UWCScholar :: Browsing by Author "du Plessis, Marieta"

Browsing by Author "du Plessis, Marieta"

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Academic career management intervention at a South African university: A modified Delphi study
(AOSIS (pty) Ltd, 2023) Barnes, Nina; du Plessis, Marieta; Frantz, Jose M
Orientation: Understanding the components for an academic career management intervention programme, to enable the development of the required academic pipeline to achieve the strategic objectives of higher education institutions. Research purpose: A consensus view across subject experts for a career management intervention programme to enable the progression of academic careers. Motivation for the study: While academic career literature captures an array of normative designs of career management programmes to cultivate the required academic talent consortium, literature indicates a lack of a comprehensive and systematic approach for career management to provide a framework for successfully managing academic careers. Research design, approach and method: A modified Delphi technique was employed, by presenting an expert panel with the findings of a broader research project to initiate the consensus-seeking methodology-a systematic approach to obtain concordance on the experts’ opinions through two rounds of structured questionnaires. Main findings: The identified components are structured and presented in five main themes (categories), including: (1) institutional, (2) individual, (3) overlapping, (4) cultural and (5) external.
Academics in lockdown: A gendered perspective on self-esteem in academia during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown
(MDPI, 2023) Walters, Cyrill; Ronnie, Linda; du Plessis, Marieta
This qualitative research explores the experiences and sense-making of self-worth of 1857 South African women academics during the enforced pandemic lockdown between March and September 2020; the study was conducted through an inductive, content analysis process. Since worldwide lockdowns were imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, women academics, in particular, have reported a unique set of challenges from working from home. Gender inequality within the scientific enterprise has been well documented; however, the cost to female academics’ selfesteem, which has been exacerbated by the pandemic, has yet to be fully realized. The findings of the study include negative emotional experiences related to self-worth, engagement in social comparisons, and the fear of judgement by colleagues, which were exacerbated by peer pressure.
Authentic leadership, followership, and psychological capital as antecedents of work engagement
(Routledge, 2018) du Plessis, Marieta; Boshoff, Adré B
The present study investigated authentic leadership, psychological capital, and followership behaviour influences on work engagement of employees . Respondents were 901 South African employees within the healthcare industry organisation (n = 647) and mining industry (n = 254) . The employees completed questionnaires on authentic leadership, psychological capital, and followership behaviour, and work engagement . Results following structural equation modelling and mediation analysis suggest work engagement to be explained by the psychological capital of the employee rather than by authentic leadership qualities . Improving employee psychological capital has the potential to enhance the levels of work engagement of employees.
Authentic leadership, organisational citizenship behaviours, and intention to quit: the indirect effect of psychological ownership
(South African journal of Psychology, 2020) du Plessis, Marieta
The aim of this study was to explore the influence of perceived authentic leadership on followers’ citizenship behaviour and their intention to quit their jobs, and to examine the indirect effect of psychological ownership in the relevant relationships. The study used a cross-sectional survey design to gather data from a sample of South African service industry employees (N = 384). It employed structural equation modelling to test the hypotheses formulated. The study found that psychological ownership indirectly affected the relationship between authentic leadership and employees’ organisational citizenship behaviour and intention to quit. This study enables organisations to gain a better understanding of how a contextual resource such as authentic leadership behaviours can influence followers’ organisational citizenship and intention to quit through increasing feelings of ownership of the organisation.
Career competencies for academic career progression: Experiences of academics at a South African university
(Frontiers Media, 2022) Barnes, Nina; du Plessis, Marieta
An understanding of career competencies is critical for the progression of academic careers, as it influences the availability of adequate and capable academic staff at all levels within universities. The study aimed to explore and describe the career competencies that academics demonstrate to successfully progress in their careers, while theoretically underpinned by an integrated competency framework. This report is based on the qualitative experiences, gathered through semi-structured interviews of eight academic staff in various career phases, in a South African university. Data was thematically analysed, while a deductive modality was adopted to identify the competencies. The findings align very closely with the dimensions of the integrated competency framework, including reflective competencies: gap analysis, self-evaluation, social comparison, and goal orientation; communicative competencies: information seeking and negotiation; and behavioural competencies: strategy alignment, control and agency, university awareness, continuous learning and collaboration.
Counselling preparedness and responsiveness of industrial psychologists in the face of Covid-19
(AOSIS, 2021) du Plessis, Marieta; Thomas, Emma C.
