Church Reform and Leadership of Change by Askeland Harald;Schmidt Ulla;

Author:Askeland, Harald;Schmidt, Ulla; [Askeland, Harald]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781498223331
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Published: 2016-02-02T08:00:00+00:00

The model is for the time being more suggestive in nature, and will guide the interpretation of both the standardized and open questions of the questionnaire. The material is not expected to fit with clear role-profiles of the deans, but will hopefully contribute to showing some profiling of their conception of their main tasks.

Methodology: Selection of Informants and Data-gathering

This chapter analyses material from an evaluation, commissioned by the Ministry of Government Administration, Reform and Church Affairs, of recent re-organizing of the clerical services. The focal point of the chapter is how the role of the dean has been developed, regarding both a strengthening of the role and the new profile of the role.

Data for the evaluation was gathered through a multi-methodological approach. The methodological design of the study has been:

• A web-based questionnaire was administered to all deans and clergy in the Church of Norway. Out of 1292 respondents invited to participate, a total number of 516 responded after two reminders. The items used were closely linked to the aim of the evaluation. In the questionnaire, the deans were asked to answer both closed and open-ended questions, and the analysis is based on both types of material.

• In three, strategically chosen, dioceses (Oslo, Møre and Sør-Hålogaland) several interviews were conducted. These interviews combined focus group interviews with three groups; the deans of, a sample of clergy from and other congregational employees in these actual dioceses.

• Interview with the bishops and personnel manager of the three dioceses.

• A document analysis of annual allotment papers from the Ministry and a review of prior research on the topic of deans and leadership.184

Developments in the Managerial Role of the Dean

The Development of the Dean as Leader: Towards a More Distinct Managerial Role?

From the data, there are three roles or functions concerning the dean as leader, which especially emerge from the interviews. The first role is the role of spiritual leader, a second role concerns the personnel human resource management role and function of the deans and the third role is that of the administrative manager. There was a widespread perception, especially among the clergy, that the reform and other changes in the conditions for the exercise of clerical ministry, has weakened the dean’s opportunities to be a spiritual leader. Fulfilling the function as administrative leader required a level of attention in the dean’s practice to have been mostly at the expense of the spiritual managerial function. This was seen as a consequence of the reform. Not only was the clergy concerned and promoted this view but some of the deans interviewed expressed the same opinion. It was clear that a higher ratio of ministers interviewed had this perception, compared to the deans. In the interviews with deans, very different assessments were expressed:

I think that it is very important to me as dean how I justify my provost service. . . . It is not so important who takes care of the clerical services, the important thing is that it is exercised. We need to ensure that the clergy

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