Coping Orientation of Academic Community in the Time of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Pilot Multi-Country Survey Study

In this paper, we have mapped the coping methods used to address the coronavirus pandemic by members of the academic community. We conducted an anonymous survey of a convenient sample of 674 faculty/staff members and students from September to December 2020. A modified version of the RCOPE scale was used for data collection. The results indicate that both religious and existential coping methods were used by respondents. The study also indicates that even though 71% of informants believed in God or another religious figure, 61% reported that they had tried to gain control of the situation directly without the help of God or another religious figure. The ranking of the coping strategies used indicates that the first five methods used by informants were all non-religious coping methods (i.e., secular existential coping methods): regarding life as a part of a greater whole, regarding nature as an important resource, listening to the sound of surrounding nature, being alone and contemplating, and walking/engaging in any activities outdoors giving a spiritual feeling. Our results contribute to the new area of research on academic community's coping with pandemic-related stress and challenges.

Precarious inclusion: A collaborative account of casualisation and teaching leadership challenges at the post-pandemic university

PurposeThis paper emerged from the challenges encountered by both authors as academics during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. Based on their subsequent reflections on inclusion in education for minoritised academics in pandemic-affected institutional contexts, they argue that beyond student-centred foci for inclusion, equity in the field, is equally significant for diverse teachers. Working as tempered radicals, they contend that anything less is exclusionary.Design/methodology/approachUsing a reciprocal interview method and drawing on Freirean ideals of dialogue and education as freedom from oppression, the authors offer dual perspectives from specific positionings as a non-tenured woman academic of colour and a tenured staff member with a disability.FindingsIn framing this work dialogically and through Freirean ideals of conscientizacao, the authors' collective discussions politicise personal experiences of marginalisation in the teaching and researching of inclusion in education for preservice teachers, or more pointedly, in demonstrating the responsibility of all to orientate towards context-dependent inclusive practices. They assert that to enable educators to develop inclusion-oriented practice, the contextual frameworks need to ensure that they question their own experiences of inclusion as potentially precarious to enable meaningful teaching practice.Research limitations/implicationsIt offers perspectives drawing on race, dis/ability and gender drawing on two voices. The bivocal perspective is in itself limitation. It is also located within a very Australian context. However, it does have the scope to be applied globally and there is opportunity to further develop the argument using more intersectional variables.Practical implicationsThe paper clearly highlights that universities require a sharper understanding of diversity, and minoritised staff's quotidian negotiations of marginalisations. Concomitantly inclusion and valuing of the epistemologies of minoritised groups facilitate meaningful participation of these groups in higher education contexts.Social implicationsThis article calls for a more nuanced, empathetic and critical understanding of issues related to race and disability within Australian and global academe. This is much required given rapidly shifting demographics within Australian and other higher education contexts, as well as the global migration trajectories.Originality/valueThis is an original research submission which contributes to debates around race and disability in HE. It has the potential to provoke further conversations and incorporates both hope and realism while stressing collaboration within the academic ecosystem to build metaphorical spaces of inclusion for the minoritised.

Gender differences in work-life conflict during Covid? A research agenda for work-life conflict post-pandemic

Studies on gender differences in work-life conflict have shown that women often report higher levels of work-life conflict due to social mores of undertaking a larger proportion of childcare and household work. Similarly, emergent research on the impact of the Covid pandemic on work-life conflict have shown that women experienced more work-life conflict. During the pandemic, educational work and provision took place within the home. The current study therefore sought to investigate work-life conflict for employees in the further education sector during the pandemic. The findings of the current study suggest that there were no gender differences, at least in the case of the further education sector, which is contrary to extant research on work-life conflict. Thus, there is scope to explore through future research whether there is trajectory towards gender equalitarianism in the sharing of household work, whether the pandemic as a crisis was an episodic event that necessitated gender equalitarian work distribution, or whether the blurring of boundaries between work and non-work domains is a continuum of neoliberal institutional demands.

Rethinking the Work of Theologians in the Pandemic's Wake

This article focuses on what the pandemic reveals about theological work in the academy and imagines a way forward. Too often, theologians are ground down, isolated workers, overworked, and strapped for time. They constantly must choose between progress in the guild and their familial and communal relationships. This false choice starves theologians of meaning and purpose, and, in such scarcity, inflames pursuit of status. However, a communal conception of theological academic work could mitigate some of these frictions. To imagine this possibility, we draw upon our collective experiences of working in Benedictine institutions that also argue for communal approaches to living, learning, and experiencing God. We draw ideas from the Rule of Benedict as a model for life-giving community that we think can be resituated in academic life.