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has brought to the forefront the need for industrial-organisational psychologists (IOPs) and organisations to place an emphasis on employees’ mental and physical health at all times. The purpose of the research was to determine how prepared IOPs are to counsel employees during the pandemic and how responsive they are to provide counselling.It is not clear to what extent such counselling is being practised by IOPs in the workplace during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Counselling preparedness and responsiveness of industrial psychologists in the face of COVID-19.
(SA Journal of Industrial Psychology, 2021-05-17) du Plessis, Marieta; Thomas, Emma C.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a pandemic in March 2020. For much of the following year, the COVID-19 pandemic had a bewildering and unprecedented effect on all aspects of society across the globe (Gautam & Sharma, 2020). For instance, in March 2020 the South African government implemented drastic measures to curb the spread of the virus, breaking existing social and economic forms of contact (Arndt et al., 2020). It quickly became evident that the direct and indirect psychological and social effects of the pandemic were pervasive and could affect mental health long after the pandemic itself is over (Holmes et al., 2020). As a result of prolonged lockdown and business closures, people experienced social isolation, lifestyle disruptions and loss of personal income, whilst society lost its productivity in a crippled economy (Tan et al., 2020). This pandemic has exacerbated stressors in a healthcare system in which burnout, a response to workplace stress, is already endemic (Restauri & Sheridan, 2020). Given this global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is much speculation about the effects it will have on the future of work and on people working in organisations (Rudolph et al., 2020). Indeed, the influence of the pandemic has provoked a career shock in many people (Akkermans, Richardson, & Kraimer, 2020; Hite & McDonald, 2020). There have been tangible effects on work- related processes, including job losses and large-scale implementation of new remote labour policies (Adalja, Toner, & Inglesby, 2020).These changes have imposed numerous psychological stressors upon individuals (Van Bavel et al., 2020). For example, people are experiencing increased work and family demands, especially as they navigate the need to re-balance multiple work-related roles with their personal lives. Frontline employees such as healthcare workers needed increased levels of resilience, as they continued to attempt to save lives whilst battling snowballing numbers of infected people (Hite & McDonald, 2020). External demands (e.g. increased uncertainty about job security, financial difficulties) are likewise accumulating. Sibley et al. (2020) reported that the nationwide lockdown in New Zealand resulted in higher rates of mental distress. Zacher and Rudolph (2020) reported decreases in life satisfaction and positive affect in a German sample (N = 979). In India, a 20% increase in patients with mental illness has been reported since the COVID-19 outbreak (Loiwal, 2020). This emerging evidence of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health echoes WHO concerns about its long-term psychosocial consequences (WHO, 2020a). Specifically, there are concerns about increased experiences of loneliness, anxiety, depression, insomnia, harmful substance use, self-harm and suicidal behaviour (WHO, 2020b). Kumar and Nayar (2020) suggest that one of the major challenges in mitigating mental health consequences of the pandemic is the lack of mental health professionals, practitioners and counsellors. Industrial-organisational psychologists (IOPs) are professionals who specialise in the psychology of work and human behaviour in organisations (Van Vuuren, 2010). The Health Professions Act (2006) (Health Professions Council of South Africa [HPCSA], 2011) postulates that the main tasks of IOPs are to: [P]lan, develop and apply paradigms, theories, models, constructs and principles of psychology to issues related to the world of work in order to understand, modify and enhance individual, group and organisational behaviour, well-being and effectiveness. (p. 9) Hence, IOPs should support well-balanced employees towards a process of development and optimisation. Although a key focus for IOPs is to ensure workplace readiness and compliance with occupational health and safety measures (Rudolph et al., 2020), it is clear that COVID-19 workplace interventions should address not only the physiological but also the psychological needs of employees (e.g. via counselling procedures) (Zhou et al., 2020). The purpose of this study was to determine the preparedness and crisis responsiveness of IOPs as related to workplace counselling.
The development of a career management intervention programme for academics in a South African higher education institution
(University of the Western Cape, 2022) Barnes, Nina; du Plessis, Marieta
The higher education sector, similar to all other industries, is subjected to unprecedented challenges outside traditional continuity threats, which include the global pandemic and COVID-19 regulations (World Health Organization, 2020) as a particular demonstration. Besides this global context, there is significant pressure on South African higher education to achieve national higher education goals. Achievement depends on the availability of adequate and capable academics at all university levels. Higher education institutions recognise the need to ensure the required academic pipeline to achieve their strategic objectives.
