Research Papers - Dept of Business
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://rda.sliit.lk/handle/123456789/1668
Browse
7 results
Search Results
Publication Open Access Factors influencing migration intention of undergraduates in Sri Lanka: ‘About more than employment(Elsevier Ltd, 2026-01-26) Marawila, R; Weerarathna, R; Rathnayake, N; Guruge, R; Wehella, B; Udugahapattuwa, T; Weligodapola, MThe objective of this study is to examine the factors influencing Sri Lankan undergraduates' intention to migrate. Persistent economic, social, and political challenges have driven many youngsters and professionals to leave their Country of Origin (COO). The economic collapse triggered by COVID-19 further intensified this trend, leading to a sharp increase in outward migration. Recently, a growing number of Sri Lankan undergraduates and skilled professionals have expressed a strong desire to relocate abroad, often immediately after completing secondary education. For this study, a sample of 385 undergraduates from state and non-state universities across Sri Lanka was analysed. Given the national concerns of brain drain and shortages of trained and skilled workers, the study specifically focused on understanding undergraduates' aspirations to migrate. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was applied to identify and test the variables influencing migration intentions within the Sri Lankan context. The findings provide a holistic picture of the drivers of undergraduate migration. These carry important implications not only for students but also for policymakers and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), by informing policies and strategies that could encourage young people to realise their potential within Sri Lanka rather than abroad.Publication Open Access How Do Different Types of University Academics Perceive Work from Home Amidst COVID-19 and Beyond?(MDPI, 2022-04-19) Rathnayake, N; Kumarasinghe, P. JThe COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a massive and unintentional shift to work from home (WFH) or working remotely, as well as broad adoption of web-based platforms. The goal of this research is to uncover the attitudes to WFH among different types of academics in the Sri Lankan higher education sector. An online questionnaire survey was conducted amidst a severe COVID19 wave during June–September 2021, and 337 valid responses were received. The questionnaire contained 49 questions under four sections excluding demographic questions. The gathered data were analysed using multiple regression models. Results of the study ascertained a significant (p < 0.01) positive attitude among academics towards online teaching (academic orientation), other than academics who from disciplines with more practical components, and there was a significant (p < 0.01) positive attitude among academics to conducting research (research orientation) while WFH. Further, the findings indicate a significant (p < 0.01) negative attitude to WFH when disseminating knowledge and engaging in community services with various stakeholders. When considering the criticality of demographics variables in the new normal, a hybrid working model can be introduced by reaping the benefits of WFH based on different types of academic orientations and their favourability towards the WFH model, rather than reverting to a full physical academic working environment. As a developing country, Sri Lanka can formulate policies on effective hybrid working models for academics to realise the potential from the lessons learned. This experience will enable the country to accomplish or move towards accomplishing the fourth goal of SDGs, quality education by 2030.Publication Open Access How Do Different Types of University Academics Perceive Work from Home Amidst COVID-19 and Beyond?(MDPI, 2022-04-19) Rathnayake, N; Kumarasinghe, P; Kumara, A. SThe COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a massive and unintentional shift to work from home (WFH) or working remotely, as well as broad adoption of web-based platforms. The goal of this research is to uncover the attitudes to WFH among different types of academics in the Sri Lankan higher education sector. An online questionnaire survey was conducted amidst a severe COVID-19 wave during June–September 2021, and 337 valid responses were received. The questionnaire contained 49 questions under four sections excluding demographic questions. The gathered data were analysed using multiple regression models. Results of the study ascertained a significant (p < 0.01) positive attitude among academics towards online teaching (academic orientation), other than academics who from disciplines with more practical components, and there was a significant (p < 0.01) positive attitude among academics to conducting research (research orientation) while WFH. Further, the findings indicate a significant (p < 0.01) negative attitude to WFH when disseminating knowledge and engaging in community services with various stakeholders. When considering the criticality of demographics variables in the new normal, a hybrid working model can be introduced by reaping the benefits of WFH based on different types of academic orientations and their favourability towards the WFH model, rather than reverting to a full physical academic working environment. As a developing country, Sri Lanka can formulate policies on effective hybrid working models for academics to realise the potential from the lessons learned. This experience will enable the country to accomplish or move towards accomplishing the fourth goal of SDGs, quality education by 2030.Publication Open Access Factors affecting the level of stress among undergraduates in Sri Lanka with special reference to covid-19(Business Research Unit (BRU), 2021-12-03) Madhusanka, A. K. P; Jayasuriya, N. U; Ravishanka, M. K. U; Pothupitiya, S. N; Weerarathna, R. S; Dunuwila, V. RTo combat the rapid spread of COVID-19 infections universities and higher educational institutes in Sri Lanka had to suspend all on campus activities and had to tranfer into online learning. This resulted in a swift change in undergraduates’ life style and they had to face many new challenges in their academics which created severe mental pressure. Therefore, the objective of the research is ‘to assess the factors influencing the level of stress among undergraduates in Sri Lanka’. The study looks into this mental pressure in terms of the stress levels of undergraduates which is considered to be the dependent variable whereas their online learning experience and university workload are the independent variables. The study takes a