Abstract

In the context of the high-quality development of higher education in China, the effectiveness of happy university governance has become an important indicator of governance quality, yet it remains systematically underrepresented in university administration models. This research aimed to explore the components of a Happy University Administration Model, develop it for universities in Shandong Province, the People's Republic of China, and verify its suitability, feasibility, and usefulness. Grounded in care ethics, positive psychology (PERMA), self-determination theory, and organizational well-being (Happy 8) frameworks, a three-phase mixed-methods design was adopted: Phase 1 identified key components through document analysis and semi-structured interviews with 9 educational administration experts; Phase 2 constructed and validated the model using stratified random sampling questionnaire data from 351 lecturers at three Shandong universities; and Phase 3 evaluated the finalized model with 9 external experts. The research instruments comprised semi-structured interview forms, relevant questionnaires, and model evaluation forms, with data analyzed using means, standard deviations, content analysis, and reliability and validity analysis. The findings revealed a six-dimensional model comprising: 1) Institutional Support, 2) Psychological Care, 3) Social Connectedness, 4) Autonomous Development, 5) Value Realization, and 6) Positive Campus Culture. The overall implementation level of the model was rated at a high level (M = 4.28, SD = 0.32), and the model was consistent with the empirical data, as evidenced by the satisfactory goodness of fit of all model indices (χ² = 5.74, df = 5, p = 0.15; GFI = 0.99; AGFI = 0.97). All six components maintained a high level of implementation, ranked in descending order of mean score as follows: Value Realization (M = 4.42), Social Connectedness (M = 4.35), Psychological Care (M = 4.31), Institutional Support (M = 4.23), Autonomous Development (M = 4.18), and Positive Campus Culture (M = 4.15). Expert evaluation indicated that the model attained the highest level in suitability (M = 4.61, SD = 0.39) and usefulness (M = 4.55, SD = 0.41), and a high level in feasibility (M = 4.44, SD = 0.44), showing strong suitability, practical operability, and application value for university governance in Shandong Province and Chinese higher education institutions.

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