Community Mental Health Ideology, Job Satisfaction, and Managerial Orientation in Community Mental Health Centers
Mitrione, Robert Thomas
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Permalink
https://hdl.handle.net/2142/68754
Description
Title
Community Mental Health Ideology, Job Satisfaction, and Managerial Orientation in Community Mental Health Centers
Author(s)
Mitrione, Robert Thomas
Issue Date
1981
Department of Study
Education
Discipline
Education
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Education, Educational Psychology
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between Community Mental Health Ideology, Job Satisfaction, and Managerial Orientation in Community Mental Health Centers. One hundred and four clinical and/or management staff from nine East Central Illinois Community Mental Health Centers served as subjects. Data were collected in group administrations, from four basic instruments: The Job Descriptive Index (Smith, Kendall, & Hulin, 1969), The Modified Community Mental Health Ideology Scale (Bartlett & Grantham, 1980), A Managerial Orientation Self Assessment Instrument (Blake & Mouton, 1964), and a brief demographic questionnaire developed by the author.
The review of the literature provided support for the ideas that: (1) ideological positions are especially important to the field of community mental health and to the professionals within the field, (2) value based and ideological incongruence between staff and their employing agency may be a significant factor in job dissatisfaction in community mental health centers, (3) management practices have not been adequately investigated or utilized in the field of community mental health and certain management practices may be in conflict with ideological positions within the field. The study was designed to test for empirical relationships between the main variables as pertaining to these basic ideas.
Eleven hypotheses were generated in testing the relationships between the variables. Hypotheses were tested by use of ANOVAs, t-tests, multiple regression analysis, and correlational analyses. The major findings of the study are: (1) Individual Community Mental Health Ideology is significantly greater than Perceived Agency Community Mental Health Ideology. (2) Both Individual and Perceived Agency Community Mental Health Ideology are ineffective predictors of job satisfaction. (3) Individual Community Mental Health Ideology is independent of Individual and Preferred Executive Director Managerial Orientations. (4) Staff job satisfaction levels are significantly related to Perceived Executive Director Managerial Orientation, are significantly, although minimally, related to Individual Managerial Orientation, and are independent of Preferred Executive Director Managerial Orientation. Staff job satisfaction levels are independent of Executive Director's level of satisfaction with formal management preparedness.
Supplemental analyses investigated the relationships between organizational effectiveness (as measured by Agency institutionalization rates) and experimental variables, and sex differences in job satisfaction. Correlational matrix analysis showed no significant relationships between organizational effectiveness and any experimental variable. ANOVAs and t-tests showed that while there were no significant differences on job satisfaction levels between male and female staff, job satisfaction levels were significantly lower in agencies having female Executive Directors and that male staff with female Executive Directors score significantly lower than staff of both sexes with male Executive Directors.
Results show that community mental health ideology has minimal predictive utility for organizational functioning and that staff job satisfaction levels can be best predicted through knowledge of staff perception of managerial orientation of the Executive Director. Results are interpreted to support the position that the importance of community mental health ideology has been over emphasized and that job satisfaction in community mental health centers can best be achieved through the application of more effective management practices.
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