business students, collectively known as positive psychological capital (PsyCap), and their levels of engagement.
Design/methodology/approach
This study has a cross-sectional design in which students from two Midwestern universities were surveyed regarding their levels of PsyCap and levels of engagement in educationally sound activities. Item response theory (IRT) and hierarchical regression were used to test study hypotheses. The authors assessed measurement validity using confirmatory factor analyses in MPLUS 7.0 using four-category 2PL graded response models with a weighted least squares means and variance adjusted estimator. Hierarchical regression was used to control for alternative explanations of variance in assessing the effects of PsyCap on student engagement.
Findings
Using measures of student engagement drawn from the National Survey of Student Engagement, the analysis indicated significant positive relationships between the academic PsyCap of 323 undergraduate business students and their levels of student-faculty engagement (SFE; r=0.30, p<0.01), community-based activities (CBA; r=0.28, p<0.01), and transformational learning opportunities (TLO; r=0.19, p<0.01). A series of hierarchical regressions also indicated that PsyCap is a significant predictor of student engagement as assessed against SFE, CBA, and TLO.
Research limitations/implications
The findings from this study suggest that further research examining the relationship between PsyCap development and student engagement could have significant implications for management educators. The positive associations found between these key variables could be utilized by management educators to implement novel and effective teaching interventions for developing the PsyCap of their students and, ultimately, increase their students’ levels of engagement.
Originality/value
Although extant research has demonstrated connections between positive psychological constructs (i.e. hope, self-efficacy, resilience, optimism) and student engagement, this is the first study to take a holistic view of developable, positive psychological capacities, collectively assessed as PsyCap, and examine the potential impact on three recognized dimensions of student engagement.
Citations
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used semi-structured interviews on a small sample of 38 final year students from a UK university who were also participants in an earlier two-wave quantitative survey, which was conducted with 387 penultimate and final year undergraduates from the same UK-based University.
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to understand how students perceive their future careers and how university has prepared them to enter the global labor market; student perceptions regarding benefits vs associated costs of pursuing higher education (HE) on employability and earnings; and the anticipated barriers and how to overcome these in pursuit of career sustainability within a career ecosystem.,The authors adopted a qualitative method using semi-structured interviews on a small sample of 38 final year students from a UK university who were also participants in an earlier two-wave quantitative survey, which was conducted with 387 penultimate and final year undergraduates from the same UK-based University.,Findings revealed that undergraduates perceive their investment in HE to offer a net financial gain; however, this is narrowing due to increased tuition fees, associated student debt and interest payments eroding earning premiums. As undergraduates progress, they feel more employable from a personal perspective, but less employable from a market perspective due to competition for graduate jobs and the cost/benefit conflict of resources.,The authors provide nine opportunities for enhancing the employability of graduates collaborating with graduate employers, providing a timely contribution to the social, political and economic debate on the funding of HE.,The authors advance career theory via the new perspective of Career Ecosystem Theory by: explaining student career perceptions in terms of how university has prepared them for the global labor market; exploring the perceived costs vs benefits of pursuing HE in relation to employability; suggesting a two-dimensional model of personal and market factors of employability; providing a model of careers advice from employers and universities for supporting students’ careers; and offering policy implications in relation to the future funding of HE and employability of future graduates.
94 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the role of grit plays in important student outcomes is discussed and popular and academic attention is being given to the role that grit played in important students outcomes, while gritty individuals are more likely to engage in deliberate practice and maintai...
Abstract: Recent popular and academic attention is being given to the role that grit plays in important student outcomes. While gritty individuals are more likely to engage in deliberate practice and maintai...
65 citations
TL;DR: Analysis of social networks may be a useful tool for understanding the relationship between resilience and engagement, and this could be applied to educational methodologies, not only to improve academic performance, but also to create emotionally sustainable networks.
