In response to demographic shifts, colleges and universities implemented new policies, adopted new practices, and created professional development opportunities to gain support for work–life balance. Research on work–life balance reveals... more
In response to demographic shifts, colleges and universities implemented new policies, adopted new practices, and created professional development opportunities to gain support for work–life balance. Research on work–life balance reveals gender disparities , lack of policy usage, and a lack of cultural change with little understanding of the ways to bring about a campus culture that understands, promotes, and has established norms that support work–life balance. Research often recommends that cultural change be established to support policy usage and reduce stigma from work–life balance. This research study examined 2 institutions of higher education to challenge the notion that organizational change can be simply created and to examine the impact of fragmented cultures and individual identity on change. The 2 major themes—symbolic meaning of policies and children and discontinuity of symbols and policies—that emerged in this study provide evidence of the need for campuses to contend with organizational culture and, in particular, on symbols and discourses intentionally presented to reflect work– life balance acceptance. This study concludes with recommendation of how leaders, faculty, and policymakers can support work–life balance within higher education despite the ambiguity and complexity of organizational life.
