08832323.2014.900470
Journal of Education for Business
ISSN: 0883-2323 (Print) 1940-3356 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjeb20
The Effects of Part-Time MBA Programs on
Students: The Relationships Between Students and
Their Employers
Melvin Prince, David J. Burns & Chris Manolis
To cite this article: Melvin Prince, David J. Burns & Chris Manolis (2014) The Effects of PartTime MBA Programs on Students: The Relationships Between Students and Their Employers,
Journal of Education for Business, 89:6, 300-309, DOI: 10.1080/08832323.2014.900470
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Date: 11 January 2016, At: 20:44
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR BUSINESS, 89: 300–309, 2014
Copyright Ó Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
ISSN: 0883-2323 print / 1940-3356 online
DOI: 10.1080/08832323.2014.900470
The Effects of Part-Time MBA Programs on
Students: The Relationships Between Students
and Their Employers
Melvin Prince
Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 20:44 11 January 2016
Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
David J. Burns and Chris Manolis
Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
The authors explore how the relationship between part-time master of business
administration (MBA) students and their employers changes as students proceed through
their MBA program by examining the degree to which students are integrated into their
employer organizations. Significant positive relationships observed between students’
progress through their MBA program and the integration factors of coworker support and
future prospects with their employers suggest that an MBA education can have a positive
effect on employee–employer integration levels. Consequently, in addition to increasing
business knowledge and skills, an MBA degree appears to assist with integrating employees
and employers.
Keywords: coworker support, graduate education, MBA education, part-time MBA students,
training
Increasing attention is being placed on the effectiveness of
master of business administration (MBA) programs in providing value to not only students, but to the organizations
that employ them. Increasing costs of MBA programs and
growing questions about their effectiveness have become
primary impetuses for this concern. Most research examining the effectiveness of MBA programs has examined how
the programs can be adapted to provide more value to students and their present/future employers (Muff, 2012). This
line of research has identified numerous ways by which the
structure and/or content of MBA programs can be adapted
to possibly improve effectiveness and/or efficiency. Additional research has examined the preparation of students
entering MBA programs to identify students who are most
likely to benefit from an MBA education (Sharbatoghlie,
Mosleh, & Emami, 2011). Consequently, the admission
requirements at several graduate business schools have
changed.
Correspondence should be addressed to David J. Burns, Xavier University, Department of Marketing, 307 Smith Hall, 1002 Francis Xavier Way,
Cincinnati, OH 45207-1214, USA. E-mail: [email protected]
An issue that has received little research attention, however, involves how the relationship between MBA students
and their employers changes as students proceed through
their MBA programs. It is logical to expect that the relationship between student-employees and their employers
will change as a result of student involvement in an MBA
program, but this important area has received little research
attention.
An area that may be of particular interest to both
employers and educators is the degree to which an MBA
education may affect students’ integration into their
employers’ organizations. The degree to which employees
are integrated into employers’ organizations can provide
advantages to both employers and employees (e.g., Saeed,
Abu Mansor, Siddique, & Anis-ul-Haq, 2012; Saks, Uggerslev, & Fassina, 2007). If the integration is perceived by
part-time MBA students with their employers’ organizations to increase while progressing through an MBA program, evidence can be provided which may indicate an
additional positive outcome of an MBA education
(increased integration) which is often overlooked.
The focus of this study is to begin to examine the level
of integration perceived by part-time MBA students with
EFFECTS OF PART-TIME MBA PROGRAMS
their employers’ organizations as they progress through
their educational programs. First, research on the value of
an MBA education is reviewed. Second, research on the
transfer of knowledge, skills, and abilities in training programs generally is examined. Third, the effects of an MBA
education on student–employer relationships are explored.
Fourth, hypotheses are developed and tested. Last, conclusions are drawn.
PAST RESEARCH
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MBA Programs
Increasingly, the value of an MBA education is being questioned (Bruce, 2010). Zhao, Truell, Alexander, and Hill
(2006), for instance, recount the rising negativity seen in
articles examining the value of the MBA degree appearing
in many business publications. Pfeffer and Fong (2002)
stated, “there is little evidence that mastery of the knowledge acquired in business schools enhances people’s
careers, or that even attaining the MBA credential itself has
much effect on graduate’s salaries or career attainment” (p.
80). Similarly, Bennis and O’Toole (2005) stated, “MBA
programs face intense criticism for failing to impart useful
skills, failing to prepare leaders, failing to instill norms of
ethical behavior, and even failing to lead graduates to good
corporate jobs” (p. 96). In response, some business schools
have focused on reviews of their programs and changing
their curriculum as ways to increase the value of their
MBA programs.
This assessment of the value of MBA programs may be
overly harsh since evidence has been reported which seems
to support the value of an MBA education. In a longitudinal
study, Inderrieden, Holtom, and Bies (2006), for instance,
observed that the possession of an MBA degree has a positive effect on early career success. Zhao et al. (2006)
observed positive short- and long-term effects of an MBA
degree and Arcidiacono, Cooley, and Hussey (2008)
observed similar effects. Murray (2007) observed that
employers report that nearly three-quarters of recently hired
MBA graduates met their expectations and nearly a quarter
exceeded their expectations, while only four percent report
that recently hired MBA graduates did not meet expectations. Likewise, Bruce (2010) observed that recent MBA
graduates report high levels of satisfaction with their MBA
education. Evidence exists, therefore, suggesting that an
MBA degree may, in fact, provide value.
The conflicting assessments of the value of an MBA
education suggest that the value of this degree may be
affected by factors other than the degree itself. For instance,
the MBA degree is offered by a significant number of different types of institutions. Arcidiacono et al. (2008)
observed that students need to attend a top-ranked school to
benefit financially from an MBA education. Holtom and
301
Inderrieden (2007), however, observed a higher return on
investment for schools not ranked in the top 10 as opposed
to those in the top 10. Hence, existing research does not
agree on whether the rankings of MBA programs are
related to the value of the education they provide.
The quantity of student work experience prior to beginning an MBA program has also been forwarded as a factor
affecting the value of the resulting degree (Sharbatoghlie
et al., 2011). Some graduate business schools prefer that
entering students have work experience. DeRue (2009)
observed, “work experience has become an integral part of
the business school curriculum with a focus on students
learning as much from their peers as from professors. These
drivers pushed the average years of work experience
requirement at top business schools from three to five
years” (p. 1). Empirical research has not supported this contention, however. Dreher and Ryan (2000), for instance,
observed that previous work experience is related to performance in foundational courses, but not to the remainder of
MBA courses. Sharbatoghlie at al. observed no difference
between students without prior work experience and those
with prior work experience on Kolb’s Learning Skills Profile. Hence, existing research does not agree on whether
work experience affects the value gained from pursuing an
MBA degree.
Most MBA students, however, are not full-time students,
but are pursuing their degree on a part-time basis while
maintaining full-time employment. In these instances, an
additional dynamic exists which may affect the value of an
MBA education—the relationship between MBA students
and their respective employers. To provide insight into this
area, past research on training is examined.
Corporate Training
Although an MBA education consists of much more than
mere training, past research on training may provide insight
into the effectiveness of an MBA education. Similar to an
MBA education, training has the potential to increase an
individual’s knowledge, skills, and abilities (Combs, Liu,
Hall, & Ketchen, 2006). Key to effective training is the successful transfer of knowledge, skills, and abilities. Effective
transfer involves the acquisition of new knowledge and
skills and the productive use of the acquired knowledge and
skills outside of the training setting (de Corte, 2003).
Past research suggests that the personal state of employees can affect directly the degree of knowledge transfer
(Tai, 2006). One such state affecting transfer is the degree
to which students are motivated. A positive relationship
between transfer and motivation has been observed (Blume,
Ford, Baldwin, & Huang, 2010) and some argue that motivation is critical for transfer to occur (e.g., Gegenfurtner,
Festner, Gallenberger, Lehtinen, & Gruber, 2009). Other
research suggests that a firm’s management can affect
employee motivation levels during training endeavors (Tai,
302
M. PRINCE ET AL.
2006) affecting the degree of transfer that occurs. Colquitt,
LePine, and Noe (2000) suggest that even if employees possess the ability to succeed in a training endeavor, they may
fail to benefit due to a lack of motivation.
