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Drawing upon the conservation of resources (COR) theory, this paper investigates the moderated mediation model linking benevolent leadership to organizational citizenship behaviors towards the organization (OCBO) and towards individuals (OCBI) in the context of higher education. The mediating roles of leader-member exchange and affective commitment as well as the moderating roles of the two attachment styles—attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance—are also examined.

Data were collected from a sample of 333 university lecturers and analyzed using partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).

The results demonstrate that leader-member exchange and affective commitment are mediating resources that help benevolent leaders motivate university lecturers to engage in two types of OCBs. Moreover, attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance act as the respective enhancer and inhibitor for the indirect effects of benevolent leadership on both OCBs through leader-member exchange. In contrast, the relationships between benevolent leadership and two types of OCBs through the mediating role of affective commitment are not contingent on the attachment styles of lecturers.

The findings suggest that university leaders who aim at promoting OCBs among lecturers should deploy benevolent leadership style to facilitate a positive social exchange relationship as well as foster their affective commitment. Such leadership style is especially effective in influencing lecturers who possess attachment anxiety personality traits.

This pioneer research develops and empirically tests a COR theory-grounded moderated mediation model pertaining to benevolent leadership and lecturers' OCBs. The findings contribute to the educational management literature by demonstrating that benevolent leadership, a crucial organizational resource, significantly motivates lecturers' voluntary and extra-role behaviors in a dynamic and contingent manner. Leader-member exchange and affective commitment are important mediating resources in the process of transforming benevolent leadership into beneficial behaviors. Further, the effectiveness of benevolent leadership largely depends on lecturers' personality traits of attachment anxiety and avoidance. These novel mediating and moderating findings demonstrate the sequential and interaction effects of various organizational and individual resources on lecturers' OCBs; thus, adding value to the COR theory's core principles, including resource caravans and resource investment behaviors.

This study examined how a US college athletic department’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives influenced fans’ online donation intentions.

Data were collected from 490 fans of a Division I intercollegiate athletic program and analyzed using structural equation modeling.

Results indicated that the quality of CSR information positively affected e-satisfaction with CSR initiatives, which, in turn, predicted fans’ online donation intentions, university attachment, and fan–athletic department identification. Moreover, the relationship between e-satisfaction with CSR initiatives and online donation intentions was mediated by fan–athletic department identification.

This study has a limitation in terms of generalizability. The current focus on a single athletic department does not apply the results to athletic programs at other US universities and colleges. Future research should confirm the generalizability of the study’s findings by collecting data from fans of other athletic departments.

It is important to understand the impact of CSR activities on online donor intentions because marketing these activities could serve as an effective fundraising tool for athletic departments. The findings from this study inform athletic administrators of factors they might consider when promoting CSR initiatives through online media to encourage fans’ donations.

The purpose of this paper is to examine employees’ experiences of institutional betrayal after a campus sexual assault.

University employees completed online measures evaluating various attitudes toward the university.

The majority of participants reported institutional betrayal in the university’s response to the case. Employees who reported institutional betrayal indicated significantly lower attachment to the university than employees who reported no institutional betrayal. Institutional betrayal mediated the relationship between institutional attachment and institutional forgiveness.

Universities’ failure to respond effectively and promptly to sexual violence does not go unnoticed by employees. Institutional actions after sexual assault have the power to damage employees’ attachment to the university – employees who experienced institutional betrayal were less attached, and ultimately less forgiving of the institution. Universities’ poor prevention and response efforts impact their entire campus community and compromise community members’ ongoing relationship with the school.

College students’ active resistance to sexual violence on campus is featured prominently on the pages of major news outlets. Yet, less featured in research and media is the impact of campus sexual assault on university employees, particularly after sexual assault cases are mishandled. This study offers perspective on employees’ experiences and reactions after a prominent sexual assault case.

The study aims to explore and test the integrated relationships between university reputation and its key antecedents. In doing so, theoretically derived antecedents of university reputation were examined. The study reports the complex interplay among image, quality, value, satisfaction and attachment and their subsequent effect on reputation.