The Kitchen Table: Mother-Academics Reconfiguring Their Emerging Identities While Aligning Family and Work

Mother-academics are disadvantaged by historical and systemic inequalities situated within academia which have been compounded by the pandemic. Through the analytical lens of the theory of practice architectures, we focus on work practices and women's emotional experiences while reconfiguring their identities as online academics and simultaneously their changing home worlds due to the close proximity of their children at the kitchen table. Findings indicate that pre-COVID-19, boundaries between mothering and academia were delineated by the physicality of settings. In contrast, when forced to work from home during the pandemic, skilful navigation was required to obtain a home/work balance. Empathy was required to realign and locate a form of equilibrium in the merging online and home environment at the kitchen table. We contribute to the growing body of literature that advocates for academia to become a less gendered environment in the future. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022.

Benefits, mechanisms and challenges of international accreditation for teacher education: ASEAN academics' perspectives

PurposeThis study aims to explore some benefits and challenges of establishing an international accreditation for teacher education institutions (TEIs) by AsTEN Quality Assurance Agency. This specific accreditation agency is expected to improve the quality of teaching, learning and research at TEIs in ASEAN region. Design/methodology/approachThe qualitative study generates data from questionnaires and online semi-structured interviews among ASEAN academics. They work as teacher educators in Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia. FindingsAs findings show, participating academics from Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Brunei Darussalam believe that it is necessary to have a specific international accreditation agency that can properly accommodate particular standards of teacher education. This accommodation is expected to increase the governance of quality teaching, learning and researching to prepare more competent and professional future teachers. Participating academics also acknowledge some potential challenges this specific accreditation agency may have, including local acceptance by national governments in ASEAN region and global acknowledgement from international accrediting agencies, mostly based in Global North countries. Research limitations/implicationsThe study only involves academics in five ASEAN countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines so that it may have less international acceptance. Practical/social implicationsThe study also identifies aspects and mechanisms of blended online-onsite international accreditation application for TEIs, which grows its significance because of technological advancement, efficiency and prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. Originality/valueThe study provides a digital accreditation system for TEIs, particularly in ASEAN region. This originality is important in this era of Internet of Things.

Continuing working from home in the academic context: what do female academics prefer?

Through addressing female academics in three public universities in Egypt, we aim to find out the extent to which female academics prefer to continue working from home (WFH) as a means of fulfilling their job responsibilities and the determinants for accepting or rejecting that option. A qualitative research method through semi-structured interviews with 33 female academics from three public universities selected from among 26 public institutions of higher education in Egypt. Moreover, our findings show that the preference to continue working from home varies across the addressed female academics, as they all differ in terms of workload, psychological well-being and the level of authority, control, and autonomy they have over their job. Furthermore, we identified familial commitments, availability of the information and infrastructure needed for work, cohesiveness when adopting WFH, and the extreme level of work from home as the four main determinants shaping the preferences of female academics in regard to working from home. © 2023 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

A rapid review of challenges and opportunities related to diversity and inclusion as experienced by early and mid-career academics in the medicine, dentistry and health sciences fields.

BACKGROUND: Early- and mid-career academics in medicine, dentistry and health sciences are integral to research, education and advancement of clinical professions, yet experience significant illbeing, high attrition and limited advancement opportunities. OBJECTIVES: Identify and synthesise published research investigating challenges and opportunities related to diversity and inclusion, as experienced by early and mid-career academics employed in medicine, dentistry and health sciences disciplines. DESIGN: Rapid review. DATA SOURCES: OVID Medline, Embase, APA PsycInfo, CINAHL and Scopus. METHODS: We systematically searched for peer reviewed published articles within the last five years, investigating challenges and opportunities related to diversity and inclusion, as experienced by early and mid-career academics employed in medicine, dentistry and health sciences. We screened and appraised articles, then extracted and synthesised data. RESULTS: Database searches identified 1162 articles, 11 met inclusion criteria. Studies varied in quality, primarily reporting concepts encompassed by professional identity. There were limited findings relating to social identity, with sexual orientation and disability being a particularly notable absence, and few findings relating to inclusion. Job insecurity, limited opportunities for advancement or professional development, and a sense of being undervalued in the workplace were evident for these academics. CONCLUSIONS: Our review identified overlap between academic models of wellbeing and key opportunities to foster inclusion. Challenges to professional identity such as job insecurity can contribute to development of illbeing. Future interventions to improve wellbeing in academia for early- and mid-career academics in these fields should consider addressing their social and professional identity, and foster their inclusion within the academic community. REGISTRATION: Open Science Framework ( https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/SA4HX ).