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Effective Transfer in Part-Time MBA Programs
All else equal, involvement in part-time MBA programs
should result in the transfer of knowledge, skills, and abilities to students. Given that motivation affects transfer in
training, it seems logical that student motivation will also
affect transfer in the context of an MBA program. It appears
likely, therefore, that the more highly motivated MBA students are to learn while getting an MBA, the greater the
transfer of knowledge will be and, hence, the greater the
value of an MBA. Since employers can affect motivation
levels of employees enrolled in MBA programs, employers
may ultimately affect the value of an employee’s MBA
education.
The effect that an employer has on an employee’s motivation to pursue an MBA degree likely changes as the
employee progresses through the program. When beginning
an MBA program, for instance, motivation on behalf of an
employer would seem to be particularly important for a student since returning to school often represents a significant
change of life. To successfully make this change, students
need to know how the education will benefit them and their
position in the company. Later in the MBA program, however, the role of employers in motivating students will
likely decline as students will be better able to understand
the personal value of the MBA program without outside
(i.e., employer) motivation. In other words, as a student
progress through an MBA program, the source of motivation will likely move from externally based sources (e.g.,
an individual’s employer) to more internally based sources
(e.g., an individual’s self).
MBA Education and Relationship With Employer
The education received from an MBA program should not
substitute for continuing employer training. Instead, an
MBA education should optimally facilitate and build on
corporate training—an MBA education should work
together with the training an individual receives on the job.
To the extent that this occurs, part-time MBA students who
are further along in their MBA education should see more
value from their employer training compared with parttime MBA students who are not as far along in an MBA
program.
More than just training, an MBA education should
increase students’ connection to their employers. Through
the knowledge gained through MBA studies and the application of that knowledge to their jobs, MBA students
should become integrated into their employing firm. In this
context, integration involves the extent to which employees
are socialized into their place of employment, where organization socialization is regarded as the “process by which
an individual acquires the social knowledge and skills necessary to assume an organizational role” (Van Maanen &
Schein, 1979, p. 211). Organizational socialization, therefore, involves the degree to which an employee accepts or
has adapted to the characteristics or nature of an organization (Taormina, 2004) or, in other words, the degree to
which an employee has integrated into their employers’
organization. Because it involves an ongoing process, level
of integration does not only apply to new employees, but it
applies to employees at any time during their employment
in an organization (Taormina, 2004).
The degree to which employees are integrated into their
companies can have a number of positive effects on their
performance and well-being, including increasing job performance, job satisfaction, affective commitment, and reducing
turnover intentions (e.g., Saeed et al., 2012; Saks et al.,
2007). Taormina (1994) assessed the extent of the integration process based on employees’ perceptions of and their
company’s efforts by examining four integration factors:
1) the training one received from the organization, 2) one’s
understanding (or perceptions) of the organizational context, 3) the role played by significant others (i.e., coworkers,
who are organizational insiders, and 4) one’s prospects for
the future (e.g., for advancement) regarding the organization into which one is being socialized. (p. 134)
The first three factors relate to three types of capital
developed through continuing social exchanges suggested
in relational cohesion theory: human capital based on
knowledge, skills, and experiences (training); cultural capital based on shared understanding of organizational norms,
history, and culture (understanding); and social capital
based on relationships (coworker support) (Yoon & Lawler,
2006). According to relational cohesion theory, an outgrowth of the development of the three types of capital is
affective and behavioral commitment to the organization
(Allen & Shanock, 2013), which relates to the fourth integration factor (future prospects). It appears logical that the
increased integration of part-time MBA students will
involve each of the four integration factors. Next, each integration factor will be briefly discussed.
Training. Training has long been viewed as essential
to the development of employees (Prestan, 1993). When
employers train their workers, for instance, they benefit
from increased productivity and reduced turnover (Gomersall & Myer, 1996). Joo, Lim, and Park (2011) note that
training effectiveness is directly affected by the degree to
which employees believe that their employer and their coworkers are supportive. The effectiveness of an employer’s
training activities can logically be enhanced by an employee’s MBA education because employees ostensibly gain
EFFECTS OF PART-TIME MBA PROGRAMS
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additional knowledge and background information that will
enhance training. An MBA education, therefore, should
enhance an employee’s integration with his/her employer
by increasing the perceived effectiveness of training.
Understanding. Understanding involves the level of
insight employees possess regarding their employer (e.g.,
the firm’s goals and operations) and their role within it
(Taormina, 1994). Porter and Lawler (1968), for instance,
noted that employees’ understanding of their roles within
their employers’ organizations positively affects their work
performance. To gain this understanding, employees must
interact with their work environment (Reichers, 1987) and
actively seek information (Morrison, 1993), qualities which
should be enhanced through an MBA education. An MBA
education, therefore, should enhance employees’ integration with their employers by increasing their understanding
of their roles with the organizations.
Coworker support. Coworkers play a significant role
in integrating employees into an organization (Reichers,
1987). If employees perceive that their coworkers are helpful, increased integration into the business is possible
(Taormina, 1994). Coworker support acts to minimize negative outcomes such as stress (George, Reed, Ballard,
Colin, & Fielding, 1993) and foster positive outcomes
(Seers, McGee, Serey, & Graen, 1983). Because relationship-building skills are a focus of most MBA programs, an
MBA education should enhance an employee’s integration
with his or her employer by facilitating productive interaction with coworkers and providing improved tools and abilities to foster collaboration.
Prospects for the future. Employees whose goals and
desires are not met at their place of employment are more
likely to engage in behaviors that are counterproductive
and are more likely to resign (Taormina, 1994). Individuals
who perceive positive prospects for the future with their
employer, however, are more likely to be committed to the
organization, more likely to remain with the organization,
and less likely to exhibit excessive absenteeism (Caldwell,
Chatman, & O’Reilly, 1990). An MBA education can positively affect employee perceptions of the future by providing additional skills and abilities and facilitating
promotions and professional advancement. An MBA education, therefore, should enhance employees’ integration
with employers by improving prospects for the future.
RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE INTEGRATION
FACTORS
It is logical to expect that the integration factors are positively related with each other, as was observed by Taormina
(1994). How these relationships are affected by an MBA
303
education, however, has received no known research attention. Given the importance of employee integration to an
organization’s performance, these relationships would
seem to be an important concern. Each of the integration
factors involves specific areas, or types of capital, as understood by Yoon and Lawler (2006). Consequently, it is
unlikely that the relationships between the integration factors will necessarily be consistent as part-time MBA students progress through their MBA programs.
Given the dearth of past research, how the relationships
between the integration factors change as part-time MBA
students progress through their MBA programs is less clear.
Given that each of the integration factors involve the development of different types of capital, it seems reasonable to
expect that increasing development of these different forms
of capital will result in divergence between the integration
factors. In other words, it is logical to expect that the relationships between the integration factors will become
weaker as students progress through their MBA programs.
Hypotheses
It appears that an MBA education should positively affect
the integration of part-time MBA students into their places
of employment. The following hypotheses, therefore,
appear to be appropriate.
Hypothesis 1 (H1): Employed students enrolled in part-time
MBA programs experience increased integration with
employers. Hence, positive relationships exist between
progress through a part-time MBA program and the
degree of integration MBA students perceive with their
employers. Consequently, positive relationships exist
between students’ progress through their part-time
MBA programs and;
H1a: perceptions of the training they receive at their place
of employment;
H1b: level of understanding of their place of employment;
H1c: the support they receive from their coworkers; and
H1d: future prospects at their place of employment.
As discussed previously, Taormina (1994) observed that
each of the integration factors is related to each other. The
following hypothesis, therefore, seems appropriate:
H2: Each of the integration factors (training, understanding,
coworker support, and future prospects) is related.
How these relationships between the integration factors
are affected by an MBA education, however, has not
received previous research attention. The integration factors differ in form, with some being more content based
and task oriented (i.e. training), content-based and organization oriented (i.e., knowledge), social oriented (i.e.,
304
M. PRINCE ET AL.
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coworker support), and future oriented (i.e., prospects for
the future), as discussed previously. Consequently, it is
unlikely that the relationships between the integration factors will necessarily be consistent as part-time MBA students progress through their MBA programs. Indeed, it is
logical to expect that the differences between the individual
integration factors will become more pronounced, resulting
in the relationships between the integration factors becoming weaker. Hence, the following hypothesis appears
appropriate:
H3: The relationships between the integration factors of
individuals pursuing a part-time MBA degree will
change as they progress through their MBA programs.
