Change Leadership and Cabin Crew Work Wellbeing During COVID-19 Pandemic
Virtanen, Tytti (2023)
Virtanen, Tytti
2023
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2023051510792
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2023051510792
Tiivistelmä
The COVID-19 pandemic changed the operational environment of the airlines starting in early 2020. The majority of the global aviation operations were grounded, having major effects on the employees. After the airlines started increasing their operations during the pandemic (2020-2021), there were changes to the immediate working environment of the cabin crew. This qualitative research aims to discover what type of changes there were, was it following to a pattern similar to the theoretical framework, and how did they affect the work well-being of cabin crew in European airlines.
The theoretical frame of change leadership was based on the theories of the two change leadership academics John Kotter and Jeff Hiatt. Kotter’s eight steps of change and Hiatt’s ADKAR model were the base for the interview questions in chronological order of events. The methodology is a qualitative study following a grounded theory path, gathering primary data from semi-structured interviews, with a total of six cabin crew members, who were employed before the pandemic, and during the pandemic. The interviews were conducted using video calls, and the author evaluated the emotional state, facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice to gather further evidence of the interviewees' feelings.
The interviews were transcribed, and using thematic analysis, sorted, coded, and extracted into themes in chronological order. Then the themes were compared to Kotter’s and Hiatt’s theories and studied how the interviewees witnessed the change. The change in the airlines was structural, yet the outcome was a decrease in cabin crew work well-being.
The theoretical frame of change leadership was based on the theories of the two change leadership academics John Kotter and Jeff Hiatt. Kotter’s eight steps of change and Hiatt’s ADKAR model were the base for the interview questions in chronological order of events. The methodology is a qualitative study following a grounded theory path, gathering primary data from semi-structured interviews, with a total of six cabin crew members, who were employed before the pandemic, and during the pandemic. The interviews were conducted using video calls, and the author evaluated the emotional state, facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice to gather further evidence of the interviewees' feelings.
The interviews were transcribed, and using thematic analysis, sorted, coded, and extracted into themes in chronological order. Then the themes were compared to Kotter’s and Hiatt’s theories and studied how the interviewees witnessed the change. The change in the airlines was structural, yet the outcome was a decrease in cabin crew work well-being.