Whose voice is heard?: stakeholder participation in crisis decision-making teams in higher education institutions during COVID-19
Date
2023
Authors
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Many organizations across the United States were severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including institutions of higher education. Campus leaders needed to make decisions about closing campuses, increasing financial constraints, shifts in research, and changing class modalities. Past research shows that one preferred method for making decisions during an organizational crisis is using teams of decision-makers, although there has been little research focused on the composition of these teams. Others advocate for the inclusion of various stakeholders in the decision-making structure; however, it is not known how often stakeholders, including faculty, below-director-level staff, and students, are included in decision-making. This dissertation asks three questions: (1) What stakeholders are included on crisis decision-making teams at organizations of higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic? (2) What institutional factors influence stakeholder participation in crisis decision-making teams at organizations of higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic? (3) How were stakeholder voices included in decision-making teams during the COVID-19 decision-making process? The first phase, answering the first two research questions, utilizes a content analysis and survey of 150 US higher education institutions to investigate the inclusion of stakeholders in COVID-19 decision-making teams. Institutional data from the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education was used to compare differences based on institution types and sizes. The results show about half of the decision-making teams included stakeholders. Faculty are the most likely to be included and students are the least likely. There is no statistically significant association between any institutional characteristic and stakeholder inclusion. Larger decision-making teams are more likely to include stakeholders than smaller teams. The second phase, answering the third research question, utilizes 20 semi-structured interviews of decision-making team members. Results show faculty are most likely to be included and considered in the decision-making process. While students are less likely to be included, there are ways for their perspectives to be included in decision-making. Staff member perspectives were the least included in decision-making. These findings are the first examination of stakeholder inclusion in higher education crisis decision-making and show that inclusion is limited, despite previous research showing the benefits. They serve as a foundation for future research and offer considerations for practitioners. ☐ The first phase, answering the first two research questions, utilizes a content analysis and survey of 150 US higher education institutions to investigate the inclusion of stakeholders in COVID-19 decision-making teams. Institutional data from the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education was used to compare differences based on institution types and sizes. The results show about half of the decision-making teams included stakeholders. Faculty are the most likely to be included and students are the least likely. There is no statistically significant association between any institutional characteristic and stakeholder inclusion. Larger decision-making teams are more likely to include stakeholders than smaller teams. The second phase, answering the third research question, utilizes 20 semi-structured interviews of decision-making team members. Results show faculty are most likely to be included and considered in the decision-making process. While students are less likely to be included, there are ways for their perspectives to be included in decision-making. Staff member perspectives were the least included in decision-making. These findings are the first examination of stakeholder inclusion in higher education crisis decision-making and show that inclusion is limited, despite previous research showing the benefits. They serve as a foundation for future research and offer considerations for practitioners.
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Keywords
COVID-19, Crisis, Stakeholder theory, Decision-making teams, Campus leaders