Specifically, the strengths of the relationships between
the integration factors will decrease as part-time MBA
students progress through their MBA programs. Consequently, the relationships between the integration factors (training, understanding, coworker support, and
future prospects), then, are stronger for students who
are relatively early in their MBA education as opposed
to those who are further along in their graduate
education.
METHOD
Sample
Study participants were recruited from classes in part-time
MBA programs at two universities. One was a public university located on the east coast and the other from a private
university located in the Midwest. Participants were
requested to complete self-administered questionnaires in
their classrooms. They were informed that their responses
would remain anonymous. The resulting sample was comprised of 310 students. Since the sample was contacted
within classroom settings, virtually no response was noted.
TABLE 1
Scale to Assess Perceptions Toward Integration Factors
Training
1. This organization has provided excellent job training for me.
2. The training in this company has enabled me to do my job very well.
3. This company offers thorough training to improve employee job
skills.
4. Instructions given by my supervisor have been valuable in helping me
do better work.
5. The type of job training given by this organization is highly effective.
Understanding
1. I know very well how to get things done in this organization.
2. I have a full understanding of my duties in this organization.
3. The goals of this organization have been made very explicit.
4. I have a good knowledge of the way this organization operates.
5. This organization’s objectives are understood by almost everyone
who works here.
Coworker support
1. Other workers have helped me on the job in various ways.
2. My coworkers are usually willing to offer their assistance or advice.
3. Most of my coworkers have accepted me as a member of this
company.
4. My coworkers have done a great deal to help me adjust to this
organization.
5. My relationships with other workers in this company are very good.
Future prospects
1. There are many chances for a good career with this organization.
2. I am happy with the rewards offered by this organization.
3. Opportunities for advancement in this organization are available to
almost everyone.
4. I can readily anticipate my prospects for promotion in this company.
5. I expect that this organization will continue to employ me for many
more years.
prospects D .867. The mean response for each of the integration factors is displayed in Table 2. For each of the factors, respondents’ assessments were relatively positive, and
interestingly, respondents expressed the most positive perceptions for coworker support.
Progress through an MBA program was measured by the
number of semester credit hours completed.
Instrument
The integration factors (company training, organization
knowledge, coworker support, and future prospects) were
measured based on selected items from the Organization
Socialization Inventory (Taormina, 1994). The convergent
and predictive validity of the four factors were supported
by Taormina (1997, 2004). Taormina and Law (2000) and
Taormina and Bauer (2000) also provide evidence of predictive ability. Items are listed in Table 1. Respondents
replied on a 7-point Likert-type scale with responses ranging from 1 (complete agreement) and 7 (complete
disagreement).
Each of the scales appears to possess acceptable reliabilities according to Cronbach’s alpha: training D .908, understanding D .875, coworker support D .875, and future
RESULTS
Table 3 displays the relationships between the each of the
integration factors and the number of credit hours study
participants had completed in their MBA programs. Significant (at the .05 level) relationships were observed for two
TABLE 2
Mean Responses on Integration Factors
Integration factors
M
SD
Training
Understanding
Coworker support
Future prospects
3.315
2.278
2.266
3.135
1.360
0.953
0.950
1.360
305
EFFECTS OF PART-TIME MBA PROGRAMS
TABLE 3
Relationships Between Integration Factors and Progress Through a Part-Time MBA Program
Training
Credit hours in a part-time MBA program
Understanding
.078
.200
Coworker support
*
.147
.017
¡.062
.314
Future prospects
.149*
.015
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Note: Correlational results and significance levels are reported.
*
p < .05.
of the four factors: coworker support and prospects for the
future. No significant relationships were observed for training and understanding. Support, therefore, was observed
for H1C and H1D and not for H1A and H1B.
Table 4 displays the relationships between the integration factors. Each of the integration factors was observed to
be significantly (at the .05 level) related. Support, therefore
was observed for H2, supporting previous research.
To test H3, the sample was split into two virtually identical sized groups based on individuals’ progress through
their MBA program. The first group was comprised of students who had completed 12 or fewer credit hours in the
MBA program and the other group was comprised of those
who had completed more than 12 credit hours. In addition
to providing virtually equal-sized groups, 12 credit hours
typically represents the maximum number of hours that
part-time students can reasonably complete during their initial year in an MBA program. Table 5 displays the relationships between each of the integration factors for the two
groups. Fisher’s Z was used to examine the significance of
the differences in the relationships between integration factors across students who are earlier in their program (12
hr of credit completed) versus later (>12 hr of credit completed) in an MBA program. Significant (at the .05 level)
differences were observed for four of the six relationships.
In each instance, the relationships involving students who
were earlier in their MBA programs were stronger than
those involving students who were later in their MBA programs, consistent with the hypothesis. Specifically, support
for the hypothesis was observed for relationships between
the training factor and understanding and coworker support
and between the understanding factor and coworker support
and future prospects. Support for the hypothesis was not
observed between the future prospects factor and training
and coworker support. Partial support, therefore, was
observed for H3.
In an effort to provide added insight into the findings, a
series of post hoc analyses were conducted. Specifically,
t-tests were conducted across responses of the two groups
to determine whether they had different perceptions toward
the integration factors. Results (shown in Table 6) indicate
no significant (p < .05) differences across perceptions of
the two groups for any of the integration factors (although
the relationship involving support of coworkers was close
to significance). Thus, the differences observed in the relationships between the integration factors are not due to differences in how the two groups perceive the factors.
DISCUSSION
The MBA degree has been under increased scrutiny as of
late. Although there is growing attention being placed on
understanding the effectiveness of an MBA education, relatively little research has examined whether integration with
an individual’s employer is affected as he or she proceeds
through education. From an employer’s point of view, a
reason to have employees obtain an MBA education is to
increase their contribution to the organization. Research
indicates that employees who are more integrated make
stronger contributions to their employers and are less likely
to pursue opportunities elsewhere. The focus of the present
study was to examine how an MBA education affects an
individual’s integration with his or her employer.
TABLE 4
Relationships Between Integration Factors
Training
Training
Understanding
Coworker support
Future prospects
—
.615*
.000
.461*
.000
.720*
.000
Note: Correlational results and significance levels are reported.
*p < .05.
Understanding
Coworker support
Future prospects
—
.622*
.000
.572*
.000
—
.461*
.000
—
306
M. PRINCE ET AL.
TABLE 5
Relationships Between Integration Factors Based on Progress Through a Part-Time MBA Program
Training
Integration factors
Training
Understanding
Coworker support
Future prospects
Understanding
12 hr
> 12 hr
Fisher’s Z
.769*
.000
.557*
.000
.763*
.000
.444*
.000
.352*
.000
.662*
.000
4.350*
2.090*
1.659
Coworker support
12 hr
> 12 hr
Fisher’s Z
.713*
.000
.671*
.000
.568*
.000
.457*
.000
1.993*
2.562*
Future prospects
12 hr
> 12 hr
Fisher’s Z hr
.498*
.000
.405*
.000
1.020
12 hr
>12
Fisher’s Z
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Note: Correlational results and significance levels are reported.
*p < .05.
The initial relationships examined in the study were
those between students’ progress through an MBA program
(measured by number of credit hours completed) and
degree of integration (the degree to which they perceived
they are integrated into their employing organization via
the integration factors). The significant positive relationships observed between students’ progress through their
MBA program and the integration factors of coworker support and future prospects suggest that a graduate business
education can have a positive effect on employees’ integration with their employers’ organizations. Increased integration levels have been associated with many beneficial
outcomes for organizations, including increased organizational commitment and increased productivity, as mentioned previously. An MBA degree, therefore, appears to
have beneficial outcomes for employers. Consequently, an
MBA degree appears to assist with integrating employees
and employers.
The two integration factors for which significant relationships were observed seem to be particularly important
for businesses. The importance of coworker support is
without question. Korte and Lin (2013) summarize the
importance of coworker support in the integration process,
recounting a growing realization of the broad number of
ways that coworker support and the development of social
capital can directly benefit a business organization.
