ABSTRACT
The behaviour of employees in a workplace have many repercussions in relation to profitability, efficiency and customer retention.
The purpose of this study was to determine whether the alumni of Ashesi University College exhibit civic virtue behaviours while at work. It also sought to investigate what the drivers behind this behaviour were in a bid to inform employers of Ashesi alumni on the likely behaviours their employees would exhibit, as well as educators at Ashesi as to whether or not their students apply what they have been taught once they graduate from school.
The findings of the study revealed that Ashesi alumni exhibit civic virtue at work. It also revealed that female alums, as well as Ashesi alumni employed in senior management positions are more likely to exhibit civic virtue at work. It was found that there is the likelihood that extra-curricular sessions with certain bodies within the university, as well as the content of some of the courses taught at the university, impact the awareness of proper workplace behaviour and thus influence the exhibition of civic virtue in the workplace.
It is recommended that employers continue to hire Ashesi alumni, and that educators at Ashesi continue to instruct their students in the manner that they have been doing.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION……………………………………………………………………………………………………….. ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS………………………………………………………………………………………… iii
ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS…………………………………………………………………………………………….. v
CHAPTER ONE – INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………………….. 1
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW……………………………………………………………………….. 11
- Chapter Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………….. 11
2.5.1. Cognitive Map……………………………………………………………………………………… 18
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY……………………………………………………………………………….. 19
- Chapter Overview…………………………………………………………………………………………….. 19
CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS…………………………………………………………. 26
- Chapter Overview………………………………………………………………………………………… 26
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS……………………………………. 46
- Chapter Overview……………………………………………………………………………………….. 46
References……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 51
Appendix…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 55
- E-questionnaire Administered to Respondents……………………………………………………. 55
- Course Objectives for the Organizational Behaviour Course…………………………………. 64
- Course Objectives for the Giving Voice to Values (GVV) Course…………………………. 64
- Selected Responses for Question 5 of the E-questionnaire……………………………………. 65
- Selected Responses for Question 7 of the E-questionnaire………………………………………. 68
CHAPTER ONE – INTRODUCTION
1.1 Chapter Overview
‘Behaviour’, defined as the way that a person acts, especially towards other people, is critical in organizations, where ‘the process of working with others and against them’: interpersonal behaviour, has organization-wide impact (Greenberg, 2011). According to this author, this impact is evident in the way that people work, and the way they feel about their jobs and organizations.
One might thus conclude based on Greenberg’s claims that, there will be the presence of many successful processes of working together rather than against one another in an organization where there is evidence of a positive impact of activities on the organization’s image. Activities which are in the nature of involving the entire community; that seek to benefit not only the individuals within the organization, but the entire entity and its environs, will be characteristic of prosocial behaviour. Prosocial behaviour is defined by Greenberg (2011) as behaviour involving successful processes of working together. These characteristics essentially describe an organization that demonstrates responsible, constructive interest in, and dedication to organizational affairs by the community; probably at the cost of the interests of individuals in the community. This behaviour is defined as Civic Virtue.
Ashesi University College (AUC) appears to fall into the category of institutions brimming with acts of civic virtue. First and foremost is the existence of its Honour Code system; one that once signed onto by students, challenges them to refrain from lying, cheating or stealing, or tolerating others that do so (Ashesi University College, 2016).
In the year 2010, Ashesi served as co-host of a nationwide conference on ethics, which was well attended by government, press and business leaders among others (Ashesi University
Foundation, 2011). This can be viewed as the sharing of ethical principles with the nation in a bid to spark change that will benefit the entire community.
There are also several examples of Ashesi students and alumni creating solutions to problems that benefit the entire Ashesi community and beyond. Take Kpetermeni Siakor ’15, who mocked up a local area network social program to provide internet services to the Ashesi campus community when the internet connectivity was lost (Ashesi University College, 2012), and also built a system to track and help control the spread of Ebola in his native Liberia (Ashesi University Foundation, 2014).Also, Yawa Hansen-Quao ’07 who launched a non-profit – the Leading Ladies Network, to provide support and mentorship to struggling young African women (Ashesi University Foundation, 2011).