Living through a Global Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Psychological Resilience of the University Population in Iran.

AIMS: This study aimed to describe and understand the individual and social dimensions of resiliency among Iranian academics as professionals during the early wave of the ongoing pandemic. Furthermore, we aimed to emphasize the cultural context in our analysis. METHOD: A cross-sectional survey design was adopted. We used convenient sampling, administered through an online survey, among academics at Iranian universities (n = 196, 75% women). We employed the CD-RISC 2 instrument, items on life meaning, and a modified version of Pargament's RCOPE instrument (Meaning, Control, Comfort/Spirituality, Intimacy/Spirituality, and Life Transformation). RESULTS: The results revealed a strong level of resilience among men (M = 5.78) and women (M = 5.52). Self-rated health was rated as excellent, very good, or good among a majority (92%) of the participants, more so among men. Family was one of the factors that most strongly gave life meaning, followed by friends, work/school, and religion/spirituality. There was a strong correlation between self-rated health and life as part of a greater whole, being alone, and listening to the sounds of the surrounding nature. CONCLUSIONS: Both personal and social levels of resilience and meaning-making are seen in the results, with an ability to balance between obstacles and resources. Cultural practices are interdependent, which also include the individual and social dimensions of resiliency and meaning-making.

The impact of COVID-19 on the work–life balance of working mothers: evidence from Nigerian academics

Purpose Given the limiting gender role conditions arising from the prevalence of patriarchy in Nigeria and the shift to workers staying at home due to the deadly spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), this article aims to explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the work–life balance of professional mothers using the work–home resources model as a conceptual lens.Design/methodology/approachThe qualitative data is based on telephone interviews with 28 married female university academics with children.FindingsThe findings reveal that the confinement policies enforced due to the need to combat the spread of COVID-19 and patriarchal norms deeply embedded in the Nigerian culture have exacerbated stress amongst women, who have needed to perform significantly more housework and childcare demands alongside working remotely than they did prior to the pandemic. The thematic analysis showed a loss of personal resources (e.g. time, energy, and income) resulting in career stagnation, health concerns, and increased male chauvinism due to the abrupt and drastic changes shaping the "new normal” lifestyle.Research limitations/implicationsThe study relies on a limited qualitative sample size, which makes the generalisation of findings difficult. However, the study contributes to the emerging global discourse on the profound negative consequences of COVID-19 on the lives and livelihoods of millions, with a focus on the stress and work–family challenges confronting women in a society that is not particularly egalitarian – unlike Western cultures.Originality/valueThe article provides valuable insights on how the COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically affected professional working mothers in the sub-Saharan African context, where literature is scarce.

Academics in Lockdown: A Gendered Perspective on Self-Esteem in Academia during the COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown

This qualitative research explores the experiences and sense-making of self-worth of 1857 South African women academics during the enforced pandemic lockdown between March and September 2020;the study was conducted through an inductive, content analysis process. Since worldwide lockdowns were imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, women academics, in particular, have reported a unique set of challenges from working from home. Gender inequality within the scientific enterprise has been well documented;however, the cost to female academics' self-esteem, which has been exacerbated by the pandemic, has yet to be fully realized. The findings of the study include negative emotional experiences related to self-worth, engagement in social comparisons, and the fear of judgement by colleagues, which were exacerbated by peer pressure. Finally, the sense-making of academic women's self-esteem as it relates to their academic identity was reported. Beyond being the first comprehensive national study on the topic, the study's insights are more broadly useful for determining what support, accommodation, and assistance is needed for academic women to sustain performance in their academic and research duties at universities worldwide. © 2023 by the authors.

Higher education students' behaviour and mental health during Covid-19 lockdown: a pilot study.