Coworker support, for instance, can minimize negative
aspects of an employment situation while accentuating the
positive. The findings suggest that pursuing an MBA
education may aid employees become more integrated into
their employing organizations by building coworker
support.
Future research into the relationship between progress
through an MBA program and coworker support may
examine the processes at play behind this relationship. For
instance, does pursuing an MBA education require students
to become more involved with individuals in other areas of
their companies to complete projects assigned as a part of
their MBA classes? Does the educational process help students to realize the importance of interacting with coworkers? Future research may provide business leaders with
insight into specific ways that they may be able to build
upon the benefits of an MBA program in integrating
employees with coworkers. Further research may also provide MBA educators with insight into ways that building
relationships of their students with their coworkers can be
fostered and further enhanced.
Employees’ perceptions of future prospects with their
employer are also an important area of concern for businesses. Employees who perceive better future prospects
will benefit their employer in multiple ways. First, the perception of future prospects with their employers will likely
engender stronger commitment from employees as they
likely view increased rewards for their hard work in the
form of future promotions and employment stability (Allen
& Shanock, 2013). Furthermore, perceiving future prospects with their present employers, employees will tend to
be less likely to leave for other employment opportunities,
TABLE 6
Differences in Integration Factor Perceptions Across Students Early Versus Late in an MBA Program
Integration factors
Mean 12 credit hr
Mean > 12 credit hr
t
df
Level of significance
Training
Understanding
Coworker support
Future prospects
3.24
2.84
2.15
3.01
3.38
2.72
2.38
3.24
¡0.854
1.076
¡1.924
¡1.357
266
266
264
264
.394
.283
.055
.176
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EFFECTS OF PART-TIME MBA PROGRAMS
lowering personnel turnover (Allen & Shanock, 2013),
allowing employers to retain institutional knowledge and
avoid costly searches for new employees.
Future research into the relationship between progress
through an MBA program and perceptions of future prospects may examine how an MBA education may help students to perceive increased future employment prospects.
Does an MBA education, for instance, help employees to
become more aware of opportunities with their present
employer? Does an MBA education open doors to new
opportunities with one’s present employer? This information
would likely be valuable for employers and educators alike.
Interestingly, significant relationships were not observed
for the other two integration factors, training and understanding. That is, progress through an MBA program does
not appear to have an effect on employee perceptions
regarding the quality of the training they receive or their
understanding of their employer. These findings suggest
that employers may not expect employees pursuing an
MBA education to view training differently or possess a
better understanding of the organization as a result of their
education. These counterintuitive findings also suggest the
need for further research. Specifically, educators may have
the ability to affect these relationships through changes in
pedagogy and/or assignments and projects to further
increase the integration benefits of an MBA education.
Additional insight can be gained when considering the
relationships between the integration factors. First, consistent with past research, each of the factors appears to be
strongly related to each other. When the strength of the
relationships between the integration factors for students
who are relatively early in their MBA programs are compared with those who are further along are considered, however, important differences emerge for four of six
relationship possibilities consistent with the hypotheses.
When training is examined, the relationships between
training and understanding and between training and
coworker support were significantly stronger for employees
who were relatively early in their MBA programs compared
with those further along in their programs. The findings
suggest that employees earlier in an MBA program may
look to training to provide an understanding of their
employer more so than those later in a program. Furthermore, the finding suggests that employees earlier in an
MBA program may look more to coworkers as a component
of their training compared with those later in a program.
The lack of a significant difference in the relationship
between training and future prospects suggests that both
groups view the effect of training on future prospects with
the company similarly.
These findings provide some support suggesting that the
integration factors become more individually defined as
students continue their education. Specifically, it indicates
that the training factor becomes increasingly differentiated
from the understanding and coworker support factors as
307
students progress through their MBA education, suggesting
that employers should increasingly view these factors (the
integration factor of training and understanding and
coworker support) as distinct integration factors, each of
which should receive particular attention. Interestingly, the
strength of the relationship between training and future
prospects was not observed to change as students progressed through their programs. This relationship will be
discussed further later.
When understanding is examined, the relationships
between understanding and coworker support and between
understanding and future prospects were significantly stronger for employees who were early in their MBA programs
versus those who were further along in their programs.
These findings suggest that coworkers may play a greater
role in an individual’s understanding of his or her employing organizations among employees who are relatively
early versus late in their MBA programs. The findings also
suggest that understanding an individual’s employer may
play a greater role in perceptions of future prospects among
employees who are relatively early versus late in an MBA
program. It seems that employees who are further along in
an MBA program may rely more on knowledge gained
from the MBA to assess their future prospects.
These findings further suggest that the integration factors
become more individually defined as students continue
their MBA education. Specifically, it indicates that the
understanding factor becomes increasingly differentiated
from the coworker support and future prospects factors as
students progress through their MBA education, suggesting
that employers should also increasingly view these integration factors (the integration factor of understanding and
coworker support and future prospects) as distinct areas of
integration.
Finally, the relationship between coworker support and
future prospects was not significantly different for employees who were relatively early versus late in a MBA programs. This finding, along with a lack of a change in the
strength of the relationship between training and future
prospects as students proceed through an MBA education
discussed previously, casts doubt onto whether future prospects should be viewed as a separate integration factor or
whether it is best viewed as an outgrowth of the integration
process. Indeed, relational cohesive theory (discussed earlier) only addresses the first three integration factors of
Taormina (1994; Yoon & Lawler, 2006). This study provides initial evidence consistent with Yoon and Lawler.
Additional research into the appropriateness of future prospects as a separate factor seems warranted.
When the results from testing H1 and the results from
testing H3 are compared, an interesting observation can be
made. When testing H1, relationships were observed
between progress through an MBA program and the integration factors of coworker support and future prospects
and not for training and knowledge. When testing H3,
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308
M. PRINCE ET AL.
however, it was the relationships involving the knowledge
factor, which were observed to be more likely to grow
weaker as students proceed through their MBA programs,
whereas it was relationships involving future prospects,
which were observed to be more likely to remain unchanged
as students proceed through their MBA programs. Additional research is needed to fully understand the basis of
these findings. These findings, however, appear to lend additional support for the need for employers and educators to
examine the integration factors separately. They further suggest that examining only the relationships between the integration factors and individuals’ progress through their MBA
programs will provide an incomplete understanding.
In summary, the study findings suggest that an MBA
education may increase the integration of part-time MBA
students with their employer’s organizations. The study,
therefore, suggests an additional important issue for
employers to consider as they examine the desirability of
encouraging and requiring their employees to pursue MBA
study. Not only may employers benefit from the added
skills and knowledge that their employees may gain from
an MBA education, but they may also gain from the added
integration their employees may ultimately possess with
their employers’ organizations. Also, although the study
findings raise questions whether future prospects represents
a separate integration factor, the findings suggest that the
integration factors may become increasingly differentiated
as students become more integrated into their employers’
organizations as they progress through their MBA educations. This would seem to indicate that employers and educators should focus on each of the integration factors if
they wish to more effectively integrate employees into their
employers’ organizations, particularly as their employees
proceed through their MBA programs.
CONCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS
The present study is an initial exploratory study. The primary value of the study is to identify plausible relationships
that in turn should be examined in future studies. Overall,
the findings suggest that progress through MBA programs
may affect the extent to which employees are integrated
into their workplaces. Research to further explore this relationship seems to be warranted.
A primary shortcoming of this study concerns causality.
Although directional causality is suggested several times
throughout the discussion section, causality was not examined in this study. To increase the practical applicability of
the current findings, future research should assess causality
to offer not only additional insight and understanding, but
also to provide businesses and business schools with knowledge to guide future course-related decision making.
Additional research is also needed to examine whether
differences exist across different MBA programs. For
instance, does attending a full-time MBA program differ
compared with attending a part-time program in terms of
integration with employers? Furthermore, additional
research should explore students with different backgrounds who work in different business settings. Does an
MBA education, for instance, uniquely affect students with
different backgrounds (i.e., educationally, extent of business experience, or culturally)? Moreover, do these effects
differ for students from different business settings (e.g.,
industry or position level)?
