Why Does the Faculty Resist Change?

RESISTANCE to change; UNIVERSITY faculty; COLLEGE teachers; ORGANIZATIONAL change; LOSS aversion; HIGHER education research; FREEDOM of teaching; ACADEMIC tenure; INCENTIVE (Psychology); PSYCHOLOGY

The article discusses resistance to institutional change among higher education faculty. It argues that such resistance to changes based on educational research is rooted in human instincts explained by the psychological notions of confirmation bias, loss aversion, the endowment effect, and the status quo bias. The author claims that the endowment effect results in faculty clinging to autonomy and to time for research, which is usually tied closely to tenure decisions. Also, he says that faculty react negatively when faced with a developed proposal for change but more positively when presented with data and invited to take ownership of institutional reforms. He advises administrators to change tenure incentives to more highly value teaching.