Date of Graduation

5-2021

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy in Health, Sport and Exercise Science (PhD)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Health, Human Performance and Recreation

Advisor/Mentor

Dittmore, Stephen W.

Committee Member

Beike, Denise R.

Second Committee Member

Veilleux, Jennifer C.

Third Committee Member

Moiseichik, Merry L.

Keywords

athletic directors; collegiate athletics; leadership; personality; Schwartz values

Abstract

The rapid commercialization of intercollegiate sports has changed the landscape of the hiring decisions and methodologies within university-associated athletic departments – especially within the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (DI-FBS) (Wong, 2017). Most notably and recently, the strategies used to hire athletic directors (ADs) have underwent considerable revision – yet successful hires are far from a sure thing. Many strategies include allusions to leadership style, yet leadership styles are as numerous as there are researchers who study them – and are rarely implemented holistically, thus making their assessment and associated outcomes tenuous at best (Peachey et al., 2015). Hambrick and Mason’s (1984) Upper Echelon Theory (UET) suggests that organizational outcomes are at the very least partially predicted by the personality characteristics of its leader. Researchers have since found, in comparison with leadership style, personality characteristics of leaders that might be both more easily measured, more consistent across time, and have very real impacts at multiple levels within an organization (Barrick et al., 2016; Berson et al., 2008; Resick et al., 2009). Previous research on AD values has not assessed values using the popular Schwartz Theory of Basic Human Values (BVT) – which include ten motivationally distinct values that have been recognized in various cultures, languages, and contexts throughout the world (Ates & Agras, 2015; Schwartz, 1992). To that end, the purpose of this study is to identify, through correlational and summative analysis, the values of DI FBS ADs and how such values are related to success as an organization via the 2017-2018 National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) Learfield-IMG College Directors’ Cup Rankings. Findings will provide insight into the values that ADs of successful organizations share, which may help inform administrative hiring practices moving forward.

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