Fiatal felsőoktatók jólléte és produktivitása
The Well-being and Productivity of Young Academics in Higher Education

Summary/Abstract: In the past, the core responsibilities of academic staff primarily consisted of research activities and related lectures. Today, however, their roles are much more diverse: they must serve as teachers, researchers, mentors, and, in some cases, even fulfil pastoral duties. The expectations (or demands) associated with these roles and activities place significant pressure on academics, creating substantial sources of stress that negatively impact their health, well-being, and performance. In our study, we examined which demographic and job-related factors, as well as workplace stressors and resources, influence the well-being and productivity of academics in five Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries. We also investigated differences related to age and job characteristics strongly linked to age (e.g., position, academic rank). Another key question was the role of physical activity, individual and institutionally provided sports, and recreational activities in these outcomes. To address these research questions, we used data from the CEETHE 2023 database (N = 821). The survey data collection was conducted in two disadvantaged Hungarian regions – the Northern Great Plain and Southern Transdanubian regions. For Slovakian, Ukrainian, Romanian, and Serbian institutions, we targeted Hungarian minority institutions. The most significant finding of our research is that performance evaluations emerged as the sole stressor reducing productivity, while age, higher positions, and academic rank increased academic productivity. Another important result is that institutional sports opportunities – through the provision of infrastructure – directly contribute to higher productivity.

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