Empirical construction of work orientations: connections to workers' attitudes, perceptions and behaviors
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2007
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| Online Access: | http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1180445570 |
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ndltd-OhioLink-oai-etd.ohiolink.edu-osu11804455702021-08-03T05:52:04Z Empirical construction of work orientations: connections to workers' attitudes, perceptions and behaviors Bradley, Sara Faye work work value work orientation social service work cluster analysis job turnover Studies incorporating theoretical work orientations have helped advance our understanding of workers’ well-being, job choice and retention, and job satisfaction and commitment. I approach work orientations as an empirical question, conceptualizing work orientations as combinations of workers’ work values – a broader view of work perspectives than research on individual values. I use data from the 1998 General Social Survey and the 1975 Wisconsin Longitudinal Study to allow patterns of work values to emerge through cluster analysis and form three distinct work orientations: assistance orientation, instrumental orientation, and detached workers. These work orientations replicate many theoretically constructed work orientations of previous research, supporting previous findings while adding new evidence to the field. I find work orientations are related to job satisfaction, to workers’ commitment to their employing organization, and to workers’ commitment to their occupation. Assistance-oriented workers are significantly more satisfied and committed to their organizations and occupations than detached workers. Instrumental-oriented workers are more committed to their organization and occupation, but are not differently satisfied from detached workers. Furthermore, work orientations affect the way workers describe their jobs with assistance-oriented workers interpreting their jobs the most favorably. I find assistance-oriented workers have a higher risk of leaving their job than detached workers, but instrumental-oriented workers are specifically less likely to change occupations than other workers. Throughout this study I look closely at social service workers and their work orientations as an interesting occupational case. Though all three work orientations are represented among social service workers, assistance orientation with its highly positive attitudes about work is over-represented in this field known for intense burnout and turnover problems. I theorize that work orientations of workers in social service jobs will help us understand variation in workers’ responses to their jobs as some social service workers decide to leave the field, others change organizations within the same field, and still others spend many years working at the same social service organization. I find that social service workers are particularly unlikely to change occupations when they leave their jobs. More generally, my research speaks to dynamics between organizational structure and individuals’ perspectives and experiences. 2007-06-07 English text The Ohio State University / OhioLINK http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1180445570 http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1180445570 unrestricted This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws. |
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NDLTD |
| language |
English |
| sources |
NDLTD |
| topic |
work work value work orientation social service work cluster analysis job turnover |
| spellingShingle |
work work value work orientation social service work cluster analysis job turnover Bradley, Sara Faye Empirical construction of work orientations: connections to workers' attitudes, perceptions and behaviors |
| author |
Bradley, Sara Faye |
| author_facet |
Bradley, Sara Faye |
| author_sort |
Bradley, Sara Faye |
| title |
Empirical construction of work orientations: connections to workers' attitudes, perceptions and behaviors |
| title_short |
Empirical construction of work orientations: connections to workers' attitudes, perceptions and behaviors |
| title_full |
Empirical construction of work orientations: connections to workers' attitudes, perceptions and behaviors |
| title_fullStr |
Empirical construction of work orientations: connections to workers' attitudes, perceptions and behaviors |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Empirical construction of work orientations: connections to workers' attitudes, perceptions and behaviors |
| title_sort |
empirical construction of work orientations: connections to workers' attitudes, perceptions and behaviors |
| publisher |
The Ohio State University / OhioLINK |
| publishDate |
2007 |
| url |
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1180445570 |
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AT bradleysarafaye empiricalconstructionofworkorientationsconnectionstoworkersattitudesperceptionsandbehaviors |
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