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ISSN: 0883-2323 (Print) 1940-3356 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjeb20
The Effects of Part-Time MBA Programs on
Students: The Relationships Between Students and
Their Employers
Melvin Prince, David J. Burns & Chris Manolis
To cite this article: Melvin Prince, David J. Burns & Chris Manolis (2014) The Effects of PartTime MBA Programs on Students: The Relationships Between Students and Their Employers,
Journal of Education for Business, 89:6, 300-309, DOI: 10.1080/08832323.2014.900470
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Date: 11 January 2016, At: 20:44
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR BUSINESS, 89: 300–309, 2014
Copyright Ó Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
ISSN: 0883-2323 print / 1940-3356 online
DOI: 10.1080/08832323.2014.900470
The Effects of Part-Time MBA Programs on
Students: The Relationships Between Students
and Their Employers
Melvin Prince
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Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
David J. Burns and Chris Manolis
Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
The authors explore how the relationship between part-time master of business
administration (MBA) students and their employers changes as students proceed through
their MBA program by examining the degree to which students are integrated into their
employer organizations. Significant positive relationships observed between students’
progress through their MBA program and the integration factors of coworker support and
future prospects with their employers suggest that an MBA education can have a positive
effect on employee–employer integration levels. Consequently, in addition to increasing
business knowledge and skills, an MBA degree appears to assist with integrating employees
and employers.
Keywords: coworker support, graduate education, MBA education, part-time MBA students,
training
Increasing attention is being placed on the effectiveness of
master of business administration (MBA) programs in providing value to not only students, but to the organizations
that employ them. Increasing costs of MBA programs and
growing questions about their effectiveness have become
primary impetuses for this concern. Most research examining the effectiveness of MBA programs has examined how
the programs can be adapted to provide more value to students and their present/future employers (Muff, 2012). This
line of research has identified numerous ways by which the
structure and/or content of MBA programs can be adapted
to possibly improve effectiveness and/or efficiency. Additional research has examined the preparation of students
entering MBA programs to identify students who are most
likely to benefit from an MBA education (Sharbatoghlie,
Mosleh, & Emami, 2011). Consequently, the admission
requirements at several graduate business schools have
changed.
Correspondence should be addressed to David J. Burns, Xavier University, Department of Marketing, 307 Smith Hall, 1002 Francis Xavier Way,
Cincinnati, OH 45207-1214, USA. E-mail: [email protected]
An issue that has received little research attention, however, involves how the relationship between MBA students
and their employers changes as students proceed through
their MBA programs. It is logical to expect that the relationship between student-employees and their employers
will change as a result of student involvement in an MBA
program, but this important area has received little research
attention.
An area that may be of particular interest to both
employers and educators is the degree to which an MBA
education may affect students’ integration into their
employers’ organizations. The degree to which employees
are integrated into employers’ organizations can provide
advantages to both employers and employees (e.g., Saeed,
Abu Mansor, Siddique, & Anis-ul-Haq, 2012; Saks, Uggerslev, & Fassina, 2007). If the integration is perceived by
part-time MBA students with their employers’ organizations to increase while progressing through an MBA program, evidence can be provided which may indicate an
additional positive outcome of an MBA education
(increased integration) which is often overlooked.
The focus of this study is to begin to examine the level
of integration perceived by part-time MBA students with
EFFECTS OF PART-TIME MBA PROGRAMS
their employers’ organizations as they progress through
their educational programs. First, research on the value of
an MBA education is reviewed. Second, research on the
transfer of knowledge, skills, and abilities in training programs generally is examined. Third, the effects of an MBA
education on student–employer relationships are explored.
Fourth, hypotheses are developed and tested. Last, conclusions are drawn.
PAST RESEARCH
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MBA Programs
Increasingly, the value of an MBA education is being questioned (Bruce, 2010). Zhao, Truell, Alexander, and Hill
(2006), for instance, recount the rising negativity seen in
articles examining the value of the MBA degree appearing
in many business publications. Pfeffer and Fong (2002)
stated, “there is little evidence that mastery of the knowledge acquired in business schools enhances people’s
careers, or that even attaining the MBA credential itself has
much effect on graduate’s salaries or career attainment” (p.
80). Similarly, Bennis and O’Toole (2005) stated, “MBA
programs face intense criticism for failing to impart useful
skills, failing to prepare leaders, failing to instill norms of
ethical behavior, and even failing to lead graduates to good
corporate jobs” (p. 96). In response, some business schools
have focused on reviews of their programs and changing
their curriculum as ways to increase the value of their
MBA programs.
This assessment of the value of MBA programs may be
overly harsh since evidence has been reported which seems
to support the value of an MBA education. In a longitudinal
study, Inderrieden, Holtom, and Bies (2006), for instance,
observed that the possession of an MBA degree has a positive effect on early career success. Zhao et al. (2006)
observed positive short- and long-term effects of an MBA
degree and Arcidiacono, Cooley, and Hussey (2008)
observed similar effects. Murray (2007) observed that
employers report that nearly three-quarters of recently hired
MBA graduates met their expectations and nearly a quarter
exceeded their expectations, while only four percent report
that recently hired MBA graduates did not meet expectations. Likewise, Bruce (2010) observed that recent MBA
graduates report high levels of satisfaction with their MBA
education. Evidence exists, therefore, suggesting that an
MBA degree may, in fact, provide value.
The conflicting assessments of the value of an MBA
education suggest that the value of this degree may be
affected by factors other than the degree itself. For instance,
the MBA degree is offered by a significant number of different types of institutions. Arcidiacono et al. (2008)
observed that students need to attend a top-ranked school to
benefit financially from an MBA education. Holtom and
301
Inderrieden (2007), however, observed a higher return on
investment for schools not ranked in the top 10 as opposed
to those in the top 10. Hence, existing research does not
agree on whether the rankings of MBA programs are
related to the value of the education they provide.
The quantity of student work experience prior to beginning an MBA program has also been forwarded as a factor
affecting the value of the resulting degree (Sharbatoghlie
et al., 2011). Some graduate business schools prefer that
entering students have work experience. DeRue (2009)
observed, “work experience has become an integral part of
the business school curriculum with a focus on students
learning as much from their peers as from professors. These
drivers pushed the average years of work experience
requirement at top business schools from three to five
years” (p. 1). Empirical research has not supported this contention, however. Dreher and Ryan (2000), for instance,
observed that previous work experience is related to performance in foundational courses, but not to the remainder of
MBA courses. Sharbatoghlie at al. observed no difference
between students without prior work experience and those
with prior work experience on Kolb’s Learning Skills Profile. Hence, existing research does not agree on whether
work experience affects the value gained from pursuing an
MBA degree.
Most MBA students, however, are not full-time students,
but are pursuing their degree on a part-time basis while
maintaining full-time employment. In these instances, an
additional dynamic exists which may affect the value of an
MBA education—the relationship between MBA students
and their respective employers. To provide insight into this
area, past research on training is examined.
Corporate Training
Although an MBA education consists of much more than
mere training, past research on training may provide insight
into the effectiveness of an MBA education. Similar to an
MBA education, training has the potential to increase an
individual’s knowledge, skills, and abilities (Combs, Liu,
Hall, & Ketchen, 2006). Key to effective training is the successful transfer of knowledge, skills, and abilities. Effective
transfer involves the acquisition of new knowledge and
skills and the productive use of the acquired knowledge and
skills outside of the training setting (de Corte, 2003).
Past research suggests that the personal state of employees can affect directly the degree of knowledge transfer
(Tai, 2006). One such state affecting transfer is the degree
to which students are motivated. A positive relationship
between transfer and motivation has been observed (Blume,
Ford, Baldwin, & Huang, 2010) and some argue that motivation is critical for transfer to occur (e.g., Gegenfurtner,
Festner, Gallenberger, Lehtinen, & Gruber, 2009). Other
research suggests that a firm’s management can affect
employee motivation levels during training endeavors (Tai,
302
M. PRINCE ET AL.
2006) affecting the degree of transfer that occurs. Colquitt,
LePine, and Noe (2000) suggest that even if employees possess the ability to succeed in a training endeavor, they may
fail to benefit due to a lack of motivation.