quantitative research approach as its primary data is collected through an online questionnaire created from Google Forms and answered by 384 undergraduates. The questionnaire provided data on the online experience and university workload variables and it included the DASS-21 scale (Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale) which measured the stress level of the undergraduates. Descriptive statistics was conducted on the data through the Microsoft Excel. Based on the data analysis, it was found that the stress levels of undergraduates were; 3% normal, 20% mild, 36% moderate, 21% severe and 20% extremely severe. Therefore, it could be said that 41% of undergraduates faced high stress levels that were beyond what is regular and it negatively affected to the way how they could face challenges and carry out their day to day lives. It should be noted that undergraduates appeared to have much higher stress levels as a result of the pandemic.Publication Open Access Factors affecting the level of stress among undergraduates in Sri Lanka with special reference to covid-19(Business Research Unit (BRU), 2021) Madhusanka, A. K. P; Jayasuriya, N. U; Ravishanka, M. K. U; Pothupitiya, S. N; Weerarathna, R. S; Dunuwila, V. RTo combat the rapid spread of COVID-19 infections universities and higher educational institutes in Sri Lanka had to suspend all on campus activities and had to tranfer into online learning. This resulted in a swift change in undergraduates’ life style and they had to face many new challenges in their academics which created severe mental pressure. Therefore, the objective of the research is ‘to assess the factors influencing the level of stress among undergraduates in Sri Lanka’. The study looks into this mental pressure in terms of the stress levels of undergraduates which is considered to be the dependent variable whereas their online learning experience and university workload are the independent variables. The study takes a quantitative research approach as its primary data is collected through an online questionnaire created from Google Forms and answered by 384 undergraduates. The questionnaire provided data on the online experience and university workload variables and it included the DASS-21 scale (Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale) which measured the stress level of the undergraduates. Descriptive statistics was conducted on the data through the Microsoft Excel. Based on the data analysis, it was found that the stress levels of undergraduates were; 3% normal, 20% mild, 36% moderate, 21% severe and 20% extremely severe. Therefore, it could be said that 41% of undergraduates faced high stress levels that were beyond what is regular and it negatively affected to the way how they could face challenges and carry out their day to day lives. It should be noted that undergraduates appeared to have much higher stress levels as a result of the pandemic.Publication Open Access Driving Organizational Change In The Midst Of The Crisis: How Does It Affect Employee Performance?(2021-01) Rajapakshe, WThe purpose of the study is to investigate how organizational change during a crisis influence employee performance, with special references to a virtual work setting and working from home. Primary data obtained from 295 employees from three commercial banks in Sri Lanka were selected through Stratified Simple Random Sampling. Descriptive statistics, linear regression analysis and multiple regression analysis are used for data analysis. The linear regression results explore that measures/variables such as changes in a communication system; leadership; Technology and Tolerance to change have a significant negative effect on employee performance, while the multiple regression analysis shows, only the changes in communication and leadership affect employees' performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were limited to selected employees in three private commercial banks in Colombo, Sri Lanka using a self-structured questionnaire. The findings of this research rely on primary data collected from the grass root level. Also considering the response rate and sample size, there are limitations to generalize the findings. This research was restricted to four variables Changes in the communication system; Changes in leadership style; Technology advancement and Tolerance to change; impact of other factors that can influence employees' performance during the pandemic period did not fall under the scope of this study/were not covered. The impact of organizational change on employees' performance during COVID-19 is an under-researched area of study. Findings of this study can act as a guideline in future for managers to handle organizational change with lesser employee resistance to successfully manage where companies are forced to implement sudden changes.Publication Open Access Learners’ Satisfaction and Commitment Towards Online Learning During COVID-19: A Concept Paper(SAGE Publications, 2021-11-08) Ranadewa, D. U. N; Gregory, T. Y; Boralugoda, D. N; Silva, J. A. H. T; Jayasuriya, N. AThis study offers a comprehensive literature review on the gaps related to online learning efficiency and a structured conceptual model. The findings would be favourable for the learners, lecturers, future researchers, universities and other educational institutes. This study has presented the results of a systematic literature review on the factors affecting the efficiency of online learning and how they impact on satisfaction and commitment of learners. To conduct the literature review, approximately 40 empirical studies were reviewed and analysed. The results reveal that several factors, including academic issues, accessibility issues, technological skills, mental well-being and lecturer commitment, impact depreciating the online learning efficiency, which has made a significant impact on learner satisfaction and learner commitment during the COVID-19 pandemic. If the pandemic would continue, the institutes can use the deliverables to figure out the difficulties encountered by the learners during the pandemic, how to prevent those issues and to search for a solution: to re-open the universities following necessary health guidelines or to resume delivering education online. The literature evaluates the impact of online learning efficiency on learners’ satisfaction and commitment, and there are no adequate empirical studies available for testing the online learning efficiency with respect to learners’ satisfaction and commitment. Hence, in identifying several gaps related to online learning efficiency, this study offers a new structured conceptual model.