Abstract: Analysis of social networks may be a useful tool for understanding the relationship between resilience and engagement, and this could be applied to educational methodologies, not only to improve academic performance, but also to create emotionally sustainable networks. This descriptive study was carried out on 134 university students. We collected the network structural variables, degree of resilience (CD-RISC 10), and engagement (UWES-S). The computer programs used were excel, UCINET for network analysis, and SPSS for statistical analysis. The analysis revealed results of means of 28.61 for resilience, 2.98 for absorption, 4.82 for dedication, and 3.13 for vigour. The students had two preferred places for sharing information: the classroom and WhatsApp. The greater the value for engagement, the greater the degree of centrality in the friendship network among students who are beginning their university studies. This relationship becomes reversed as the students move to later academic years. In terms of resilience, the highest values correspond to greater centrality in the friendship networks. The variables of engagement and resilience influenced the university students' support networks.
33 citations
TL;DR: Analysis showed psychological capital to significantly predict both burnout and engagement and social support was found to be influential, indicating the benefit of psychological capital in an academic context.
Abstract: Background Online distance learning at university level is growing in popularity. Learners are often faced with the dual demands of full-time work and part-time studying. The present study examines whether psychological capital predicts learner engagement and burnout and whether social support moderates these relationships. Method: Postgraduate distance learning students who work alongside their studies (n=465) completed measures of psychological capital, burnout, engagement, and social support. Results: Analysis showed psychological capital to significantly predict both burnout and engagement. Furthermore, social support was found to be influential. Conclusion: The findings indicate the benefit of psychological capital in an academic context. Implications of these findings and potential interventions are discussed.
32 citations
08 Aug 2018
TL;DR: In this paper, the mediating role of psychological capital (PsyCap) between work engagement and general well-being (GWB) as well as between WE and control at work (CAW) was examined.
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating role of psychological capital (PsyCap) between work engagement (WE) and general well-being (GWB) as well as between WE and control at work (CAW).,Data were collected from 200 medical employees involved in rendering healthcare services. Structural equation modeling was done to test the hypotheses.,Analyses of the data revealed that PsyCap mediates fully between WE and CAW and partially between WE and GWB.,The results show that PsyCap plays a positive role in transferring the impact of engagement levels to GWB and CAW. The results augment the broaden-and-build theory by explaining how positivity at the workplace can help the engaged employees improve well-being and CAW.,Hospitals in India are encouraged to recruit psychologically capable (high in PsyCap) employees. Such psychologically capable and engaged employees have greater CAW and have higher general well-being.,This study is among the few preliminary studies which have focused on the mechanism through which well-being and CAW of employees involved in healthcare services in India get affected.
30 citations
References
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TL;DR: In this article, the adequacy of the conventional cutoff criteria and several new alternatives for various fit indexes used to evaluate model fit in practice were examined, and the results suggest that, for the ML method, a cutoff value close to.95 for TLI, BL89, CFI, RNI, and G...
Abstract: This article examines the adequacy of the “rules of thumb” conventional cutoff criteria and several new alternatives for various fit indexes used to evaluate model fit in practice. Using a 2‐index presentation strategy, which includes using the maximum likelihood (ML)‐based standardized root mean squared residual (SRMR) and supplementing it with either Tucker‐Lewis Index (TLI), Bollen's (1989) Fit Index (BL89), Relative Noncentrality Index (RNI), Comparative Fit Index (CFI), Gamma Hat, McDonald's Centrality Index (Mc), or root mean squared error of approximation (RMSEA), various combinations of cutoff values from selected ranges of cutoff criteria for the ML‐based SRMR and a given supplemental fit index were used to calculate rejection rates for various types of true‐population and misspecified models; that is, models with misspecified factor covariance(s) and models with misspecified factor loading(s). The results suggest that, for the ML method, a cutoff value close to .95 for TLI, BL89, CFI, RNI, and G...
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TL;DR: The extent to which method biases influence behavioral research results is examined, potential sources of method biases are identified, the cognitive processes through which method bias influence responses to measures are discussed, the many different procedural and statistical techniques that can be used to control method biases is evaluated, and recommendations for how to select appropriate procedural and Statistical remedies are provided.
