Emotional Distance and Decision Making among Academic Staff of Selected Universities in Edo State, Nigeria

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine empirically the effect of emotional distance and organizational culture on the decision-making behavior of academic staff of selected public universities in Edo State, Nigeria. This study employed a cross-sectional survey design, as it captured the views of the specific population at a particular point in time. The study population consists of all academic staff of three selected public universities in Edo State, namely: University of Benin, Ambrose Alli University Ekpoma, and Edo State University Uzairue. The three universities selected are a mixture of state and federal universities. Data were gathered through a structured questionnaire from a sample of 443 academic staff. Out of this total number of questionnaires administered, 422 of the responses were usable and analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression analysis with the aid of SPSS version 26.0. The findings show that psychological distance and social distance significantly and negatively influence decision-making behavior among academic staff, meaning that it reduces academic staff commitment to the organizational governance process. Findings revealed that organizational culture significantly and positively influences decision-making; this indicates that a participatory, supportive, and transparent institutional climate improves academic staff involvement. These findings establish the importance of psychological involvement and organizational culture on effective governance within higher education institutions. This study therefore recommends the application of an emotionally intelligent leadership approach and fostering of institutional cultures that promote fairness, supportiveness, inclusion, transparency, and participation of staff.