BACKGROUND: The flare-up of Covid-19 in India caused open turmoil and pressure on emotional wellbeing among university students. At first, it was about course finishing; later, the issues moved to assessment. This scourge increases mental issues, stress, dissatisfaction, sorrow, and nervousness. AIM: The aim of this study was to assess the mental health and behaviour of Mizoram University students during the Covid-19 lockdown period. METHODS: This study was a cross-sectional investigation, and a snowball method sampling technique was utilised for obtainging information from the students. RESULTS: There were 65.2% of students who revealed that they were giving more consideration to their emotional wellbeing during this pandemic. More than half of the participants (67.2%) reported no expanded worry of stress from scholastic work, and 65.2% reported that they were paying more attention to their emotional wellbeing and mental health following the pandemic. Further, 69.7% reported that they were spending more time exercising. Nearly 55% of students took part in Zoom classes, with a length of 35 to 40 min. About 65.7% of students gained proficiency in their course by means of a learning management system. Students performed activities at home during the lockdown period, watching TV (75.4%), reading books (38.7%), and on writing assignments (34.8%); and 34.5% of the students viewed news from TV, newspapers, and social media about the Covid-19 pandemic each day. CONCLUSION: The positive effects on psychological wellbeing may have helped the students adapt to other negative effects and expanded pressure on emotional wellbeing. This pandemic impact will probably be engraved on every individual surveyed.

The association between core job components, physical activity, and mental health in African academics in a post-COVID-19 context.

This study examined the association between core job components (i.e. teaching, research, and student assessment), physical activity (PA), and mental health in a post-COVID-19 context. An online questionnaire administered via Google Forms was used to gather data from 1064 African academics in four countries. A sensitivity analysis was applied to adjust for covariates. Data were analyzed with the hierarchical linear regression analysis. The average age of participants was 44 years. The study found that PA was positively associated with research but negatively associated with student assessment. Mental health was positively associated with onsite teaching but negatively associated with online teaching and research. PA did not predict mental health and mediate the relationship between the job components and mental health. It is concluded that PA may not increase mental health in African academics in a post-COVID-19 situation that required the resumption of work while observing social distancing protocols.

Cold Warrior Magic, Africana Science, and NASA Space Race Religion, Part One: Laura Nader's Contrarian Anthropology for Afrofuturist Times

"Cold Warrior Magic, Africana Science, and NASA Space Race Religion, Part One” uses anthropological studies of Cold War space exploration to reveal how post–World War II funding launched hegemonies of racial capitalism into the 1950s, putting white men on the Moon in the 1960s and 1970s. In these Covidien times since 1619, billionaires replace government treasuries to finance voyages into the heavens, while Black anthropologists enter discourse on space with Afrofuturist revisions of past pains. Orbiting Silent-Generation anthropologist Laura Nader, this chapter connects new worldviews from contrarian anthropology to moral ethical logic (MEL), developed at the Margaret Walker Center in Mississippi. While the author hoped to launch research into his Melungeon Maroon ancestors from 1619 Angola on par with Walker's mid-1960s, ground-breaking work Jubilee, a pre-COVID lecture on NASA's Stennis Space Center at Two Mississippi Museums propelled MEL in a realm of urgent intertextual critical analysis. © Oxford University Press 2023. All rights reserved.

Women in higher education: exclusion, inclusion and seclusion

This literature review is conceptually rooted in intersectional feminism and Harding's (2004) standpoint theory. I assert and affirm my positionality as a black woman from the Global South as I unpack the literature on women in higher education. I use the concepts of inclusion and exclusion to illustrate that while women are unequivocally in higher education, they remain largely out of positions of power. The concept of seclusion is used to describe women's and institutions' obscured and hidden behaviors that reinforce gendered patterns of women's subsistence in higher education. The review also highlights two key persistent challenges, namely, that of the impossibility of work life balance, especially, but not only, for academic mothers;and of being a black woman in academia. I offer insight into the devastating impacts of covid-19 on women academics and academic mothers. The review also identifies strategies used to make qualitative shifts in women's occupation of higher education spaces. © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Academic resilience: Personal stories and lessons learnt from the COVID-19 experience

In this work for academics, international contributors in education, communication, new media, digital learning, and organization studies describe the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on academics in higher education, and their institutions. The book highlights the personal and professional experiences of academics across varying career stages. Four chapters are devoted to personal stories of sustained resilience in the face of the obstacles and uncertainty of the pandemic. Others chapters demonstrate collective resilience and collaboration, with examples from around the world. In addition, the book presents a conceptual framework, the Academic Resilience Model. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Job stressors, work tension and job satisfaction of academics at a university in South Africa

