ABSTRACT
This study examined the influence of
home factors on academic staff job performance at the University of Lagos. In
carrying out the study, five research questions and null hypotheses each were
postulated to guide the study. The descriptive research design was used for the
study. A modified version of instrument used by other researchers was used to
assess the respondents’ opinions. Data collected from 100 respondents were
analyzed using mean and Chi-square statistical tool, while the hypotheses were
tested at 0.05 level of significance. The results of the analysis show that
there is a significant relationship between marital stability, family income,
health status and home size on the job performance of University of Lagos
academic staff. It is concluded that marital stability affects the job
performance of University of Lagos academic staff; family income and financial
status affect the job performance of University of Lagos academic staff; health
status of family members and also that of academic staff can affect their job
performance and the
larger the home size is the higher the pressure on the income of University of
Lagos academic staff which will also tell on their performance. It is recommended that
academic staff should be given room for counseling that will cater for
emotional wellbeing of university academic staff and adequate financial reward
should be provided for University of Lagos academic staff so that they can
perform their job adequately. It is suggested that a study be carried out on
the influence of motivational strategies on job performance and commitment of
academic staff of University of Lagos.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGES
Title page i
Certification ii
Dedication iii
Acknowledgement iv
Abstract vi
Table of contents vii
Abstract viii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1
Background to the Study 1
Statement
of the Problem 4
Purpose
of the Study 5
Research Questions 6
Research Hypotheses 6
Significance of Study 7
Scope and Delimitations of the Study 8
Definition of Terms 8
CHAPTER TWO:
LITERATURE REVIEW 10
The
Concept of Job Performance 10
The
Concept of Home Factor 17
Home
environment and Job Performance 21
Health
Status and Job Performance 23
Marital
stability and Job Performance 29
Average
Family Income and Academic Job Performance
Family
Income and Job Performance 32
Theoretical
Framework 35
Appraisal
of Literature Reviewed 37
CHAPTER THREE:
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 39
Introduction 39
Research
Design 39
Population
of the Study 40
Sample
and Sampling Technique 40
Research
Instrument 40
Validation
of the Instrument 41
Reliability
of the Instrument 41
Procedure
of Data Collection 41
Data
Analysis 41
CHAPTER FOUR: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF RESULTS 43
Introduction 43
Demographic Data
Analysis of the Participants 43
Answers to Research Questions 44
Testing of Hypotheses and Interpretation
of Results 47
Discussion
of Findings 51
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY,
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary 54
Conclusion 55
Recommendations
55
Implication
of the Findings 56
Suggestions
for Further Studies 56
References 57
Appendix 64
CHAPTER
ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background
to the Study
Universities
all over the world have the prime objectives of imparting knowledge and
producing sound intellectuals through teaching, research and community
services. To effectively deliver these objectives, qualified and competent
academics are harnessed. However, academic staff can only reach the peak
performance if they are adequately motivated assuming that the issue of
competence is taken as given. Therefore, effective job performance by the
academic staff can only lead to the realization of the broad objectives for
which universities are established.
Fabunmi
(2005) maintained that the success of university system depends (not totally) on various environmental
factors such as the available infrastructure, location of the school, the
classroom condition, the architectural design of the school, the availability
of standard library for studies and research and so on. He also mentioned that
the condition of the home of any university employee plays a crucial role in
getting an optimal performance from the employee.
The
home of an employee can be seen in the light of physical and psychological
condition of the house or where the employee lives. This has to do with the
relationship and the effect of family, friends and the community on an
employee. Albert (2008) defined home as a complex term that can encompass every
activities that one does outside workplace. He believed that home is part of
one’s journey to workplace, the environment that the employee lives, the people
he lives with, the experience with neighbours, welfare of in-laws, friends and
even where he worships, as some religious believes have a significant influence
on workplace practices.
However,
Voydancoff (2008) posited that meeting the often incompatible demand of family
and work may create family-work conflict. For example, working long hours may
prevent adequate performance of family responsibilities. Employee’s position in
the family, marital status, marital expectations for example, when an employee
has a problem with child bearing all these can have a psychological effect on
the employee and are factors that often bring frictions between home and job.
Jokotoye (2001) opined that some parents often frown at their daughters’
ambition of having their doctoral degree which would enhance their performance
at work as such parents believe that men will be intimidated by their
daughters’ achievement and would not be able to get husband. Ill-health of
family member may also interfere with work as illness of one’s child may
prevent attendance at work or make one to lose concentration at work.
Job
performance is the ability of an employee to render effectively such services
that he is paid to do. Lombardi (2012) is of the view that
the price of success is hard work, dedication and commitment to job at hand and
determination that whether win or lose; we have applied the best of ourselves
to the task at hand. Organization performance is the desire and ability on the
part of employee to remain committed to the task agreed upon and given while
diligently carrying out those tasks with no extra cost on the employer. While
job commitment is a bond that links employee to the job, job performance can be
seen as ability to deliver the service effectively and efficiently. Meyer and
Allen (1997) classify employee performance into two groups, one group as Job
Effective Performance while another group of employees may display Normative
Way of Performance.
Adams (2004) argued that employees who are
not performing in their jobs sometimes feel that they are treating their
employers unfairly while some would eventually engage in withdrawal behaviour,
which is a set of action employees perform to avoid the work
situation-behaviour that may later culminate in quitting the job or being
sacked. Job performance is individual psychological and physical contribution
to the job. It is therefore necessary to improve what workers contribute in
workplace so that maximum utilization of resources could be achieved.
