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3, 2009, Part II
441..454
Introduction
Work values are linked with other relevant variables in career development, such as
professional interests or vocational personality (Finegan, 2000; Berings, Fruyt &
Bouwen, 2004; Xenikou, 2005; Rottinghaus & Zytowski, 2006), are formed in a
specific work context (Mukherfee, 2006) and influence the orientation intervention designed, for example, as an element of the professional portfolio or the
development of transversal participatory and personal skills (Valentine, 2004;
Hirsch, 2006). These values were analysed from various theoretical perspectives
(Corts, 2006; 2008; Porfeli, 2006). In an Iranian context (Ali & Amirshahi, 2002),
768 executives appreciated values that were closer to collectivism than to individualism. Ghorpade, Lackritz & Singh (2001) carried out a research with 749 university students (West Coast University) in various courses of study, concluding
that work values of altruism, initiative and collectivism correlated positively with
the capacity to lead in the working world, while individualism correlated negatively.
Also, in the American context, Leong, Herdin & Gaylor (2005) measured the
work values of medical students through the Values Scale (Super & Nevill, 1986),
confirming that the use of skills, success, promotion, aesthetics, altruism, authority
and independence were the most appreciated and the least were psychological
resistance and risk. Within the same scope and using identical instruments, Duffy
& Sedlacek (2007) used a sample of 3,570 students to confirm that they preferred
intrinsic values (especially females), followed by high salaries, contribution to
society and prestige.
This project follows two theoretical lines: Schwartz and Meaning of Work
(MOW). The Schwartz model (1990; 1992; 1994; 1999) derives from Rokeach
(1973) and divides values into two types: instrumental and terminal.The Schwartz
domain structure is classified in two dimensions: openness to change (selfdirection, stimulation and hedonism) vs. conservation (tradition, conformity and
security); and self-improvement (fulfilment and authority) vs. self-transcendence
(universalism and benevolence).We agree with Arciniega & Gonzlez (2000; 2002;
2005; 2006) that the Schwartz model is very appropriate for the issue of work
values because of its structure and widely verified multicultural validation
(Schwartz, Lehmann & Roccas, 1999; Grand & Schwartz, 1998; 1999; Schwartz &
Boehnke, 2004) and because it holds an inference in the intervention.We relate the
Schwartz perspective to building up the professional and career development and
the entrepreneurial capacity.
2009 The Author. Journal compilation 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd., 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ,
UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA.
442
Regarding the first, Myyry & Helkama (2001; 2002) established a relationship
between values, professional development and moral sensitivity. They concluded
that the values of benevolence and universalism influenced high ethical professional
skills and that exactly the contrary occurred with the priorities of power and
hedonism.This study can be compared to that of Schwartz and Bardi (2001) which
was carried out using workers in various professions. It constituted the basis for the
study carried out by Abbott,White & Charles (2005) in a business context. Lyons,
Duxbury & Higgins (2006), with a sample of 549 Canadian workers in the public,
semi-public and private sectors, discovered that those in the first two sectors showed
high values of universalism and benevolence and that those of the private sector
showed high values in the latter and in self-direction. It was also influenced by a
cultural argument. For example, Siu (2003) highlighted that the Confucian philosophy (social harmony, reciprocity in relationships, collectivism, resistance, etc.)
was apparent in the work values and in the meaning of life of Oriental workers.
Concerning entrepreneurial capacity, Moriano, Palac & Morales (2006) surveyed a sample of 340 wage-earners and self-employed people in Spain, Bulgaria
and the Czech Republic with the help of various questionnaires, including the
Schwartz values questionnaire (with 37 items) and The Meaning of Working of the
MOW Group (1987). Generally, entrepreneurs identified themselves with individualist and hedonist values such as power, achievement, acknowledgement and
promotion. As for motivation, leadership values and ability to work within a group
(Berings et al., 2004) were also relevant for the placement and development in the
world of work. The authors believe that professional training and orientation bear
on the psycho-social profile of the university entrepreneur, since they offer selfemployment as a work option.
Our other theoretical reference is the MOW (Meaning of Working Study)
Group. The MOW International Research Group (1987) differentiates between
five components of the meaning of work: centrality of work, societal norms, results
assessed, importance of work objectives, and identification with the work function.
The MOW Group prepared a questionnaire, The Meaning of Working: An international View, (1987), with 27 items researching the aspects mentioned above. The
authors have extended the studies, especially at an empiric level, to various contexts (Ruiz Quintanilla & Wilpert, 1991), for example, Israel (Harpaz, 1988;
Cinemon & Hellman, 2006). The MOW questionnaire was also used in Spain,
adapted to Castilian Spanish and validated by a research group from the Universidad de Valencia (Gracia et al., 1995; Salanova, 1992). It was used by various
authors (Garca Martnez & Berrios, 1999; Gracia, Martn, Rodrguez y Peir,
2001; Zacars, Ruiz-Alfonso y Llinares, 2004; Moriano et al., 2006).
