Administrative Response to the Threat of Fiscal Decline in the Cooperative Extension Service
Long, Robert Franklin, Jr.
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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/69125
Description
Title
Administrative Response to the Threat of Fiscal Decline in the Cooperative Extension Service
Author(s)
Long, Robert Franklin, Jr.
Issue Date
1987
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, Higher
Abstract
The purpose of the study is the examination and analysis of administrative response to a threat of fiscal decline in the Cooperative Extension Service. The primary emphasis is on the relationships of a threat of fiscal decline on the decision-making processes and the decision choices that are considered and selected by the administrators. It draws generalizations concerning factors and related actions which contribute to the relative success or failure of the administrative response to a threat of fiscal decline.
The method was designed to investigate the problem from two perspectives. Survey research involving all head directors and administrators was supplemented with field research interviews and archival reviews at three sites representative of organizations that perceived the threat of fiscal decline to be either high, medium or low.
A positive relationship was found between the strength of the perceived threat of fiscal decline and restrictive alterations in the administrative decision-making process. When the threat is perceived to be high, administrators take actions to make the process less varied or flexible, more restrictive, and more centralized. In addition, the administrative response included alterations which were extended to other areas of the organization, including the changing of administrative approaches and organizational structures.
The findings of the study provide insight into some of the problems and potential negative effects, expected organizational reactions, and positive administrative actions being taken. The process of increasing understanding of a changed financial situation created by a threat of fiscal decline may permit administrators to rethink many of the traditional attitudes and approaches to managing the organization. An important function of organizational leadership may rest in the ability to interpret the threat for organizational members. This involves leadership in the clarification of and agreement on mission, priorities, and responses. One key to accomplishing this is the development of acceptable formal procedures for determining the steps that will be taken, the order in which they are taken, and who will be involved. The administration is challenged with building a system that finds a balance between the formal and informal influences on the decision-making process.
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