Findings from a study that examined stresses associated with the role of the university department chair are presented in this paper. The focuses are on career paths, transitions to the chair position, commitment to administration, role orientation, and strains of chairing. A survey of 808 department chairs in 101 research and doctoral-granting…

Over 800 academic department chairs, stratified by discipline, were selected from research and doctorate-granting institutions and completed the Department Chair Stress Index along with demographic questions. Results indicate that, overall, stress among department chairs is monolithic. Chairs expressed high stress both in faculty and…

A study of 564 college and university department heads investigated the most stressful situations, emergent themes, and differences between department chair and faculty stressors. Most stress came from heavy workload, time pressures, confrontations with colleagues, organizational constraints, and faculty duties. Faculty and administrative…

This multidimensional study examined the stress experienced by academic department chairs with emphasis on the chair's "person in the middle" role between faculty colleagues and the institution's administration. The study combined factors from the Administrative Stress Index with the Faculty Stress Index to develop a single,…