مجله آموزش عالی ایران
سال پنجم شماره 4 (پیاپی 20، پاییز 1392)

The present study aimed to display the dynamics of the impact bureaucracy at universities on the performance of faculty members and as a result on the existence and growth of universities. By applying an analytical method, the concepts and relevant propositions were reproduced. For the universities, three goals of “thoughts’ composition”, “demonstration” and “proliferation” were considered and conceptualized. In addition the function of bureaucracy was analyzed in a conceptual framework based on four items for “work”, “activity”, “expertness” and “structure”. The most considerable finding is that the inconsistency between “expertness” and “imposing bureaucracy” caused by external authorities’ intervention may create some defects which eventually impact existence and development of a university. The mentioned defects are ‘disconnecting work and workforce’, ‘shifting the professional growth of faculty members’, ‘academic alienation’, ‘shifting in organizational culture’, ‘irritating human relationships’, and ‘irritating the organizational behavior of faculty members’. To analyze the last defect, the direct and indirect consequences of imposed bureaucracy in line with behavior and efficiency of faculty members were classified in to seven categories: (1) participation, (2) transforming, (3) work life quality, (4) null expertness, (5) effectiveness, (6) job satisfaction, and (7) self-regulating. Based on the findings, three propositions were also introduced to be considered by researchers in future.

The issue of academic autonomy has been a buzz word for a long time now, synchronized with the establishment of university organization. What this study set sights on is that in addition to managerial deficits, this issue suffers legal shortcomings as well which has not been tapped on. This study, through the method of legal analysis, seeks to represent and analyze the current legal potential in Iran concerning academic autonomy and self-administration. These capacities historically have been different in the seven eras since the establishment of Dar-ol-Phonon. Limited autonomy and consultative system, institutionalization of limited autonomy in Tehran University, board of trustees system, dissolution of boards of trustees and returning to government centralism, renewal of old regulations and the commencement of autonomy granting process and finally accelerating this process since 2004 to date.The findings also indicate some ambiguities and contradictions in current regulations, but through introducing new legal capacities it is concluded that these limited powers have not been utilized efficiently because of structural impediments.

Due to their not being entitled to governmental budgets, Iran’s non-governmental universities face many challenges in recruiting their human resources, especially faculty members. So there are often hidden or blurred policies of recruiting academic members. This is a case study of a non-governmental university in Iran, in order to survey the influential factors participating which build up the hidden policies in such universities.Implementing canonic group method, seven main factors and related sub factors emerged. Using responses of group members and few out of group members along with applying statistical hypothesis, factors were divided into important and moderately important categories. Lack of transparency in policy making, financial restrictions, and policy making of managerial entity at the university were classified as important factors. Also dimensions of recruiting process, process dimensions, out of organization restrictions and structural problems at the university were classified as moderately important factors. Finally five suggestions were proposed to improve the recruiting policies and procedures.

Due to its essential role, higher education has turned to be a pivot in national development plans. More importantly, a change in governments’ attitudes towards social management practices and policies in most developed countries has led to more favorable conditions for private sector to play a part in education. The point is, however, that now serious competition for the privatization of educational services has begun. This comparative study sought to examine the paradigm shift in the area as well as the governmental ways of supporting the private and public higher education systems. Accordingly, the basic question this study is to answer is how the studied governments support their higher public and private education systems? The results well show that the states support the private educational systems in the form of funding, subsidy and financial assistance which comes in the form of loans that guarantee autonomy of higher education. In this regard, the research is in the area of higher education policy. Data have been collected through documentation and the use of secondary data and analyzed through sociological method.

The increase in the quality of training and training services is one the main purposes of training system in every country. Universities as the organizations presenting these services in the highest level, welcome different groups of students, so attracting their satisfaction and improving the level of relationship with them through Student Relationship Management (SRM) can be the context of achieving the goals of training system and its ascendency. SRM can improve the perception of students from justice through the systematizing processes and improving informing and this matter leads to increase in student's citizenship behavior and decrease in their misbehaviors. In this study, at first, the dimensions of SRM were identified and introduced with factor analysis. Then, research conceptual framework were tested with structural equation modeling and with the help of LISREL software. The results showed that SRM has a positive and direct relationship with types of justice such as distributive, procedural and interactional. Also, there is a reverse relationship between procedural and interactional justice and student's misbehavior. On the other side, there is a direct relationship between perceived procedural and interactional justice and student's citizenship behavior.

This descriptive and exploratory study is an attempt to recognize the salient features of autonomy in the Iranian public universities affiliated with the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology. Data collection was through triangulation which is examining the legal documents, interviews and questionnaires. The sample consists of experts (education, higher education management, public Administration) and senior managers in Iranian higher education system. The results show a significant intervention of the state in seven areas of university autonomy, with the first one being the least affected: (1) the area of Research and Publication, (2) Curriculum and Teaching, (3) Academic Standards, (4) Staff, (5) Governance, (6) Administration and Finance, (7) Students, while the government intervention in these areas was assessed as being too much. Also, research findings indicate that the most important factor in running Iranian universities is among the academic authority, political decisions, administrative regulations and market, are administrative regulations and Iranian university autonomy is mostly “Procedural” rather than “Substantive”.

Academic procrastination is indicative of the delay in academic activities. It may be intentional, incidental and/or habitual but related to several factors. The aim of present study was to investigate the relationship among personality traits, perfectionism and life satisfaction with academic procrastination. This study is descriptive- correlative with 243 subjects (110 males and 133 females), selected by categorized sampling. Data were gathered using NEO - Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI), Perfectionism Inventory, Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) and Procrastination Assessment Scale – Student (PASS). Data were analyzed by correlation coefficient and regression analysis. Results indicate a significant relationship between personality traits, perfectionism and life satisfaction with academic procrastination. Regression analysis also indicates that Conscientiousness and perfectionism are predictors for academic procrastination. These findings have important implications in understanding the personality profile and perfectionism of procrastinators.