Influential factors impacting leadership effectiveness: A case study at a public university
(AOSIS, 2022) Jansen van Vuuren, Carel D.; Visser, Kobus; du Plessis, Marieta
As a result of increased globalisation and rapid changes in the technological, social, economic and political spheres, the environment in which businesses and organisations function has become increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA). This has created a unique set of challenges for the leaders of these organisations, including higher education (HE) in South Africa. This study aimed to identify potential influential factors that have impact on leader effectiveness in a HE VUCA environment.
Institutional culture and academic career progression: Perceptions and experiences of academic staff.
(SA Journal of Industrial Psychology, 2021-09-17) du Plessis, Marieta; Frantz, Jose M.; Barnes, Nina
The culture of higher education has a long and unique history, with the understanding that any attempt to appreciate the processes within the system must have an advanced comprehension of the culture of higher education (Callaghan, 2015). Moreover, higher education institutional cultures have always been regarded as resistant to change (Maguad, 2018). However, a national review, conducted by the South African Council on Higher Education (CHE, 2016), confirmed the world-wide shifts in higher education, which necessitated the assessment and adjustment of institutional cultures. The enormity of the barriers that an institutional culture could represent has been acknowledged since the 1997 White Paper (Republic of South Africa [RSA], Department of Education [DOE], 1997). Consequently, the CHE report appealed to the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) to apply funding models that would enable a culture, conducive to unlocking South Africa’s research potential, whilst developing and cultivating the academic profession (CHE, 2016). The academic profession, however, similar to all other professions, is subjected to unprecedented challenges outside the scope of traditional continuity threats, such as the global pandemic, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) (World Health Organization [WHO], 2020). The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated higher education institutions to respond, appropriately and efficiently whilst ensuring delivery during a sustained crisis. Academic staff, therefore, were required to operate in a complex, evolving and dynamic environment, which required an institutional culture that was responsive to an era, characterised by a flux of change (Waller, Lemoine, Mense, Garretson, & Richardson, 2019). Career management and progression are critical during times of complexity, more so whilst engaging and cultivating key talent (Callanan, Perri, & Tomkowicz 2017; Donohue & Tham, 2019; Janse van Rensburg, Rothmann, & Diedericks, 2017a). Currently, the success of a university, more than ever, is dependent on the academic profession, their career progression and satisfaction, as well as their commitment and motivation to achieve the university’s desired level of educational services and quality of scientific research (Szelągowska-Rudzka, 2018). A focus on the career progression of academics, to address the primary concerns regarding the academic staff in the South African context, is further supported by the CHE review (CHE, 2016, p. 208). These concerns include recruitment, retention and equity of academic staff, as well as the expected retirement rates, against the backdrop of a great shortage of academics with suitable qualifications (CHE 2016, p. 290). Statistics confirm that South African universities need more academic staff with doctoral degrees, particularly from historically disadvantaged groups, to fill and increase the academic pipeline (Breier & Herman, 2017). Although academic exit, or turnover, is a global challenge, the capacity and sustainability of South African higher education institutions are threatened by the exodus of academics (Callaghan, 2015; Mashile, Munyeka, & Ndlovu, 2021). Furthermore, whilst it is difficult to appoint and retain academic staff with high standing (Theron, Barkhuizen, & Du Plessis, 2014), the CHE (2016) review acknowledges that academia is in competition with career offers from government, civil service and corporates, who all need to access the pool of highly skilled South African Black and women professionals. Evidently, careers do not develop in isolation. Instead, careers within organisations are shaped by the organisation’s strategy (Schreuder & Coetzee, 2016) and, specifically, the organisation’s culture (Grobler, Rudolph & Bezuidenhout, 2014). An organisation’s culture, therefore, is a powerful source and transmitter of social information, shaping individual career motivations, decisions and behaviours (Hall & Yip, 2016). The impact of culture on careers is not a new concept. Culture is identified by Kanter (1984), as well as Schein (1985) as both a cause and an effect on an employee’s move within and across an organisation. Further studies highlight the need to understand and consider the organisational culture as critical for career management processes (Maher, 2017). Institutional culture is identified as a key reason for academic turnover (Mashile et al., 2021), together with the need for institutional culture to support academic development and progression (Lesenyeho, Barkhuizen, & Schutte, 2018). In a recent study, academic staff identified institutional culture as a challenge for their career management and progression (Barnes, Du Plessis, & Frantz, 2021).With the challenges of higher education and the academic career in mind, a comprehensive and deeper understanding of any higher education institutional culture requires analysis beyond the structural elements and established procedures of the institution. An understanding of how individuals interpret their environment, to support their career progression, is equally vital. The objective history of any given institution, combined with established institutional norms, will result in a limited set of immutable outcomes for any given situation (Tierney & Lanford, 2018). An understanding of institutional culture allows real or potential conflicts to be considered in the broader institutional life, and not in isolation, whilst it allows the identification of structural or operational contradictions that suggest tension in the institution. In addition, it allows the evaluation and implementation of everyday decisions, with a keen awareness of its role in, and influence on institutional culture; provides an understanding of the symbolic dimension of seemingly instrumental decisions and actions; and considers why various groups in the institution hold varying perceptions about institutional performance (Tierney & Lanford, 2018). It is against this context that the study aimed to establish and present, from the academics’ point of view, the values, practices and behaviours that facilitate an institutional culture that supports the career progression of academic staff.