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Effective Transfer in Part-Time MBA Programs
All else equal, involvement in part-time MBA programs
should result in the transfer of knowledge, skills, and abilities to students. Given that motivation affects transfer in
training, it seems logical that student motivation will also
affect transfer in the context of an MBA program. It appears
likely, therefore, that the more highly motivated MBA students are to learn while getting an MBA, the greater the
transfer of knowledge will be and, hence, the greater the
value of an MBA. Since employers can affect motivation
levels of employees enrolled in MBA programs, employers
may ultimately affect the value of an employee’s MBA
education.
The effect that an employer has on an employee’s motivation to pursue an MBA degree likely changes as the
employee progresses through the program. When beginning
an MBA program, for instance, motivation on behalf of an
employer would seem to be particularly important for a student since returning to school often represents a significant
change of life. To successfully make this change, students
need to know how the education will benefit them and their
position in the company. Later in the MBA program, however, the role of employers in motivating students will
likely decline as students will be better able to understand
the personal value of the MBA program without outside
(i.e., employer) motivation. In other words, as a student
progress through an MBA program, the source of motivation will likely move from externally based sources (e.g.,
an individual’s employer) to more internally based sources
(e.g., an individual’s self).
MBA Education and Relationship With Employer
The education received from an MBA program should not
substitute for continuing employer training. Instead, an
MBA education should optimally facilitate and build on
corporate training—an MBA education should work
together with the training an individual receives on the job.
To the extent that this occurs, part-time MBA students who
are further along in their MBA education should see more
value from their employer training compared with parttime MBA students who are not as far along in an MBA
program.
More than just training, an MBA education should
increase students’ connection to their employers. Through
the knowledge gained through MBA studies and the application of that knowledge to their jobs, MBA students
should become integrated into their employing firm. In this
context, integration involves the extent to which employees
are socialized into their place of employment, where organization socialization is regarded as the “process by which
an individual acquires the social knowledge and skills necessary to assume an organizational role” (Van Maanen &
Schein, 1979, p. 211). Organizational socialization, therefore, involves the degree to which an employee accepts or
has adapted to the characteristics or nature of an organization (Taormina, 2004) or, in other words, the degree to
which an employee has integrated into their employers’
organization. Because it involves an ongoing process, level
of integration does not only apply to new employees, but it
applies to employees at any time during their employment
in an organization (Taormina, 2004).
The degree to which employees are integrated into their
companies can have a number of positive effects on their
performance and well-being, including increasing job performance, job satisfaction, affective commitment, and reducing
turnover intentions (e.g., Saeed et al., 2012; Saks et al.,
2007). Taormina (1994) assessed the extent of the integration process based on employees’ perceptions of and their
company’s efforts by examining four integration factors:
1) the training one received from the organization, 2) one’s
understanding (or perceptions) of the organizational context, 3) the role played by significant others (i.e., coworkers,
who are organizational insiders, and 4) one’s prospects for
the future (e.g., for advancement) regarding the organization into which one is being socialized. (p. 134)
The first three factors relate to three types of capital
developed through continuing social exchanges suggested
in relational cohesion theory: human capital based on
knowledge, skills, and experiences (training); cultural capital based on shared understanding of organizational norms,
history, and culture (understanding); and social capital
based on relationships (coworker support) (Yoon & Lawler,
2006). According to relational cohesion theory, an outgrowth of the development of the three types of capital is
affective and behavioral commitment to the organization
(Allen & Shanock, 2013), which relates to the fourth integration factor (future prospects). It appears logical that the
increased integration of part-time MBA students will
involve each of the four integration factors. Next, each integration factor will be briefly discussed.
Training. Training has long been viewed as essential
to the development of employees (Prestan, 1993). When
employers train their workers, for instance, they benefit
from increased productivity and reduced turnover (Gomersall & Myer, 1996). Joo, Lim, and Park (2011) note that
training effectiveness is directly affected by the degree to
which employees believe that their employer and their coworkers are supportive. The effectiveness of an employer’s
training activities can logically be enhanced by an employee’s MBA education because employees ostensibly gain
EFFECTS OF PART-TIME MBA PROGRAMS
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additional knowledge and background information that will
enhance training. An MBA education, therefore, should
enhance an employee’s integration with his/her employer
by increasing the perceived effectiveness of training.
Understanding. Understanding involves the level of
insight employees possess regarding their employer (e.g.,
the firm’s goals and operations) and their role within it
(Taormina, 1994). Porter and Lawler (1968), for instance,
noted that employees’ understanding of their roles within
their employers’ organizations positively affects their work
performance. To gain this understanding, employees must
interact with their work environment (Reichers, 1987) and
actively seek information (Morrison, 1993), qualities which
should be enhanced through an MBA education. An MBA
education, therefore, should enhance employees’ integration with their employers by increasing their understanding
of their roles with the organizations.
Coworker support. Coworkers play a significant role
in integrating employees into an organization (Reichers,
1987). If employees perceive that their coworkers are helpful, increased integration into the business is possible
(Taormina, 1994). Coworker support acts to minimize negative outcomes such as stress (George, Reed, Ballard,
Colin, & Fielding, 1993) and foster positive outcomes
(Seers, McGee, Serey, & Graen, 1983). Because relationship-building skills are a focus of most MBA programs, an
MBA education should enhance an employee’s integration
with his or her employer by facilitating productive interaction with coworkers and providing improved tools and abilities to foster collaboration.
Prospects for the future. Employees whose goals and
desires are not met at their place of employment are more
likely to engage in behaviors that are counterproductive
and are more likely to resign (Taormina, 1994). Individuals
who perceive positive prospects for the future with their
employer, however, are more likely to be committed to the
organization, more likely to remain with the organization,
and less likely to exhibit excessive absenteeism (Caldwell,
Chatman, & O’Reilly, 1990). An MBA education can positively affect employee perceptions of the future by providing additional skills and abilities and facilitating
promotions and professional advancement. An MBA education, therefore, should enhance employees’ integration
with employers by improving prospects for the future.
RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE INTEGRATION
FACTORS
It is logical to expect that the integration factors are positively related with each other, as was observed by Taormina
(1994). How these relationships are affected by an MBA
303
education, however, has received no known research attention. Given the importance of employee integration to an
organization’s performance, these relationships would
seem to be an important concern. Each of the integration
factors involves specific areas, or types of capital, as understood by Yoon and Lawler (2006). Consequently, it is
unlikely that the relationships between the integration factors will necessarily be consistent as part-time MBA students progress through their MBA programs.
Given the dearth of past research, how the relationships
between the integration factors change as part-time MBA
students progress through their MBA programs is less clear.
Given that each of the integration factors involve the development of different types of capital, it seems reasonable to
expect that increasing development of these different forms
of capital will result in divergence between the integration
factors. In other words, it is logical to expect that the relationships between the integration factors will become
weaker as students progress through their MBA programs.
Hypotheses
It appears that an MBA education should positively affect
the integration of part-time MBA students into their places
of employment. The following hypotheses, therefore,
appear to be appropriate.
Hypothesis 1 (H1): Employed students enrolled in part-time
MBA programs experience increased integration with
employers. Hence, positive relationships exist between
progress through a part-time MBA program and the
degree of integration MBA students perceive with their
employers. Consequently, positive relationships exist
between students’ progress through their part-time
MBA programs and;
H1a: perceptions of the training they receive at their place
of employment;
H1b: level of understanding of their place of employment;
H1c: the support they receive from their coworkers; and
H1d: future prospects at their place of employment.
As discussed previously, Taormina (1994) observed that
each of the integration factors is related to each other. The
following hypothesis, therefore, seems appropriate:
H2: Each of the integration factors (training, understanding,
coworker support, and future prospects) is related.
How these relationships between the integration factors
are affected by an MBA education, however, has not
received previous research attention. The integration factors differ in form, with some being more content based
and task oriented (i.e. training), content-based and organization oriented (i.e., knowledge), social oriented (i.e.,
304
M. PRINCE ET AL.
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coworker support), and future oriented (i.e., prospects for
the future), as discussed previously. Consequently, it is
unlikely that the relationships between the integration factors will necessarily be consistent as part-time MBA students progress through their MBA programs. Indeed, it is
logical to expect that the differences between the individual
integration factors will become more pronounced, resulting
in the relationships between the integration factors becoming weaker. Hence, the following hypothesis appears
appropriate:
H3: The relationships between the integration factors of
individuals pursuing a part-time MBA degree will
change as they progress through their MBA programs.
