Humanity & Social Sciences Journal 3 (1): 37-48, 2008 ISSN 1818-4960 © IDOSI Publications, 2008
Organizational Climate and Academic Staff’s Perception on Climate Factors
Hüseyin Gül Department of Technical Education Faculty, Kocaeli University, Kocaeli, Turkey
Abstract: This study aimed to find out how managers and academicians working in the organization perceived their organization and how they responded to the variations arising from climatic changes in the organization. The data were collected from 146 academicians by Kocaeli University Organizational Climate Questionnaire (KUOCQ) measuring five factors- “rules and discipline”, “democracy”, “social and cultural factors”, ...view middle of the document...
The culture concept is an all-inclusive one. While Guvenc describes it as “the civilization of a community or the cumulative civilization of all communities” [1]; Tezcan states that “it is a community’s way of life and a known aspect of human behavior” [2]; and Akdemir explains it as “the sum of improvements brought into light by humanity.” On the other hand, the concept of organization culture is used in a restricted meaning. Celik emphasizes that organization culture consists of the emotions, norms, interactions, activities, expectations, hypothesizes, beliefs, attitudes and values shared by the members of organization [3]. The culture belonging to organizations carries elements from national culture regarded as superior cosmos and it is in relation with it. However, it also has a system of values and symbols peculiar to itself [4]. Ozden states that these values and symbols can be perceived as the source of inspiration and energy through which everybody agrees on [5]. The culture and climate have a great effect on the basic values and norms of organization [6]. The organizational climate can be perceived as a factor in the center of circle including culture, ecology, individuals, organizing and social system which surround the organization and as an institution effected by them [7].The climate surrounding organization shows the good intentions of organization members and their level of loyalty to the organization. Corresponding Author: Dr. Hüseyin Gül, Department of Technical Education Faculty, Kocaeli University, Kocaeli, Turkey 37 Organizational culture %
Humanity & Social Sci. J., 3 (1): 37-48, 2008 According to Celep, a clear and motivating organizational climate increases loyalty degree of teachers. The organization climate provides it with an identity [8]. According to Aydin, as individuals create their own characteristics, the education institutions create their own characteristic. This characteristic can be explained with the help of organization climate [9]. In our age, there is a need for new strategies in order to form an organizational climate to promote the development of creative thought and to transform these applications into the organizational culture [10]. The basic component which makes organization culture and organizational climate different from each other is related with the research method. Contrary to the qualitative researches made about the organization culture, in the research about organizational climate the quantitative ones are commonly made use of [11]. The organization climate is mostly about attitudes and behaviors. Whereas the culture is a process in which the aim is to form a collection about more comprehensible system of values and believes [12]. The organization culture is composed of believes, values or norms shared by all members of organization. On the other hand, the organizational climate is composed of the understandings of members about organization [13]. For this reason, both concepts include...