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How to improve academic well-being: an analysis of the leveraging factors based on the Italian case

Author

Listed:
  • Alice Tontodimamma

    (University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara)

  • Emiliano del Gobbo

    (University of Foggia)

  • Mariangela Corbo

    (ASREM Campobasso)

  • Antonio Aquino

    (University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara)

Abstract

At first glance, for those who start out in it the academic environment may seem attractive, but they soon experience the difficulties inherent in this type of career. At the same time, the academic sector is crucial to the social, cultural, and economic development of any country. Given this important role, it is fundamental for the decision makers to guarantee the best return on investment made into this sector. The good health of workers has important implications for the quality of their lives since it affects their level of productivity at work, and it is especially relevant for research programmes, where most of the work is intellectual. In the present research, we have analysed the health of workers without tenure in the Italian academic environment, i.e. PhD students and short term contract researchers, in order to understand which factors have the most relevant impact on their state of health. 699 participants (398 females, 301 males) completed an online questionnaire that included both ad hoc Likert-scales and open-ended questions. Our results, elaborated through Structural Equation Modelling and Text Mining techniques, show how researchers experience high levels of anxiety both from the characteristics of the academic environment and from the career advancement system. Specifically, both job-related factors (i.e. perception of fairness, professional growth, and safety perception) and relational factors (i.e. relationships with supervisors and colleagues) predict the anxiety of non-tenured researchers. Furthermore, women researchers show a high level of anxiety compared with male researchers. Policy implications of our findings are provided.

Suggested Citation

  • Alice Tontodimamma & Emiliano del Gobbo & Mariangela Corbo & Antonio Aquino, 2024. "How to improve academic well-being: an analysis of the leveraging factors based on the Italian case," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 58(2), pages 1425-1445, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:qualqt:v:58:y:2024:i:2:d:10.1007_s11135-023-01700-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s11135-023-01700-0
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Levecque, Katia & Anseel, Frederik & De Beuckelaer, Alain & Van der Heyden, Johan & Gisle, Lydia, 2017. "Work organization and mental health problems in PhD students," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(4), pages 868-879.
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    3. Susan K. Gardner, 2010. "Keeping up with the Joneses: Socialization and Culture in Doctoral Education at One Striving Institution," The Journal of Higher Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 81(6), pages 658-679, November.
    4. Lee, You-Na & Walsh, John P. & Wang, Jian, 2015. "Creativity in scientific teams: Unpacking novelty and impact," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(3), pages 684-697.
    5. Rosseel, Yves, 2012. "lavaan: An R Package for Structural Equation Modeling," Journal of Statistical Software, Foundation for Open Access Statistics, vol. 48(i02).
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