Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to identify which of the motivators of organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) present in the literature are reported as applicable to community college faculty and to examine the nature of those motivators. Methodology. A mixed-methods design was selected for this study. Emphasis was on the qualitative data. The study paradigm was descriptive and phenomenological. The data collection was simultaneous, with focus groups held with an online web-conference platform and an online survey being conducted during the same time frame. The survey instrument collected data about the motivators of OCB among tenured faculty in basic skills departments of Southern California community colleges. The focus groups included faculty members recommended by their supervisors as exhibiting OCB and provided deeper explanation of the motivators of this group. Findings. Examination of the data revealed that all of the motivators present in the literature for nonacademic settings as inspiring OCB were present among tenured faculty in basic skills departments of Southern California community colleges. The most mentioned motivators of this behavior were related to one's upbringing or personality traits. Other motivators included factors related to students, working in groups, the work itself, and practices of leaders. Conclusions. Individuals identified as exhibiting OCB are motivated by a variety of factors, both internal and external. Next to personality and background factors, these individuals reported being motivated by student success, fellow faculty members, and recognition from leaders. Recommendations. It is recommended that leaders wishing to inspire and support OCB among faculty members involve faculty in developing the strategic vision so that the work is more meaningful. Leaders should match talents and interests to specific projects and help faculty members see how their work results in greater student success. Finally, leaders can inspire this behavior by recognizing and acknowledging the work faculty members do.