Values in an Australian University: A study of espoused and observed values in the Faculty of Health Sciences at La Trobe University

Value statements are common in contemporary organisations, but studies of the extent to which these statements are observed in practice are rare. Although there have been a number of studies which have asked academic staff about their values, no such studies could be found which attempted to track observance of espoused values. This monograph addresses that gap. It reports the development of a set of value statements for the Faculty of Health Sciences at La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia. It then reports on a survey which asked academic and administrative staff the extent to which they endorsed the values statements, and the extent to which those values were observed in practice. Factors which might inhibit value observance were also elicited. A particular focus of the monograph is drawing out the implications of these findings for management.

Stephen Duckett, an economist, is Chief Executive of the Centre for Healthcare Improvement in Queensland Health. He was Secretary of the Australian Health Department (1994-1996) and has held leadership roles in the Victorian Health Department and at La Trobe University (as Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences and Pro Vice-Chancellor).