Orientation: Stress in the workplace is a common phenomenon that is classified in different ways and which also impacts academics. Previous research highlighted that job stressors in the workplace have been considered an important contributor towards low levels of job satisfaction (JS) for academics. This perspective aids the study of the influence of job stress on JS. Research purpose: The aim of this research was to establish the influence of role conflict (RC), role ambiguity (RA), role overload (RO) and time pressure (TP) on work tension (WT) and the influence of WT on JS among academics at a university of technology. Motivation for the study: The impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the reduction of government and associated agency funding changed the scenario of academic life from being considered idyllic, autonomous and well protected. Congruent to these constraints, changes in the diversity of students and advances in technology, blended learning and the introduction of learning platforms created further challenges in the way students learn and how modules were offered. Research approach/design and method: The researchers used a postpositivist quantitative paradigm with a convenience sample (n = 250) of academics in a university of technology in Gauteng. A structured questionnaire encompassing the study constructs was used. Main findings: Results showed positive associations between RC, RA, RO and TP on WT. Further, WT and JS showed negative yet significant predictive relationships with JS. Practical/managerial implication: It is pivotal for universities to understand the effects of job stressors on job satisfaction to improve the working conditions for academics. Contribution/value-add: This research provides findings to the present body of knowledge among academics on the influence of job stressors on WT and WT on JS at HEIs. Research on job stress and JS has been of interest in many HEIs. The research makes a valuable contribution to the university management, especially the human resource division, on the effect of levels of job stressors (RC, RA, RO and TP) on WT among academics. © 2023. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS.

The Consequences of Lockdown due to COVID-19 on Female Academics in Jordanian Universities

This study aims to identify the consequences of lockdowns due to the coronavirus on female academics in Jordan. An online survey was distributed via social media and filled in by 131 female participants from different academic ranks in public and private universities. The study investigated four main variables: the consequences of lockdown on the social aspect, psychological aspect, and economic aspect, and also on how time was spent during the lockdown, and the correlation between these variables and other social and personal factors (such as the marital status, etc.). It was found that female academics are significantly affected on both levels: the economic aspect and the activities spent during the lockdown, followed by the psychological and social aspects. The results show that marital status played a significant role, as single female academics are generally affected more than married ones. Economically, it is found that the sector in which the participant works in has a significant impact. Female academics working in the private sector are affected more than those working in the public sector. In addition, the academic degree the participant holds plays a key role. Academics with master's degrees are affected economically and psychologically, and even in terms of spending time during the lockdown. © 2022 DSR Publishers/ The University of Jordan.

A cross sectional study on students outlook on online education during COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction: Education system has faced lot of challenges during this covid 19 pandemic to ensure proper delivery of education to the students. In spite of the toughest hurdles faced by the education system, it has managed to reach out to students with the digital approach. Though a totally different approach from the traditional teaching, student's apprehension towards the change should not be ignored. Objective(s): To assess students view on online classes during the COVID 19 pandemic. Material(s) and Method(s): Study design: Qualitative descriptive cross-sectional study. Study setting: Fr. Agnel college, Pillar. Study participants:12th std students (2020-2021). Study tool: An online questionnaire using Likert scale was administered to the students. Assent/consent was taken before start of the study. Data was be analysed using SPSS software version 22. Result(s): Among the students participated 53% of students faced network issues,52% agreed that online education limited their participation in extracurricular activities. Majority of them faced health issues like eye strain, headache and disturbed sleep.

Academic resilience: An uncharted terrain

The pressures brought about by the COVID-19 global pandemic in 2020 have amplified the significance of academic resilience and highlight the importance of a shared insights into academics' experiences. The responses to academic work within this context has received little research attention despite its universality during the pandemic. Failing to recognise, or 'invisibilising' the roles and needs of academics during a pandemic, is a significant concern. This chapter explores this uncharted terrain, and presents stories of resilience-being a postdoc in a foreign country (de los Reyes), negotiating (yet another) contract (Mahat), navigating research in a different context (Cohrssen), and digital engagement in academia (Blannin)-from academics in different career stages and global contexts. These stories provide points of reflection for those navigating the complex world of academia during these uncertain times. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)