However, Rogers (2000) advocated that one
should never continue in a job which one feels that one is not performing, if
one is not happy with one’s performance and in what one is doing, one will not
have an inner peace. To Meyer (2012), performance is never an accident. It is
always the result of the commitment to excellence, intelligent planning and
focused effort. Lombardi (1997), in his own view, felt that the quality of
person’s life is in direct proportion to their excellent performance,
regardless of their chosen field of endeavors.
However,
due to the policy of location of university sites in Nigeria, accommodation
problems have often been reported by various researchers (Adigun, 2011;
Fashina, 2009; and Odedina, 2007) as one of the problems facing the Nigerian
lecturers. Some of those who were interviewed by Fashina, lamented that their
family members live miles away from them and for that they travel from time to
time so as to ensure that various family responsibilities are met. Therefore,
link has been established by Desmond (2009) and Orji (2007) between home environment
and job performance. It is argued that the kind of home environment an employee
comes from will determine his attitude and effort towards the job which will
consequently impact their job performance. The extent to which this could be
applied to job performance in a formal school setting is the basis for this
study In view of the aforementioned, the study sought out the influence of
marital stability, family size, family income and health status of the family
members on staff job performance in University of Lagos.
Statement of the
Problem
The
number of university academic staff in Nigeria has witnessed a magnanimous
growth in the last twenty years. Nigerian university system unlike in the past,
now produces a great number of seasoned academic staff many of whom now ply
their trade abroad as a result of global recognition. Some academic staff of
Nigerian universities have also won laurels for themselves and made the country
proud. However, the perception the parents, students and government on the
contributions of the lecturers have not been positive. Parents and students
often argue that university academic staff are unpatriotic and self-centered as
they believe that instead of the university lecturers to concentrate on their
primary assignment, they shuttle from one private university to another for
part time jobs leaving their main job to suffer.
However,
home factors, which include but not limited to stress, family income, marital
stability, health status have often been blamed for their attitude towards
their job performance. It is against this background that the researcher feels
that it is necessary to investigate if
family income, marital stability, family health status and size of the
family can affect the job performance of the academic staff of University of
Lagos.
Purpose of the Study
The
general purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of home factors
on academic staff job performance at the University of Lagos. To achieve this,
the study specifically aims at:
1.
finding out the influence of marital
stability on academic staff job performance
2.
investigating the influence of family
income on academic staff job performance
3.
investigating if there is any influence
of health status of family members’ on academic staff job performance
4.
investigating if there is any influence
of home size on academic staff job performance.
Research Questions
The study provides answers to the following
questions
1.
To what extent does marital stability
influence academic staff job performance?
2.
Is there any influence of family income
on academic staff job performance?
3.
How would health status influence
academic staff job performance?
4.
Is there any influence of home size on
academic staff job performance?
Research Hypotheses
The following hypotheses are formulated and
tested at 0.05 level of significance to guide the study:
Ho1: There is no significant
influence of marital stability on the job performance of University of Lagos
academic staff
Ho2: No significant
influence of family income exists on the job performance of University of Lagos
academic staff
Ho3: There is no significant
influence of health status on the job performance of University of Lagos
academic staff
Ho4: There is no significant
influence of home size on the job performance University of Lagos academic
staff
Significance
of Study
The finding of this study is expected to
serve as positive contribution to employers of academic staff of various
universities in discovering the role of home on academic staff job performance
and are expected to use this study as a basis for staffing process in the
federal, state and private owned universities and it will also help them in
making staffing policies that will help them adequately provide for the welfare
of prospective lecturers so as to perform their job effectively.
This study will serve as a guide to others
researchers who may be interested in finding answers to some issues on academic
staff job performance. It will also help the policy makers in making adequate
provisions for the academic staff so as to improve their performance.
The study will also enlighten the academic
staff of universities on how to make adequate provision for their family
members so as not to make themselves affected by pressure from home as it can
affect their job performance.
Scope and
Delimitations of the Study
This study is strictly concerned with the
influence of home factors on academic staff job performance at the university Lagos. The study covers family
income, health status, home size and how marital stability or the absence of it
affects academic staff performance. The research is restricted to selected
number of academic staff of University of Lagos.
Definition of Terms
The following terms have been defined
operationally as follows:
Marital
stability:
This
has to do with the conjugal status of a staff as intact or non-intact i.e.
separated, divorce, happily married
Family
income:
This
can be seen in terms of the average earning of the family. This also means per
capital income of the family. That is, an academic staff whose wife and
children are not working will definitely have low par capital income.
Health
status: Overall wellbeing of the organism. This
is also a condition of physical, mental and social well-being or the absence of
diseases or any other abnormal condition.
Job
Performance:
This
is the ability to do the job that one is expected to do well
Home: This
has to do with the finance, marital stability, family and friends that have
impact on employee outside the work environment.
Marital
stability: This has to do with if the marital
experiences of an employee. Employee who has marital instability or failure are
believed to sometimes duel on the marriage failure.
Family
income: Family income is the amount of money
that comes into a family account. Too much dependants on a fixed income
sometimes reduces the savings at the disposal of the family
Health
status: This has to do with the medical
wellbeing of the whole family. The amount of money and time spent in hospital
or clinic will affect one’s disposable income.
Home
size: This is the number of people living with an
employee. They can be dependents or independent. More dependent number of
people in a family will lower t5he per capital income of the family.
Effective Performance: This is ability to accomplish a set task
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