Specifically, the strengths of the relationships between
the integration factors will decrease as part-time MBA
students progress through their MBA programs. Consequently, the relationships between the integration factors (training, understanding, coworker support, and
future prospects), then, are stronger for students who
are relatively early in their MBA education as opposed
to those who are further along in their graduate
education.
METHOD
Sample
Study participants were recruited from classes in part-time
MBA programs at two universities. One was a public university located on the east coast and the other from a private
university located in the Midwest. Participants were
requested to complete self-administered questionnaires in
their classrooms. They were informed that their responses
would remain anonymous. The resulting sample was comprised of 310 students. Since the sample was contacted
within classroom settings, virtually no response was noted.
TABLE 1
Scale to Assess Perceptions Toward Integration Factors
Training
1. This organization has provided excellent job training for me.
2. The training in this company has enabled me to do my job very well.
3. This company offers thorough training to improve employee job
skills.
4. Instructions given by my supervisor have been valuable in helping me
do better work.
5. The type of job training given by this organization is highly effective.
Understanding
1. I know very well how to get things done in this organization.
2. I have a full understanding of my duties in this organization.
3. The goals of this organization have been made very explicit.
4. I have a good knowledge of the way this organization operates.
5. This organization’s objectives are understood by almost everyone
who works here.
Coworker support
1. Other workers have helped me on the job in various ways.
2. My coworkers are usually willing to offer their assistance or advice.
3. Most of my coworkers have accepted me as a member of this
company.
4. My coworkers have done a great deal to help me adjust to this
organization.
5. My relationships with other workers in this company are very good.
Future prospects
1. There are many chances for a good career with this organization.
2. I am happy with the rewards offered by this organization.
3. Opportunities for advancement in this organization are available to
almost everyone.
4. I can readily anticipate my prospects for promotion in this company.
5. I expect that this organization will continue to employ me for many
more years.
prospects D .867. The mean response for each of the integration factors is displayed in Table 2. For each of the factors, respondents’ assessments were relatively positive, and
interestingly, respondents expressed the most positive perceptions for coworker support.
Progress through an MBA program was measured by the
number of semester credit hours completed.
Instrument
The integration factors (company training, organization
knowledge, coworker support, and future prospects) were
measured based on selected items from the Organization
Socialization Inventory (Taormina, 1994). The convergent
and predictive validity of the four factors were supported
by Taormina (1997, 2004). Taormina and Law (2000) and
Taormina and Bauer (2000) also provide evidence of predictive ability. Items are listed in Table 1. Respondents
replied on a 7-point Likert-type scale with responses ranging from 1 (complete agreement) and 7 (complete
disagreement).
Each of the scales appears to possess acceptable reliabilities according to Cronbach’s alpha: training D .908, understanding D .875, coworker support D .875, and future
RESULTS
Table 3 displays the relationships between the each of the
integration factors and the number of credit hours study
participants had completed in their MBA programs. Significant (at the .05 level) relationships were observed for two
TABLE 2
Mean Responses on Integration Factors
Integration factors
M
SD
Training
Understanding
Coworker support
Future prospects
3.315
2.278
2.266
3.135
1.360
0.953
0.950
1.360
305
EFFECTS OF PART-TIME MBA PROGRAMS
TABLE 3
Relationships Between Integration Factors and Progress Through a Part-Time MBA Program
Training
Credit hours in a part-time MBA program
Understanding
.078
.200
Coworker support
*
.147
.017
¡.062
.314
Future prospects
.149*
.015
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Note: Correlational results and significance levels are reported.
*
p < .05.
of the four factors: coworker support and prospects for the
future. No significant relationships were observed for training and understanding. Support, therefore, was observed
for H1C and H1D and not for H1A and H1B.
Table 4 displays the relationships between the integration factors. Each of the integration factors was observed to
be significantly (at the .05 level) related. Support, therefore
was observed for H2, supporting previous research.
To test H3, the sample was split into two virtually identical sized groups based on individuals’ progress through
their MBA program. The first group was comprised of students who had completed 12 or fewer credit hours in the
MBA program and the other group was comprised of those
who had completed more than 12 credit hours. In addition
to providing virtually equal-sized groups, 12 credit hours
typically represents the maximum number of hours that
part-time students can reasonably complete during their initial year in an MBA program. Table 5 displays the relationships between each of the integration factors for the two
groups. Fisher’s Z was used to examine the significance of
the differences in the relationships between integration factors across students who are earlier in their program (12
hr of credit completed) versus later (>12 hr of credit completed) in an MBA program. Significant (at the .05 level)
differences were observed for four of the six relationships.
In each instance, the relationships involving students who
were earlier in their MBA programs were stronger than
those involving students who were later in their MBA programs, consistent with the hypothesis. Specifically, support
for the hypothesis was observed for relationships between
the training factor and understanding and coworker support
and between the understanding factor and coworker support
and future prospects. Support for the hypothesis was not
observed between the future prospects factor and training
and coworker support. Partial support, therefore, was
observed for H3.
In an effort to provide added insight into the findings, a
series of post hoc analyses were conducted. Specifically,
t-tests were conducted across responses of the two groups
to determine whether they had different perceptions toward
the integration factors. Results (shown in Table 6) indicate
no significant (p < .05) differences across perceptions of
the two groups for any of the integration factors (although
the relationship involving support of coworkers was close
to significance). Thus, the differences observed in the relationships between the integration factors are not due to differences in how the two groups perceive the factors.
DISCUSSION
The MBA degree has been under increased scrutiny as of
late. Although there is growing attention being placed on
understanding the effectiveness of an MBA education, relatively little research has examined whether integration with
an individual’s employer is affected as he or she proceeds
through education. From an employer’s point of view, a
reason to have employees obtain an MBA education is to
increase their contribution to the organization. Research
indicates that employees who are more integrated make
stronger contributions to their employers and are less likely
to pursue opportunities elsewhere. The focus of the present
study was to examine how an MBA education affects an
individual’s integration with his or her employer.
TABLE 4
Relationships Between Integration Factors
Training
Training
Understanding
Coworker support
Future prospects
—
.615*
.000
.461*
.000
.720*
.000
Note: Correlational results and significance levels are reported.
*p < .05.
Understanding
Coworker support
Future prospects
—
.622*
.000
.572*
.000
—
.461*
.000
—
306
M. PRINCE ET AL.
TABLE 5
Relationships Between Integration Factors Based on Progress Through a Part-Time MBA Program
Training
Integration factors
Training
Understanding
Coworker support
Future prospects
Understanding
12 hr
> 12 hr
Fisher’s Z
.769*
.000
.557*
.000
.763*
.000
.444*
.000
.352*
.000
.662*
.000
4.350*
2.090*
1.659
Coworker support
12 hr
> 12 hr
Fisher’s Z
.713*
.000
.671*
.000
.568*
.000
.457*
.000
1.993*
2.562*
Future prospects
12 hr
> 12 hr
Fisher’s Z hr
.498*
.000
.405*
.000
1.020
12 hr
>12
Fisher’s Z
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Note: Correlational results and significance levels are reported.
*p < .05.
The initial relationships examined in the study were
those between students’ progress through an MBA program
(measured by number of credit hours completed) and
degree of integration (the degree to which they perceived
they are integrated into their employing organization via
the integration factors). The significant positive relationships observed between students’ progress through their
MBA program and the integration factors of coworker support and future prospects suggest that a graduate business
education can have a positive effect on employees’ integration with their employers’ organizations. Increased integration levels have been associated with many beneficial
outcomes for organizations, including increased organizational commitment and increased productivity, as mentioned previously. An MBA degree, therefore, appears to
have beneficial outcomes for employers. Consequently, an
MBA degree appears to assist with integrating employees
and employers.
The two integration factors for which significant relationships were observed seem to be particularly important
for businesses. The importance of coworker support is
without question. Korte and Lin (2013) summarize the
importance of coworker support in the integration process,
recounting a growing realization of the broad number of
ways that coworker support and the development of social
capital can directly benefit a business organization.
