Faculty's subjective well-being: insights from a Mexican business school
Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management
ISSN: 1746-5648
Article publication date: 16 December 2022
Issue publication date: 22 March 2023
Abstract
Purpose
In this article, the authors aim to achieve a deeper understanding of the aspects that influence academic faculty's subjective well-being (SWB). For this purpose, the authors focus on scholars who work in a business school that not only is located in Latin America, but is in a transition process, changing from being solely a teaching-oriented to a research-oriented model due to Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accreditation purposes.
Design/methodology/approach
Twenty in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with professors at a private business school in Mexico. The interviews took place between November 2018 and late 2020.
Findings
Scholars of business schools who are transitioning from being teaching-oriented to becoming research-oriented in order to comply with AACSB requirements face heightened institutional pressures that can generate negative effects on professors' SWB; especially on three dimensions: health, a sense of lack of self-efficacy and apprehension due to the lack of resources.
Research limitations/implications
This paper studied a particular context; however, even when the findings of this article are relevant, they cannot be generalized, as each context will have its own peculiarities.
Originality/value
More attention needs to be given to scholars' SWB, particularly of those working in business schools located in the Global South. This is especially relevant since faculty members of business schools in emerging economies are aiming to compete in the international arena; therefore, they face heightened institutional pressures since they need to be more academically productive without neglecting teaching and administrative tasks and despite having less access to resources than their counterparts working in business schools in developed economies. The authors believe that hearing researchers' stories about their concerns and desires can raise awareness and lead to better work conditions.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank our Associate Editor, Dr. David Jacobs and the two anonymous reviewers for their insightful and diligent feedback, which allowed us to think further and develop a stronger article. The authors also thank Dr. Ajnesh Prasad for his thoughtful comments on this manuscript. Last but not least, the authors want to thank the 20 participants of this study for their generosity not only with their time but with their stories, which at times, were difficult to share.
Citation
Segarra, P., Villanueva, C.E. and Martínez, L. (2023), "Faculty's subjective well-being: insights from a Mexican business school", Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management, Vol. 18 No. 1, pp. 46-66. https://doi.org/10.1108/QROM-12-2021-2257
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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