The Faculty Vitality Survey© is designed to address the challenges faced by academic health schools of today. More than just a satisfaction survey, the Faculty Vitality Survey© measures the synergy between satisfaction, productivity, and engagement. Our goal is to better understand the experience of faculty in the health professions and ultimately work to improve the faculty experience. We are hopeful that by developing a global measure of faculty vitality, this can be accomplished.
In addition to demographic variables, the Faculty Vitality Survey© includes subscales measuring perception of:
- Primary Unit Climate and Leadership
- Career and Life Management
- Scholarly Engagement and Productivity
- Educational Engagement and Productivity
- Clinical Engagement and Productivity
- Satisfaction
Our theoretical proposition is this: Faculty vitality is the synergy between high levels of satisfaction, productivity, and engagement that enables the faculty member to maximize her/his professional success and achieve goals in concert with institutional goals. Faculty vitality is predicted by both individual and institutional factors.
Findings from the Faculty Vitality Survey© have been published in To Improve The Academy, Journal of Faculty Development and Advances in Health Science Education. They have also been presented at meetings of the American Association of Medical Colleges Group on Faculty Affairs (AAMC GFA), the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE), and the Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education Conference (POD).
However, the Faculty Vitality Survey© is not simply an isolated research project. It is an essential element of a systemic approach to faculty and organizational development. Results for the Vitality Survey provide rich data upon which change can be made. Examples of change at Indiana University School of Medicine based on the survey’s findings include lengthening the tenure probationary period from seven to nine years and the approval of a paid maternity leave policy in the multi-specialty practice plan.