Deans' leadership practices and their influence on faculty's job performance and job satisfaction at private university in Oman

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to examine the deans practice of Full Range Leadership Model (FRLM - Bass and Avolio, 1997) and their influences on academicians’ job performance (Sewang, 2016) and job satisfaction (Mansfield, 2018) at Sohar University, Oman. The data was obtained by two methods of qualitative and quantitative. The survey part of the study involved 103 teaching academics from all the six faculties in Sohar University. Data on leadership style, job performance and job satisfaction were collected through a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews with six faculty deans. Simple linear regression (SLR) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to examine the quantitative data showing the direct influences of deans’ leadership practices on faculty members’ job performance and job satisfaction. The qualitative data were analysed for recurring themes and coded accordingly. Coding categories were constructed from the concepts and themes that emerged during the interview process and from the review of the literature. The overall findings indicate that most faculty members are satisfied with the leadership practices of their deans. The findings advance leadership knowledge by exploring the relationship between the components of Full Range of Leadership Model (FRLM), transformational and transactional leadership approaches in the context of a private university in Oman. Both the deans and the faculty members employed transactional leadership to ensure conformity with the requirements of the Ministry of Higher Education of Oman. The study affirmed that the total average practice and level of leadership among deans of faculties at private university in Oman was mean 3.0794 and standard deviation 0.9332 at medium level. The results indicated that the total average of Job Performance level of 103 faculty members at private university in Oman was mean 3.1159 and standard deviation 0.8976 at medium level. The result also shows the presence of a moderate level of job satisfaction among the faculty members of Sohar University as the general mean is Mean = 3.1726 and Standard Deviation = 0.8995 at medium level. The originality of this study lies on its exploration of effective characteristics of leadership practices of the deans and the direct influences on faculty members’ job performance and job satisfaction. Hence, the role of faculty or college deans in Oman must be built specifically on leadership that focuses on learning to pave the way for a more effective governance in realization of Higher Education Development Plan towards more prosperous The Sultanate of Oman in 2030 and beyond.