Organizational Culture as a Function of Institutional Type in Higher Education

The purpose of the present study was to examine whether organizational culture varies as a function of institutional type in higher education, and to identify whether there exists congruence between organizational culture type and leader behavior. Utilizing the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) developed by Cameron and Quinn (2011), data were collected from a sample of academic deans (n = 84) representing the colleges and universities across five states of the Upper Midwest. The results indicated a general trend toward clan cultures and congruent leader behavior for all institutional types (i.e., associate\u27s colleges, baccalaureate colleges, master\u27s colleges and universities, and doctorate-granting universities). Responses from academic deans at baccalaureate colleges singularly achieved statistical significance. Conversely, the results of the present study revealed a notable discontinuity between perceptions of current campus culture and desires for its future. Specifically, academic deans across all four institutional types indicated major preferences for a clan culture to predominate on their campuses. Perhaps most importantly, the results suggested the discovery of institutional size as a possible moderator of organizational culture among American colleges and universities