Organizational communication and occupational stress in Australian Catholic primary schools
| Pages | 744-767 |
| Published date | 23 September 2013 |
| Date | 23 September 2013 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-09-2011-0081 |
| Author | John De Nobile,John McCormick,Katherine Hoekman |
| Subject Matter | Education,Administration & policy in education,School administration/policy |
Organizational communication
and occupational stress
in Australian Catholic
primary schools
John De Nobile
School of Education, Macquarie University, North Ryde, New South Wales,
Australia
John McCormick
Faculty of Education, The University of Wollongong, New South Wales,
Australia, and
Katherine Hoekman
School of Education, The University of New South Wales, Kensington,
New South Wales, Australia
Abstract
Purpose – This paper reports two related studies of relationships betwe en organizational
communication and occupational stress of staff members in Catholic primary schools.
Design/methodology/approach – Data from both stu dies were obtaine d using survey
questionnaires. Participants were staff members of Catholic diocesan primary schools in New South
Wales, Australian Capital Territory and Queensland, Australia. Research hypotheses were tested
using correlation and multiple regression analyses.
Findings – Ten organizational communication factors and four occupational stress domains were
identified. Several organizational communication variables werefound to be predictors of occupational
stress in four identified domains.
Practical implications – The findings provide implications for school administrators in relation to
staff member access to formal communication channels, openness and approachability of principals,
and support giving between school administration and staff, as well as among staff.
Originality/value – The studies used a conceptual framework of organizational communication that
is unique and comprehensive. The paper contributes new knowledge in an area that has received little
attention, namely, communication in schools.
Keywords Organizational communication, Occupational stress, Catholic schools, Primary schools,
Support, Openness, Democratic leadership, Australia
Paper type Research pap er
Introduction
In recent times there has been much concern expressed about the status of teac hers,
their morale and attrit ion rates, especially in the early career stages (Committee for the
Review of Teaching and Teacher Education, 2003; Goddard and Goddard, 2006; Marsh,
2010; International Labour Organization/United Nations Educational Scientific
and Cultural Organization, 2000). Occupational stress has frequently been cited as
an antecedent of reduced morale, burnout and turnover intention (e.g. Goddard and
Goddard, 2006; McCormick and Barnett, 2011; Shalem an d Hoadley, 2009).
Occupational stress of school staff is not limited to particular types of schools
(Adams, 2001). In Australia, government schools make up the largest sector in school
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/0957-8234.htm
Received 28 September 2011
Revised 17 June 2012
13 September 2012
Accepted 17 September 2012
Journal of Educational
Administration
Vol. 51 No. 6, 2013
pp. 744-767
rEmeraldGroup PublishingLimited
0957-8234
DOI 10.1108/JEA-09-2011-0081
744
JEA
51,6
education, followed by Catholic systemic diocesan schools. Independent schools
comprise a smaller, third sector of schooling. Studies of schools in all systems have
reported that teaching is a stressful occupation (Australian Centre for Industrial
Relations Research and Training, 2002; Geving, 2007; Kyriacou, 2001; McCormick,
1997, 2000).
Previous research has suggested that certain aspects of organizational
communication may be related to occupational stress either as antecedent or
mediating factors (Margolis and Nagel, 2006; McCarthy et al., 2009; Troman, 2000).
However, few studies have investigated the relationships between occupational stress
and a comprehensive set of several organizational communication variables and no
study of this kind has been conducted in the context of Catholic schools apart from
those reported here. Given the concerns about teac her retention and morale, improved
knowledge of occupational stress in schools is valuable for policy-making bodies,
educational administrators as well as teachers.
In this paper we report on the results of two studies investigating the relationships
between organizational communication and occupational stress. A brief review of
the relevant literature will provide a background to the two studies, including the
relevance to Catholic schools. The results will report the findings of the first study,
followed by the larger second study. We then conclude with implications for schools,
school systems and leadership.
Occupational stress
Occupational stress, generally regarded as a negative or unpleasant experien ce
(Spector, 2008), is also referred to as job stress and work stress (Geving, 2007;
Spector, 2008). While it is recognized that some stress may be beneficial to individuals
in terms of motivation and challenge (Selye, 1976), the negative psychological impacts
of a substantial level of felt stress, referred to as distress (Luthans, 2010), can affect
individuals adversely over time.
Several definitions exist for the phenomenon in relation to teaching. For example,
some scholars refer to it as an adaption to a physical or other demand resulting in
physical and psychological effects (Adams, 2001; Guthrie, 2006), while other definitions
have been developed that say more about the nature of stress itself. Otto (1986), for
example, described it as a sense of frustration, worry or threat caused by aspects of
teaching. A very widely used definition of occupational stress in relation to teaching
has been developed by Kyriacou (2001) who defined teacher occupation al stress as
the “experience by a teacher of unple asant, negative emotions, such as anger, anxiety,
tension, frustration or depression, resulting from some aspect of their work” ( p. 28).
This definition includes a more comprehensive set of stress effects than Otto (1986),
focuses on the work in schools, and is, therefore, the one we have used to guide the
investigations reported here.
Several models have been put forward to explain occupational stress
(Guglielmi and Tatrow, 1998; Kahn and Byosiere, 1992). Person-organization fit
models explain occupational stress as the result of an individual’s perceived or real
inability to meet the demands of the job (Guglielmi and Tatrow, 1998; Muchinsky,
2009). Stress-strain models suggest that stress will arise from high job demand
accompanied by low perceived control of the situation (Guglielmi and Tatrow, 1998;
Spector, 2008).
These models are all helpful in explaining how occupational stress occurs. However,
the attribution of responsibility model used by McCo rmick and his associates is well
745
Australian
Catholic primary
schools
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