Quality of faculty member's working lives and the factors that affect it based on real life experiences

The various aspects of the working lives of faculty members in Iranian universities have been problematical. The quality of working life is a subjective construct and the definition of its components should be studied in the socio- political and cultural contexts and this requires a qualitative research method. This study pursues two main questions: (1) what are the various aspects of faculty members’ working lives and (2) what are the factors that affect it based on the faculty members’ life experiences? Qualitative research was carried out based on an explanatory approach and semi- structured in depth interviews with 15 faculty members as a purposive sample. According to the research findings the main components of quality of faculty members’ working lives are: communicative action, academic freedom, professional ethics, job satisfaction, faculty development, professional career, equilibrium of educational, research and executive performance. The main factors that affect the quality of faculty members’ working lives are: governance and administration, structure, organizational culture, economic factors, political factors, information and communication technology.