Intention to quit, organisational citizenship and counterproductive workplace behaviour in higher education: The role of emotional intelligence and relationship quality
(University of Western Cape, 2021) Roux, Chené Madelin; du Plessis, Marieta
The foundation of this study lies in the essential role of employees in the Higher Education Sector, as they are key in the effective functioning of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The effective operations of these institutions, in turn, is vital considering the important role the institutions play with regard to the development and expansion of human capital and skills. Previous research has highlighted the high turnover rates experienced in HEIs, applicable to HEIs in South Africa too.
Job demands and job resources of academics in higher education
(Frontiers Media, 2021) Naidoo-Chetty, Mineshree; du Plessis, Marieta
Too many job demands and not enough job resources can negatively influence the well-being of employees. Currently, limited information exists surrounding the job demands and resources as experienced by academic employees in the higher education sector. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify the job demands and job resources experienced by academic employees using qualitative methods. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 23 academic employees, using an Interpretative Phenomenological Approach. Thematic analysis, specifically template analysis was used to categorize the themes. Job demands were divided into three categories: quantitative (publication pressure, overburdened with the load, and competing time demands), qualitative (work/home balance, complexity of student support, organizational politics, and lack of mental health support) and organizational demands (using technology-mediated learning and lack of structural resources). Job resources were organized into two categories: organizational (social support) and personal resources (autonomy, meaningful work, and personal support). Participant experiences are highlighted to provide a better understanding of the job demands and job resources encountered.
Perceived career management challenges of academics at a South African university
(AOSIS, 2021) Barnes, Nina; du Plessis, Marieta; Frantz, Jose M.
Understanding academic career challenges is important at a national and global level, to support academic career progression. Whilst challenges are identified in academic career literature, higher education institutions are identified as complex interdependent structures and, therefore, encouraged to be studied from a perspective of interdependency and complexity.ore and describe the perceived career management challenges of academics at a South African university. To address the need for an integrated approach, from an individual and organisational perspective, through a systems-thinking framework (STF), which acknowledges academic career progression as an interdependent and complex system.
Perceived career management challenges of academicsat a South African university
(AOSIS, 2021) Barnes, Nina; du Plessis, Marieta; Frantz, Jose M.
Understanding academic career challenges is important at a national and global level, to support academic career progression. Whilst challenges are identified in academic career literature, higher education institutions are identified as complex interdependent structures and, therefore, encouraged to be studied from a perspective of interdependency and complexity. To explore and describe the perceived career management challenges of academics at a South African university. To address the need for an integrated approach, from an individual and organisational perspective, through a systems-thinking framework (STF), which acknowledges academic career progression as an interdependent and complex system.
The relationship between authentic leadership, psychological capital, followership and work engagement
(University of the Western Cape, 2014) du Plessis, Marieta; Boshoff, A.B.; Bosman, L.A.
The present study provided insight into authentic leadership, psychological capital and exemplary followership behaviour as antecedents of work engagement of employees. A quantitative, cross-sectional survey design was utilised, using a composite electronic questionnaire. Data was gathered by using a purposive sample of managers in a national South African healthcare industry organisation (N = 647). The portability of the measurement instruments to a South African context were validated through confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis. The psychological capital and authentic leadership measures retained its original factor structure and items, whilst the work engagement and followership measures were adapted to improve the internal reliability and construct validity of the instrument for the healthcare industry sample. The higher-order factor structure of psychological capital was also confirmed
The role of emotional intelligence and autonomy in transformational leadership: A leader member exchange perspective
(AOSIS, 2020) Waglay, Maryam; Becker, Jurgen R.; du Plessis, Marieta
The role of emotional intelligence, autonomy and leader member exchange (LMX) is examined in the relationship between transformational leadership and unit-level performance.The goal of the present study was to investigate the role of emotional intelligence and autonomy in the effectiveness of leadership in organisations through high LMX relationships.The relationship between transformational leadership and unitlevel performance is well documented. However, the specific role of emotional intelligence, job autonomy and high-quality LMX relationships as transmission mechanisms is not well understood.
