Ghanaian teachers’ career orientations and their turnover intentions

Abstract

The study empirically investigated what career anchors were dominant among Ghanaian teachers, and whether the teachers’ career orientations significantly influenced their turnover intentions. The study employed the quantitative survey design and sampled 297 teachers (141 males, 156 females) from basic schools (year 1-9) and senior high schools (year 10-12). The average age of the participants was 31.4 years. Two sets of standardized instruments – Schein’s 8-factor Career Orientations Inventory and the 3-item Turnover Intention Scale from the Michigan Organizational Assessment Questionnaire were adapted to collect data for the study. The data were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. It was found that, of the eight measures of the Career Orientations Inventory, service and dedication to a cause, entrepreneurial creativity and functional competence were the most dominant among the teachers. Concerning the influence of the various career anchor measures on turnover intentions, the results indicate that, all the anchors, except security and stability and service and dedication to cause, significantly influenced turnover intentions of teachers. The implications of these results are discussed and recommendations made to help curb teacher attrition in Ghanaian schools.