A quantitative method was used to achieve research objectives. Data collected from students enrolled in major private university in Northern India were analysed to test the proposed model directly and indirectly using structural equation modelling (SEM).

The findings confirmed most of the hypothesised relationships. Prominently, image construct was found to be significantly affecting students' quality perceptions along with satisfaction, attachment, value and importantly reputation. The study found evidence for the impact of students' attachment on university reputation. Findings also indicated the presence of several indirect relationships among the considered dimensions.

Current research offers implications for universities that are met with the perpetual challenge of survival in the competitive higher education (HE) marketplace. Findings from the study not only help build theory on university reputation but make essential contribution towards guiding managers in developing effective strategies by building reputation via concentrating on the most crucial determinants.

Although research in HE marketing is growing, effects of student attachment towards building reputation has not garnered attention, which is theoretically a vital construct. The paper presents new framework to realise university reputation with the help of integrated relationships among select dimensions in the setting of an emerging HE market.

This study aims to explore whether the COVID-19-related circumstances hindered these academic-related variables.

The authors surveyed two groups of undergraduate business students (42% male) who completed the questionnaires at the beginning and at the end of the semester. One group of students attended only face-to-face classes in the 2018/2019 academic year (n = 126) and the other group transitioned to online classes because of the COVID-19 outbreak in the 2019/2020 academic year (n = 99).

The findings show no statistically significant group differences between the pre- and post-test in students’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, feelings of attachment to the university and engagement dimensions of absorption and vigour. Nevertheless, a moderate negative effect was found in the dedication engagement dimension.

The authors discuss the main results in terms of some practices that may contribute towards attenuating the effects of future emerging pandemics in the higher education setting.

The COVID-19 pandemic imposed a rapid transition to online instruction in education institutions worldwide. However, it remains unclear to date how students’ engagement, motivation and attachment to the university were negatively affected by the first COVID-19 outbreak.

In sports consumer behaviour literature only a small amount of variance in attendance is explained by motives. One possible explanation for this is the existence of a third factor which moderates this relationship between the motives and attendance. Individuals who strongly identify with a sports team demonstrate distinctly different behavioural patterns from weakly identified individuals. Identification may, therefore, serve as a moderator. Accordingly, two hypotheses are generated: (a) the relationship between motives and attendance intention ranges from weak to moderate; and (b) the overarching construct of Identification (Team Identification) moderates the influence of motives on attendance intention. Participants were 207 United States of America National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division IA student-subjects. Instrumentation includes measures of motivation, points of attachment and attendance intention. Through hierarchical Confirmatory Factor Analysis, regression analyses and latent variable scores approach, the results largely support both hypotheses.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between perceived external prestige (PEP), the student experience, attitude, and behaviour in the context of higher education institutions.

A comparison of the relationships between prestige perception, the student experience, WOM, and loyalty is examined within a one highly prestigious institution and one mid-ranked institution. Multigroup structural equation modelling was employed to examine data obtained from 948 respondents at the two institutions.

While respondents from the top-ranked institution exhibit a significantly higher perception of university prestige than mid-ranked university respondents, no significant differences were found between the two groups of respondents in terms of the strengths of relationships between constructs. The analysis revealed that students’ perception of their university experience performed a full mediating effect on the relationship between PEP and WOM, as well as a partial mediating effect on the relationship between PEP and loyalty.

Student perceptions of the university experience is a strong indicator of attitude and behaviour. For university administrators, enhancing the student experience is just as important as managing a university’s reputation with respect to engendering loyalty and positive WOM.

This is the first study to link PEP with student attitude and behaviour. The findings provide interesting theoretical insights as well as useful managerial implications to enhance consumer experience which in turns affect their attitude and behaviour towards the organisation.