This group (MOW, 1987) emphasises that the most important result of work is
income (35% of responses) and, secondly, its interesting and satisfactory nature
(19.5%). It did not find any significant differences between men and women.
As for work aims or values, an interesting job and learning were the most appreciated by both sexes, followed by a good salary, i.e. they tended to prefer more
intrinsic aspects, which also correlates with greater initiative in work. There were
also no differences regarding age. Though some authors, like Claes (1987), who
belongs to the MOW group, emphasise that the youngest prefer instrumental
values because they lack financial security and the oldest prefer expressive or
intrinsic values, something also often noticed in persons with a higher level of
training. Concerning the sex variable, Salanova et al. (1991) reviewed several
2009 The Author. Journal compilation 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
443
studies carried out to date in which it is claimed that women give more importance
to social and emotional aspects at work, whilst men give it to salaries, promotion
and independence.Yet, as already pointed out, the MOW Group did not find these
distinctions.
Gracia et al. (2001) carried out a longitudinal research (at intervals of 6
months, one and then two years) on two groups totalling 238 youths on their first
jobs (clerks and metal workers).The results indicate that the different components
of the meaning of work vary in different degrees with time, i.e. as work progresses,
less importance is given to work in itself, while extrinsic values of work (mainly
monetary) increase. This is often linked with work precariousness and instability.
The fact is that security is often related with work satisfaction and intrinsic work
values, as may be seen in a study with hired teachers (greater esteem for money)
and permanent teachers (greater esteem for intrinsic values) carried out by Feather
& Rauter (2004). Hattrup, Ghorpade & Lackritz (2007), in trans-cultural work
with 1,882 university students from Ecuador, Germany, the Indies, Mexico and
USA, found a positive correlation between the value of collectivism and centrality
at work, but it was not significantly different in the five countries. These data are
similar to those found in the work of Hansstrm & Kjellberg (2007) in which
centrality is greater among nurses than engineers and especially among women,
who defend the value of altruism.
Schwartz (1999) linked domains with the work values of the MOW (1987)
group. Thus, intrinsic values are coherent with independence and hedonism, but
conflict with the values of conservatism. Extrinsic values are compatible with the
latter and with power, but not with independence and hedonism. Social values are
congruent with universalism and benevolence, but conflict with power and competitiveness (Schwartz, 1999; Roe, Schwartz & Surkiss, 1999).
Method
Participants
The sample is made up of 374 university students (283 women and 91 men) with
different specialities in Teaching (first year): Musical Education, Primary Education, Physical Education, Hearing and Language, Education, Foreign Language,
Special Education; and 2 cycle in Psychopedagogy. All are from the Faculty of
Education in Zaragoza in which we teach (see Table I).
Men
Women
Total
Musical Education
Primary Education
Physical Education
Hearing and Language Education
Foreign Language
Special Education
Psychopedagogy
9
12
56
0
7
4
3
24
58
34
3
52
89
23
33
70
90
3
59
93
26
Total
91
283
374
444
Results
Objective I. Knowing work values from Schwartzs perspective
Hypothesis I. Students favour values of benevolence and universalism as well as authority
and achievement. Regarding the first objective, i.e. knowing the profile of students
work values following the theory of Schwartz, it can be observed that the most
representative are benevolence and universalism, and the least are fulfilment and
authority, as shown in Table II. The hypothesis is therefore fulfilled.
For an in-depth description of the objective, a correlation was carried out
between domains, of which the most relevant were highlighted. The domain of
benevolence positively correlated with universalism (.280), security (.126), conformity (.286) and tradition (.261), but negatively with achievement (.111) and
authority (.183). The domain of universalism correlated positively with benevolence (.280) and self-direction (.202), and negatively with authority (.119). The
domain of achievement correlated positively with self-direction (.178), stimulation (.229), hedonism (.336), authority (.548), security (.306) and conformity
(.103), and negatively with benevolence (.111). The domain of authority correlated positively with self-direction (.178), stimulation (.186), hedonism (.236),
achievement (.548) and security (.174), and negatively with benevolence (.183)
2009 The Author. Journal compilation 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
445
Minimum
Maximum
Mean
Benevolence
Universalism
Self-direction
Hedonism
Stimulation
Security
Conformity
Tradition
Fulfilment
Authoriy
2.5
2.8
2
2
1.3
1.3
1
1
1
0
6.5
8.67
8
8.2
6.3
5.8
6
5.5
6
5.3
4.83
4.72
4.63
4.45
4.06
3.81
3.78
3.28
3.27
2.31
and universalism (.119). Likewise, when a factorial analysis was carried out in
order to find the relation between the 10 domains, the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin
(KMO) test was first carried out, whose value is 0.655, relatively close to the
unit, which indicates the exactitude of our data (see Table III).