Abstract: Interest in the problem of method biases has a long history in the behavioral sciences. Despite this, a comprehensive summary of the potential sources of method biases and how to control for them does not exist. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to examine the extent to which method biases influence behavioral research results, identify potential sources of method biases, discuss the cognitive processes through which method biases influence responses to measures, evaluate the many different procedural and statistical techniques that can be used to control method biases, and provide recommendations for how to select appropriate procedural and statistical remedies for different types of research settings.
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01 Jan 1997TL;DR: SelfSelf-Efficacy (SE) as discussed by the authors is a well-known concept in human behavior, which is defined as "belief in one's capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to produce given attainments".
Abstract: Albert Bandura and the Exercise of Self-Efficacy Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control Albert Bandura. New York: W. H. Freeman (www.whfreeman.com). 1997, 604 pp., $46.00 (hardcover). Enter the term "self-efficacy" in the on-line PSYCLIT database and you will find over 2500 articles, all of which stem from the seminal contributions of Albert Bandura. It is difficult to do justice to the immense importance of this research for our theories, our practice, and indeed for human welfare. Self-efficacy (SE) has proven to be a fruitful construct in spheres ranging from phobias (Bandura, Jeffery, & Gajdos, 1975) and depression (Holahan & Holahan, 1987) to career choice behavior (Betz & Hackett, 1986) and managerial functioning (Jenkins, 1994). Bandura's Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control is the best attempt so far at organizing, summarizing, and distilling meaning from this vast and diverse literature. Self-Efficacy may prove to be Bandura's magnum opus. Dr. Bandura has done an impressive job of summarizing over 1800 studies and papers, integrating these results into a coherent framework, and detailing implications for theory and practice. While incorporating prior works such as Social Learning Theory (Bandura, 1977) and "Self-efficacy mechanism in human agency" (Bandura, 1982), Self-Efficacy extends these works by describing results of diverse new research, clarifying and extending social cognitive theory, and fleshing out implications of the theory for groups, organizations, political bodies, and societies. Along the way, Dr. Bandura masterfully contrasts social cognitive theory with many other theories of human behavior and helps chart a course for future research. Throughout, B andura' s clear, firm, and self-confident writing serves as the perfect vehicle for the theory he espouses. Self-Efficacy begins with the most detailed and clear explication of social cognitive theory that I have yet seen, and proceeds to delineate the nature and sources of SE, the well-known processes via which SE mediates human behavior, and the development of SE over the life span. After laying this theoretical groundwork, subsequent chapters delineate the relevance of SE to human endeavor in a variety of specific content areas including cognitive and intellectual functioning; health; clinical problems including anxiety, phobias, depression, eating disorders, alcohol problems, and drug abuse; athletics and exercise activity; organizations; politics; and societal change. In Bandura's words, "Perceived self-efficacy refers to beliefs in one's capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to produce given attainments" (p. 3). People's SE beliefs have a greater effect on their motivation, emotions, and actions than what is objectively true (e.g., actual skill level). Therefore, SE beliefs are immensely important in choice of behaviors (including occupations, social relationships, and a host of day-to-day behaviors), effort expenditure, perseverance in pursuit of goals, resilience to setbacks and problems, stress level and affect, and indeed in our ways of thinking about ourselves and others. Bandura affirms many times that humans are proactive and free as well as determined: They are "at least partial architects of their own destinies" (p. 8). Because SE beliefs powerfully affect human behaviors, they are a key factor in human purposive activity or agency; that is, in human freedom. Because humans shape their environment even as they are shaped by it, SE beliefs are also pivotal in the construction of our social and physical environments. Bandura details over two decades of research confirming that SE is modifiable via mastery experiences, vicarious learning, verbal persuasion, and interpretation of physiological states, and that modified SE strongly and consistently predicts outcomes. SE beliefs, then, are central to human self-determination. STRENGTHS One major strength of Self-Efficacy is Bandura's ability to deftly dance from forest to trees and back again to forest, using specific, human examples and concrete situations to highlight his major theoretical premises, to which he then returns. …
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