The purpose of this paper is to report the training of college librarians, academic and management staff, IT managers and students on how to organise, manage and use a user-friendly library. In Uganda, as in many countries, the problem is that school and/or college libraries are managed by librarians who may have good cataloguing and management skills, but who do not have the pedagogic skills and knowledge of the school curricula that are necessary for librarians to be able to guide and mentor both teachers and students or organise curriculum-related activities or facilitate research. The development of user-friendly libraries contributes in improving education quality through nurturing the interest of students and teachers in literacy activities and active search for knowledge. Under the stewardship of the Belgium Technical Cooperation and the Ministry of Education in Uganda, library stakeholders were trained on how to put users – rather than themselves – in the centre of the library’s operations and introduced to active teaching and learning methodologies and activities with emphasis on getting engaged in transforming spaces, services, outreach to users and collections. Several measures, short and long term were taken to address the gaps limiting the performance of the librarians. Given the disparities in the trainees’ education level and work experience, the training was delivered in seven modules divided into three units for over eight months in 2015. By the end of the training, trainees developed unique library strategic plan, library policies and procedures, capacity to use library systems, physical design and maintenance systems, partnerships, library structure and staff job descriptions.

To effectively engage the participants each topic was conducted using active teaching and learning (ATL) methodologies, including: lecture with slides and hands-on practice – each topic was introduced in a lecture form with slides and hands-on exercises. The main goal was to introduce the participants to the concepts discussed, offer opportunities to explore alternative approaches, as well define boundaries for discussion through brainstorming. The question-answer approach kept the participants alert and to start thinking critically on the topic discussed – brainstorming sessions allowed thinking beyond the presentation room, drawing from personal experiences to provide alternatives to anticipated challenges. The goal here was for the participants to provide individual choices and approaches for real life problems; group discussions: case study/ scenario and participant presentations – participants were provided with a scenario and asked to provide alternative approaches that could solve the problem based on their personal experience at their colleges. By the end of the group discussion, participants presented a draft of the deliverable as per the topic under discussion. More so, group discussions were an excellent approach to test participant’s teamwork skills and ability to compromise, as well as respecting team decisions. It was an opportunity to see how librarians will work with the library committees. Group discussions further initiated and cemented the much-needed librarian–academic staff – college management relationship. During the group discussion, librarians, teaching staff, ICT staff and college management staff, specifically the Principals and Deputy Principals interacted freely thus starting and cultivating a new era of work relationship between them. Individual presentation: prior to the workshop, participants were sent instructions to prepare a presentation on a topic. For example, participants were asked to provide their views of what a “user-friendly library” would look like or what would constitute a “user-friendly library”; the college library of HTC-Mulago was asked to talk about their experience working with book reserves, challenges faced and plans they have to address the challenges, while the college librarian from NTC-Kaliro was asked to describe a situation where they were able to assist a patron, the limitations they faced and how they addressed them. Doing so did not only assist to emotionally prepare the participants for the training but also helped to make them start thinking about the training in relation to their libraries and work. Take-home assignment: at the end of each session, participants were given home assignments to not only revise the training material but also prepare for the next day training. Further the take-home assignments provided time for the participants to discuss with their colleagues outside of the training room so as to have a common ground/ understanding on some of the very sensitive issues. Most interesting assignment was when participants were asked to review an article and to make a presentation in relation to their library experiences. Participant reports: participant reports resulted from the take-home assignments and participants were asked to make submission on a given topic. For example, participants were asked to review IFLA section on library management and write a two-page report on how such information provided supported their own work, as well as a participant report came from their own observation after a library visit. Invited talks with library expert: two invited talks by library experts from Consortium of Uganda University Libraries and Uganda Library and Information Science Association with the goal to share their experience, motivate the participants to strive higher and achieve great things for their libraries. Library visitation: there were two library visits conducted on three separate days – International Hospital Kampala (IHK) Library, Makerere University Library and Aga Khan University Hospital Library. Each of these library visits provided unique opportunities for the participants to explore best practices and implement similar practices in their libraries. Visual aids – videos, building plans and still photos: these were visual learning aids to supplement text during the lectures because they carried lot of information while initiating different thoughts best on the participants’ past experience and expertise. The training advocated for the use of ATL methodologies and likewise similar methodologies were used to encourage participants do so in their classrooms.