The role of psychological capital in the relationship between authentic leadership and work engagement
(AOSIS, 2018) du Plessis, Marieta; Boshoff, Adre B.
ORIENTATION: The focus on positive psychology in the workplace includes interest in engagement of employees and the conditions and/or characteristics that explain variance in engagement levels. RESEARCH PURPOSE: Psychological capital (PsyCap) can be used as a substitute or enhancer for leadership in the development of work engagement in cases where the individual has a high level of PsyCap. MOTIVATION FOR THE STUDY: With work engagement becoming increasingly critical to the competitiveness of today’s organisations, there is a need to better understand the role of leadership and psychological strengths that support work engagement among employees. Research approach/design and method: In the quantitative study (on the responses of 647 managers from a national private healthcare organisation), the mediating and moderating role of psychological capital (PsyCap) on the relationship between authentic leadership and work engagement was tested. MAIN FINDINGS: Psychological capital partially mediated the relationship between authentic leadership and work engagement. Similarly, PsyCap was also a moderator of the relationship, although the main effects remained significant. PRACTICAL/MANAGERIAL IMPLICATIONS: Organisations and leaders should focus on developing a high level of PsyCap within their followers in order to retain high levels of work engagement. CONTRIBUTION/VALUE-ADD: The role of PsyCap in the leadership–engagement relationship indicates that individuals can draw from their PsyCap to improve work engagement.
Systematic review of the job demands and resources of academic staff within higher education institutions
(Sciedu Press, 2021) Naidoo-Chetty, Mineshree; du Plessis, Marieta
The Higher Education sector has been through an array of changes, such as globalisation, massification, lack of job security, decolonisation and a number of technological advancements. These changes have impacted academic workload and have increased work pressure with resultant effects on family and work life balance. A review of the existing literature indicates a lack of clarity when it comes to the job demands and job resources inherent to the academic occupation. In order to determine the job demands and job resources of academics, a systematic review of empirical literature is warranted. This paper systematically reviewed empirical research published from 2014 to 2019 investigating job demands and resources based on the job demands-resources model in the higher education environment. Six articles were identified that met the criteria for inclusion. Thus, a list of quantitative, qualitative and organisational job demands as well as organisational and personal resources specific to the academic environment were identified. This will allow Higher Education Institutions to provide targeted development of job resources and mitigation of job demands for their academic employees and enable the development of specific interventions.
Unintended positive consequences of development centres in University graduates
(Positive Psychology, a section of the journal Frontiers in Psychology, 2021-12-01) Backer, Jurgen; White, Melissa; du Plessis, Marieta
This study investigated development centres as a method to improve the generalised self-efficacy of university graduates. This research was motivated by the various challenges, graduates face in order to successfully transition into the world of work. Although there is a general scarcity of skills in many emerging economies like South Africa, graduate unemployment rates remain high. Additionally, graduates are not making the immediate impact that employers would expect due to a lack of technical and “soft skills.” General self-efficacy is an important attribute for job applicants because it provides them with the confidence to solve problems efficiently. The primary research objective was to identify whether the generalised self-efficacy of graduates can be positively affected by a development centre approach in the short-term and long-term. The sample population for this research included Industrial Psychology graduates at a select university in the Western Cape, South Africa (n=17). A quasi-experimental methodology was implemented where an intervention group (n=7) and a control group (n=10) were taken through a development centre approach. The results of the intervention indicated that a development centre approach has a positive impact on self-efficacy levels over the short and medium term. Results from the study emphasise the importance of self-efficacy in graduate employability and indicate how development centres can be used to improve self-efficacy levels. The findings of this study provide a basis for future research into the further development of graduate self-efficacy and the potential benefits for first time job seekers.
Unintended positive consequences of development centres in University graduates
(Frontiers Media, 2021) White, Melissa; Becker, Jürgen; du Plessis, Marieta
This study investigated development centres as a method to improve the generalised self-efficacy of university graduates. This research was motivated by the various challenges, graduates face in order to successfully transition into the world of work. Although there is a general scarcity of skills in many emerging economies like South Africa, graduate unemployment rates remain high. Additionally, graduates are not making the immediate impact that employers would expect due to a lack of technical and “soft skills.” General self-efficacy is an important attribute for job applicants because it provides them with the confidence to solve problems efficiently. The primary research objective was to identify whether the generalised self-efficacy of graduates can be positively affected by a development centre approach in the short-term and long-term.

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