Trust or consequences: The relationship between faculty trust and faculty learning communities in higher education

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate relationships between FLC membership and faculty trust in higher education colleagues and faculty trust in higher education administration in public and private universities in the United States. This quantitative study examines trust in colleagues and trust in administration in higher education, two factors of faculty trust that Hoy, Tschannen-Moran and others have shown to contribute to the relationship of teacher trust in administration and colleagues, collaboration, and to positive student outcomes in K-12 public schools. Grounded in trust theory as conceptualized by Castelfranchi and Falcone (2010) and using Hoy and Miskel’s (2008) trust model (to include benevolence reliability, competence, honesty, and openness), this study sought to discover if the same held true for higher education for variables of Faculty Learning Communities, faculty status (tenure/non-tenure track), and length of service at current institution for trust in colleagues and trust in administration. These three independent variables in combination do not appear to significantly predict levels of faculty trust in colleagues or in administration. Limitations of the study and recommendations for further research are addressed.

Keywords: Trust, higher education, Faculty Learning Community