Addressing Key Concerns: Several measures, both long and short term, were taken to address the gaps limiting the performance of the librarians. The measures taken included: selected representative sample of participants including all college stakeholders as discussed above; active teaching and learning methodologies applied in the training and blended in the content of the training materials; initiated and formulated approaches to collaborations, networks and partnerships; visited different libraries to benchmark library practices and encourage future job shadowing opportunities; and encouraged participants to relate freely, understand and value each other’s work to change their mindsets. College librarians were encouraged to ensure library priorities remain on the agenda through advocacy campaigns. Short-term measures: The UFL training was designed as a practical and hands-on training blended with individual and group tasks, discussions, take-home assignments and presentations by participants. This allowed participates to engage with the material and take responsibility for their own work. Further, the training material was prepared with a view that librarians support the academic life of teaching staff and students. Participants were tasked to develop and later fine-tune materials designed to support their work. For example, developing a subject bibliography and posting it on the library website designed using open source tools such as Google website, Wikis, blogs. The developed library manual includes user-friendly policies and procedures referred to as “dos and don’ts in the library” that promote equitable open access to information; drafting book selection memos; new book arrivals lists; subscribing to open access journals; current awareness services and selective dissemination of information service displays and electronic bulletins. Based on their library needs and semester calendar, participants developed action points and timelines to implement tasks in their libraries at the end of each unit training. Librarians were encouraged to share their experiences through library websites, Facebook page, group e-mail/listserv and Instagram; however, they were challenged with intimate internet access. College libraries were rewarded for their extraordinary job. Given their pivotal role in the management and administration of financial and material resources, on top of librarians, the participants in this training were college administrators/ management, teaching and ICT staff, researchers and student leadership. Participants were selected to address the current and future needs of the college library. These are individuals that are perceived to have a great impact towards furthering the college library agenda. The practical nature of this training warranted conducting the workshops from developed but similar library spaces, for example, Aga Khan University Library and Kampala Capital City, Makerere University Library, International Hospital Kampala Library and Uganda Christian University Library. Participants observed orientation sessions, reference desk management and interviews, collection management practices, preservation and conservation, secretarial bureau management, etc. Long-term measures: Changing the mindset of librarians, college administrators and teaching staff is a long-term commitment which continues to demand for innovative interventions. For example: job shadowing allowed college librarian short-term attachments to Makerere University Library, Uganda Christian University Library, Aga Khan Hospital University Library and International Hospital Kampala Library – these libraries were selected because of their comparable practices and size. The mentorship programme lasted between two-three weeks; on-spot supervision and follow-up visits to assess progress with the action plan by the librarians and college administration and college library committee; ensuring that all library documents – library strategic plan, library manual, library organogram, etc are approved by the College Governing Council and are part of the college wide governing documents; and establishing the library committee with a job description for each member – this has strengthened the library most especially as an advocacy tool, planning and budgeting mechanism, awareness channel for library practices, while bringing the library to the agenda – reemphasizing the library’s agenda. To bridge the widened gap between librarians and the rest of the stakeholders, i.e. teaching staff, ICT staff, college administration and students, a college library committee structure and its mandate were established comprising: Library Committee Chairperson – member of the teaching staff; Library Committee Secretary – College Librarian; Student Representative – must be a member of the student Guild with library work experience; and Representative from each college academic department. A library consortium was formed involving all the four project supported colleges to participate in resource sharing practices, shared work practices like shared cataloguing, information literacy training, reference interview and referral services as well a platform for sharing experiences. A library consortium further demanded for automating library functions to facilitate collaboration and shared work. Plans are in place to install Koha integrated library system that will cultivate a strong working relationship between librarians and students, academic staff, college administration and IT managers. This was achieved by ensuring that librarians innovatively implement library practices and skills acquired from the workshop as well as show their relevance to the academic life of the academic staff. Cultivating relationships takes a great deal of time, thus college librarians were coached on: creating inclusive library committees, timely response to user needs, design library programmes that address user needs, keeping with changing technology to suite changing user needs, seeking customer feedback and collecting user statistics to support their requests, strengthening the library’s financial based by starting a secretarial bureau and conducting user surveys to understand users’ information-seeking behaviour. To improve the awareness of new developments in the library world, college librarians were introduced to library networks at national, regional and international levels, as a result they participated in conferences, workshops, seminars at local, regional and international level. For example, for the first time and with funding from Belgium Technical Cooperation, college librarians attended 81st IFLA World Library and Information Congress in South African in 2015. College libraries are now members of the Consortium of Uganda University Libraries and Uganda Library and Information Science Association and have attended meetings of these two very important library organisations in Uganda’s LIS profession. The college librarians have attended meetings and workshops organized by these two organisations.