Chi-cuadrado
Gl
Sig.
.655
645.913
45
.000
From here, a matrix of components is proposed and 3 appear (see Figure 1). In
the first, self-direction, stimulation, hedonism, achievement, authority and security
positively correlate with one another. In the second, benevolence and universalism
positively correlate with security, conformity and tradition. And in the last, benevolence and universalism positively correlate with self-direction, stimulation and
hedonism. Generally, two groups of values and domains were observed: one,
universalism, benevolence, tradition, conservation and security; and the other,
achievement, authority, hedonism, stimulation and self-direction. However,
benevolence and universalism positively correlate with security, conformity and
tradition, as well as with self-direction, stimulation and hedonism, though far more
with the first three.
Objective II. Knowing work values according to the MOW perspective
Hypothesis II.The work value with the highest grade is that of having an interesting job,
especially among women. The values that obtain the highest scores are those related
with working in an interesting job, good interpersonal relations, job stability and
opportunities to learn new things.The following subsequently appear from highest
to lowest, in that order: good physical work conditions, a good balance between work
2009 The Author. Journal compilation 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
446
CO
SE
TR
Componente 2
0,9
0,6
BE
0,3
LO
AU
UN
HE
AD ES
0,0
-0,3
-0,6
-0,9
-0,9 -0,6
-0,3 0,0
0,3
0,6
Component
e1
0,9
-0,
-0, -0, 9
6
0,3 0,0 3
0,9 0,6
te 3
onen
Comp
447
Average
Typical
deviation
Sig.
Men
Women
Total
91
281
372
4.04
4.20
4.16
.815
.759
.775
2.902
.089
Good interpersonal
relationships (with
supervisors and colleagues)
Men
Women
Total
91
281
372
4.19
4.31
4.28
.815
.726
.750
1.743
.188
Men
Women
Total
90
280
370
3.64
3.50
3.54
.865
.794
.813
2.050
.153
Appropriate schedule
Men
Women
Total
91
280
371
3.92
3.81
3.84
.957
.793
.837
1.320
.251
Variety
Men
Women
Total
91
275
366
3.45
3.18
3.25
.820
.846
.847
7.190
.008*
Men
Women
Total
91
281
372
4.49
4.54
4.53
.673
.659
.662
.391
.532
Men
Women
Total
91
280
371
4.25
4.20
4.21
.754
.715
.724
.363
.547
Men
Women
Total
91
281
372
3.74
3.94
3.89
.743
.753
.755
4.863
.028*
Good salary
Men
Women
Total
91
280
371
3.99
3.67
3.75
.901
.738
.792
11.612
.001**
Men
Women
Total
90
281
371
3.94
3.93
3.93
.798
.794
.794
.026
.871
Men
Women
Total
91
280
371
3.77
3.63
3.66
.955
.815
.852
1.874
.172
Men
2.185
.140
91
3.77
.908
Women
280
3.61
.856
Total
371
3.65
.870
Men
Women
Total
91
281
372
2.64
2.26
2.35
.901
.761
.812
15.425
Possibilities of innovation
(doing new things)
Men
Women
Total
91
281
372
3.53
3.56
3.55
.861
.800
.814
.125
Acknowledgement (gaining of
social prestige and
admiration from others)
Men
Women
Total
91
280
371
3.19
2.80
2.90
1.032
.991
1.014
10.059
.000**
.724
.002**
448
Overage
Typical
deviation
Sig.
13.674
10.107
11.296
15.645
.000
Men
Women
Total
87
272
359
30.29
24.89
26.20
Men
Women
Total
87
272
359
11.580
10.794
10.985
9.0611
7.7741
8.0986
.621
.431
My job
Men
Women
Total
87
272
359
18.05
18.96
18.74
9.840
9.640
9.683
.591
.443
Men
Women
Total
87
272
359
6.65
7.32
7.16
8.093
6.839
7.157
.584
.445
My family
Men
Women
Total
87
272
359
33.44
38.00
36.89
14.453
14.151
14.339
6.773
.010
(.459) and between authority and power (.354) may be highlighted, the correlation
is not very high in either of the two cases (see Table VI).
Fulfilment
Authority
.267
.217
.377
.459
.251
.308
.354
.292
449
450
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