The Governance of Academic Department Heads and its Relationship to Administrative Creativity from the Faculty Members’ Point of View at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University

Abstract

The study aimed to reveal the degree of the governance practice among heads of academic departments, and its relationship to administrative creativity from the point of view of faculty members at Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University. To achieve the objectives of the study, it relied on the descriptive correlational approach, and a survey was used as a tool for data collection. The study population consisted of faculty members at Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University, numbering (2900) members, while the researcher identified the simple random sample (n=337), and a total of 184 valid responses (representing 54.5%), and respondents were asked to indicate the degree to which they agreed or disagreed with the items using a 5-point Likert-type scale. The results suggest that there was a very high practice of university governance as a whole among heads of academic departments 85.8%, (m= 4.29; SD= 0.683). In addition to a high availability of administrative creativity as a whole 82.6%, (m= 4.13, SD= 0.885). The findings also indicate that university governance is significantly correlated with administrative creativity r (182) =0.909, p=0.01. No difference was observed regarding the degree of governance practice and administrative creativity based on respondents attributable to the variables gender or years of experience, but there are differences in practicing the university governance and administrative creativity attributable to the variable academic rank in favor of associate professor. This study suggests universities’ adopting international models of governance as the British university governance model (CUC Code of Governance 2020) with Consideration of the new Saudi university system. It also recommends universities to improve the organizational climate, through exchange experiences, accept the other opinion, and dispose the complex routines that prevent the presentation of new ideas and creativity, in addition to provide moral and material support.