At the end of the three units training, participants were able to develop: a strategic plan for their libraries; an organogram with staffing needs and job description matching staff functions; a Library Committee for each library and with a structure unifying all the four project-support Colleges; a library action plan with due dates including deliverables and responsibilities for implementation; workflow plan and organisation of key sections of the library such as reserved and public spaces; furniture and equipment inventory (assets); a library manual and collection development policy; partnerships with KCCA Library and Consortium of Uganda University Libraries; skills to use Koha ILMS for performing library functions including: cataloguing, circulation, acquisitions, serials management, reporting and statistics; skills in searching library databases and information literacy skills; skills in designing simple and intuitive websites using Google Sites tools; and improved working relationship between the stakeholders was visible. To further the user-friendly libraries principle of putting users in the centre of the library’s operations, support ATL methodologies and activities with emphasis on getting engaged in transforming spaces, services, outreach to users and collections the following initiatives are currently implemented in the colleges: getting approval of all library policy documents by College Governing Council, initiating job shadowing opportunities, conducting on-spot supervision, guide libraries to set up college library committees and their job description, design library websites, develop dissemination sessions for all library policies, incorporate user-friendly language in all library documents, initiate income generation activities for libraries, set terms of reference for library staff and staffing as per college organogram, procurement of library tools like DDC and library of congress subject headings (LCSH), encourage attendance to webinars and space planning for the new libraries.

The purpose of this study is to validate the psychometric properties of the Self-Perceived Employability Scale in the context of the United Arab Emirates (UAE-SPE) and to verify the model fit of the UAE-SPE and University Commitment Scale (UC) (Rothwell et al., 2008) for undergraduate students.

A cross-sectional survey study was carried out to collect the data using a web-based survey tool (Qualtrics) at a public university in the UAE. The sample was 646 undergraduate students.

As a result of the factor analysis, the study validated three factors of SPE for undergraduate students in the UAE that explain their perceptions of their university reputation, their field of study, the state of the UAE labour market and confidence in their skills. Confirmatory factor analysis verified good model fit indices of UAE-SPE and the UC scale. In addition, the study found a statistically significant positive relationship between the UC scale and the three factors of UAE-SPE.

Currently, there is a scarcity of published research on self-perceived employability amongst undergraduate students in higher education institutions in the UAE and the Arab region. This article not only contributes to research on this topic but also validates two scales, allowing cross-cultural comparisons of SPE and UC of undergraduate students in the Arab region and worldwide.

The aim of the paper is to examine the various information literacy (IL) practices in university libraries in Nigeria, to identify the likely barriers facing information literacy programmes in Nigeria, and to provide suggestions on how best to improve the IL practices.

Librarians from 36 university libraries participated in the survey which adopted an online method.

The study revealed that university libraries in Nigeria were found to be engaging in different information literacy (IL) practices ranging from library tour/orientations sessions to introductory information skills, database searching skills, bibliographic training and use of the library. Barriers such as lack of interest by students, teachers, and management, inadequate human resources to handle IL training, lack of facilities, low acceptance of online IL delivery approach and absence of IL policy were identified as factors militating against librarians' efforts when advocating and providing IL programmes in university libraries in Nigeria.

The study will inform librarians or library administrators in developing countries who want to train users on information literacy skills in order to facilitate full exploitation of information resources and services in their libraries.

The paper describes information literacy practices in university libraries in Nigeria. The findings may be of help to librarians who want to improve on their IL programmes in university libraries in Nigeria and other developing countries.