Coworker support, for instance, can minimize negative
aspects of an employment situation while accentuating the
positive. The findings suggest that pursuing an MBA
education may aid employees become more integrated into
their employing organizations by building coworker
support.
Future research into the relationship between progress
through an MBA program and coworker support may
examine the processes at play behind this relationship. For
instance, does pursuing an MBA education require students
to become more involved with individuals in other areas of
their companies to complete projects assigned as a part of
their MBA classes? Does the educational process help students to realize the importance of interacting with coworkers? Future research may provide business leaders with
insight into specific ways that they may be able to build
upon the benefits of an MBA program in integrating
employees with coworkers. Further research may also provide MBA educators with insight into ways that building
relationships of their students with their coworkers can be
fostered and further enhanced.
Employees’ perceptions of future prospects with their
employer are also an important area of concern for businesses. Employees who perceive better future prospects
will benefit their employer in multiple ways. First, the perception of future prospects with their employers will likely
engender stronger commitment from employees as they
likely view increased rewards for their hard work in the
form of future promotions and employment stability (Allen
& Shanock, 2013). Furthermore, perceiving future prospects with their present employers, employees will tend to
be less likely to leave for other employment opportunities,
TABLE 6
Differences in Integration Factor Perceptions Across Students Early Versus Late in an MBA Program
Integration factors
Mean 12 credit hr
Mean > 12 credit hr
t
df
Level of significance
Training
Understanding
Coworker support
Future prospects
3.24
2.84
2.15
3.01
3.38
2.72
2.38
3.24
¡0.854
1.076
¡1.924
¡1.357
266
266
264
264
.394
.283
.055
.176
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EFFECTS OF PART-TIME MBA PROGRAMS
lowering personnel turnover (Allen & Shanock, 2013),
allowing employers to retain institutional knowledge and
avoid costly searches for new employees.
Future research into the relationship between progress
through an MBA program and perceptions of future prospects may examine how an MBA education may help students to perceive increased future employment prospects.
Does an MBA education, for instance, help employees to
become more aware of opportunities with their present
employer? Does an MBA education open doors to new
opportunities with one’s present employer? This information
would likely be valuable for employers and educators alike.
Interestingly, significant relationships were not observed
for the other two integration factors, training and understanding. That is, progress through an MBA program does
not appear to have an effect on employee perceptions
regarding the quality of the training they receive or their
understanding of their employer. These findings suggest
that employers may not expect employees pursuing an
MBA education to view training differently or possess a
better understanding of the organization as a result of their
education. These counterintuitive findings also suggest the
need for further research. Specifically, educators may have
the ability to affect these relationships through changes in
pedagogy and/or assignments and projects to further
increase the integration benefits of an MBA education.
Additional insight can be gained when considering the
relationships between the integration factors. First, consistent with past research, each of the factors appears to be
strongly related to each other. When the strength of the
relationships between the integration factors for students
who are relatively early in their MBA programs are compared with those who are further along are considered, however, important differences emerge for four of six
relationship possibilities consistent with the hypotheses.
When training is examined, the relationships between
training and understanding and between training and
coworker support were significantly stronger for employees
who were relatively early in their MBA programs compared
with those further along in their programs. The findings
suggest that employees earlier in an MBA program may
look to training to provide an understanding of their
employer more so than those later in a program. Furthermore, the finding suggests that employees earlier in an
MBA program may look more to coworkers as a component
of their training compared with those later in a program.
The lack of a significant difference in the relationship
between training and future prospects suggests that both
groups view the effect of training on future prospects with
the company similarly.
These findings provide some support suggesting that the
integration factors become more individually defined as
students continue their education. Specifically, it indicates
that the training factor becomes increasingly differentiated
from the understanding and coworker support factors as
307
students progress through their MBA education, suggesting
that employers should increasingly view these factors (the
integration factor of training and understanding and
coworker support) as distinct integration factors, each of
which should receive particular attention. Interestingly, the
strength of the relationship between training and future
prospects was not observed to change as students progressed through their programs. This relationship will be
discussed further later.
When understanding is examined, the relationships
between understanding and coworker support and between
understanding and future prospects were significantly stronger for employees who were early in their MBA programs
versus those who were further along in their programs.
These findings suggest that coworkers may play a greater
role in an individual’s understanding of his or her employing organizations among employees who are relatively
early versus late in their MBA programs. The findings also
suggest that understanding an individual’s employer may
play a greater role in perceptions of future prospects among
employees who are relatively early versus late in an MBA
program. It seems that employees who are further along in
an MBA program may rely more on knowledge gained
from the MBA to assess their future prospects.
These findings further suggest that the integration factors
become more individually defined as students continue
their MBA education. Specifically, it indicates that the
understanding factor becomes increasingly differentiated
from the coworker support and future prospects factors as
students progress through their MBA education, suggesting
that employers should also increasingly view these integration factors (the integration factor of understanding and
coworker support and future prospects) as distinct areas of
integration.
Finally, the relationship between coworker support and
future prospects was not significantly different for employees who were relatively early versus late in a MBA programs. This finding, along with a lack of a change in the
strength of the relationship between training and future
prospects as students proceed through an MBA education
discussed previously, casts doubt onto whether future prospects should be viewed as a separate integration factor or
whether it is best viewed as an outgrowth of the integration
process. Indeed, relational cohesive theory (discussed earlier) only addresses the first three integration factors of
Taormina (1994; Yoon & Lawler, 2006). This study provides initial evidence consistent with Yoon and Lawler.
Additional research into the appropriateness of future prospects as a separate factor seems warranted.
When the results from testing H1 and the results from
testing H3 are compared, an interesting observation can be
made. When testing H1, relationships were observed
between progress through an MBA program and the integration factors of coworker support and future prospects
and not for training and knowledge. When testing H3,
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308
M. PRINCE ET AL.
however, it was the relationships involving the knowledge
factor, which were observed to be more likely to grow
weaker as students proceed through their MBA programs,
whereas it was relationships involving future prospects,
which were observed to be more likely to remain unchanged
as students proceed through their MBA programs. Additional research is needed to fully understand the basis of
these findings. These findings, however, appear to lend additional support for the need for employers and educators to
examine the integration factors separately. They further suggest that examining only the relationships between the integration factors and individuals’ progress through their MBA
programs will provide an incomplete understanding.
In summary, the study findings suggest that an MBA
education may increase the integration of part-time MBA
students with their employer’s organizations. The study,
therefore, suggests an additional important issue for
employers to consider as they examine the desirability of
encouraging and requiring their employees to pursue MBA
study. Not only may employers benefit from the added
skills and knowledge that their employees may gain from
an MBA education, but they may also gain from the added
integration their employees may ultimately possess with
their employers’ organizations. Also, although the study
findings raise questions whether future prospects represents
a separate integration factor, the findings suggest that the
integration factors may become increasingly differentiated
as students become more integrated into their employers’
organizations as they progress through their MBA educations. This would seem to indicate that employers and educators should focus on each of the integration factors if
they wish to more effectively integrate employees into their
employers’ organizations, particularly as their employees
proceed through their MBA programs.
CONCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS
The present study is an initial exploratory study. The primary value of the study is to identify plausible relationships
that in turn should be examined in future studies. Overall,
the findings suggest that progress through MBA programs
may affect the extent to which employees are integrated
into their workplaces. Research to further explore this relationship seems to be warranted.
A primary shortcoming of this study concerns causality.
Although directional causality is suggested several times
throughout the discussion section, causality was not examined in this study. To increase the practical applicability of
the current findings, future research should assess causality
to offer not only additional insight and understanding, but
also to provide businesses and business schools with knowledge to guide future course-related decision making.
Additional research is also needed to examine whether
differences exist across different MBA programs. For
instance, does attending a full-time MBA program differ
compared with attending a part-time program in terms of
integration with employers? Furthermore, additional
research should explore students with different backgrounds who work in different business settings. Does an
MBA education, for instance, uniquely affect students with
different backgrounds (i.e., educationally, extent of business experience, or culturally)? Moreover, do these effects
differ for students from different business settings (e.g.,
industry or position level)?
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