Developing Valid and Reliable Measures for Climate in a University Setting

• In Event: 2183 - Section on Race, Gender, and Class Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 04. Inequality in the Ivory Tower

Abstract

University climate is a critical factor in determining faculty retention, career success, and job satisfaction. Much has been written about the ‘chilly’ climate in academic departments, universities, and disciplines for women and racial and ethnic minorities. This is to say that women and racial and ethnic minorities face structural conditions of exclusion and marginalization within these settings. A negative climate may have implications for job satisfaction and likelihood of advancement, which is important given that both women and faculty of color are still underrepresented as full professors in nearly all academic disciplines. While the importance of studying university climate is widely acknowledged, there is no standard set of reliable and valid measures for climate. In this paper, we develop a set of reliable and valid measures for ‘climate’ as it relates to faculty in a university setting. We utilize data from a survey of 90 tenure track and non-tenure track faculty at a Midwestern university to test the reliability and validity of seven sub-dimensions of climate.

Authors

• Mangala Subramaniam, Purdue University

• Zachary D. Palmer, Purdue University