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This compelling book delves into the damaging effects of job insecurity in higher education across ten countries, shedding light on its profound implications for individuals and institutions. By exploring the associations between job insecurity and critical factors such as health, well-being, and performance, it underscores the urgent need for effective intervention measures. The book also highlights the ripple effects of job insecurity on academic staff, researchers, PhD and postdoctoral students as well as administrative and support staff, ultimately impacting the quality of education. Featuring the largest cross-country data collection on this topic to date, this collaborative effort brings together leading international researchers to provide novel insights. Each chapter offers unique comparative analyses, making the book a vital resource for academics, policymakers, students, and readers worldwide who are invested in the future of higher education. It is both a call to action and a foundation for further research in this critical area.
List of contents
Introduction The Growing Crisis of Job Insecurity in Academia.- Job Insecurity within Higher Education An Assessment of Measurement Invariance and Global Trends.- The Cross-Cultural Equivalence of Predictor, Moderator and Outcome Variables Related to Job Insecurity in Academic Settings A Maximum Likelihood Alignment Approach.- Thriving or Depleted Profiles of Burnout and Work Engagement in Academia Job Insecurity and Self Undermining Exploring the Mediating Effects on Counterproductive Work Behavior and In Role Performance.- Afraid of losing who you are? Job insecurity among academics can become an identity threat.- How can job insecurity lead to poor in-role performance and innovative work behavior in academia The mediating role of burnout.- Insecurity and Justice in Academia: Exploring the Interplay.- Job insecurity, temporary contracts and their interaction: associations with a variety of performance indicators in academia. Qualitative Job Insecurity is Associated with Lower Work Motivation Work Adjustment and Life Wellbeing among Faculty Teaching Staff in Chinas Higher Education Institutions.- How workplace social capital moderates the effects of job insecurity: Greece as a case study.- Epilogue.
About the author
Lara C. Roll (PhD in Work and Organizational Psychology) is a Senior Associate at PwC Belgium, an external researcher at KU Leuven (Belgium) and an extraordinary professor with the Optentia Research Unit at North-West University (South Africa). Her primary research focuses on workplace insecurity, particularly on how employees perceive the impact of technological advancements on their occupations. From 2022 until 2024 she has served as vice-president of Algorith e.V., a think tank comprised of young scholars to support research exchange and good digitalisation in Germany. Furthermore, from 2023 to 2024, she served as an expert panel member for the Flemish Minister for Economy, Innovation, Work, Social Economy, and Agriculture, contributing to the development of future scenarios on the role of technology in creating an inclusive job market.
Hans De Witte (PhD in Psychology) was Full Professor in Work Psychology at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences of the KU Leuven, Belgium (Research Group Work, Organizational and Personnel Psychology). He is academically active since October 2023 as emeritus with assignment. He is also appointed as Extraordinary Professor at the North-West University of South Africa (Optentia Research Unit, Vanderbijlpark Campus). His research includes the study of the psychological consequences of job insecurity, unemployment, temporary employment and downsizing, as well as mobbing and burnout versus work engagement. He (co-)authored about 300 articles in English peer-reviewed journals, published 30 books (14 English and 16 in Dutch; most as co-editor) and is (co-)author of about 80 chapters in English academic books.
Sebastiaan Rothmann Sr. (PhD) is Professor in industrial/organizational psychology at the North-West University (Vanderbijlpark Campus) and Director of the Optentia Research Unit in South Africa. His research journey started with the topics of stress, burnout, and work engagement and has evolved toward prospering and flourishing of people in work and organizational contexts. People who prosper in work and organizational contexts are satisfied with their jobs; experience positive emotions; are energetic, learning, and dedicated; experience satisfaction.
Summary
This compelling book delves into the damaging effects of job insecurity in higher education across ten countries, shedding light on its profound implications for individuals and institutions. By exploring the associations between job insecurity and critical factors such as health, well-being, and performance, it underscores the urgent need for effective intervention measures. The book also highlights the ripple effects of job insecurity on academic staff, researchers,PhD and postdoctoral students as well as administrative and support staff, ultimately impacting the quality of education. Featuring the largest cross-country data collection on this topic to date, this collaborative effort brings together leading international researchers to provide novel insights. Each chapter offers unique comparative analyses, making the book a vital resource for academics, policymakers, students, and readers worldwide who are invested in the future of higher education. It is both a call to action and a foundation for further research in this critical area.
