Research article published in the Journal of Vocational Education Research
(JVER) Volume 20 - Number 4 - 1995
A New
Look at Selected Employability Skills: A Factor Analysis of the Occupational
Work Ethic
Abstract
| Overview | Method |
Findings| Conclusions | References
Roger B. Hill, Ph.D.Associate Professor
rbhill@arches.uga.edu
Gregory C. Petty, Ph.D. Professor
gpetty@.utk.edu
Abstract
This study was conducted to identify key themes which characterize
the occupational work ethic. The constructs derived provide a research-based
guide for development of instructional materials and activities to encourage
employability skills related to work ethic. The factors identified also will
serve as a basis for further refining the Occupational Work Ethic Inventory
(OWEI) used to gather data in this study.
A factor analysis was performed on data collected from 1,151
respondents using the OWEI. Participants in the study consisted of workers
from a broad cross-section of occupations. A four factor solution was interpreted
consisting of interpersonal skills, initiative, being dependable,
and a factor comprised of negative descriptors included on the instrument.
Recommendations were provided for making practical use of these factors.
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A New Look at Selected Employability
Skills: A Factor Analysis of the Occupational Work Ethic
As the year 2000 approaches, the human race is reflecting on
the past and anticipating the future. With the approach of this milestone,
the enterprise of preparation for work and the role schools play in that process
has not escaped scrutiny. The SCANS Report for America 2000 (Secretary's
Commission, 1991) is just such an example. This document identified a three-part
foundation employers expect schools to develop in students--basic skills (reading,
writing, mathematics, listening, and speaking), thinking skills (creative
thinking, making decisions, solving problems, visualization, learning to learn,
and reasoning), and personal qualities (individual responsibility, self-esteem,
sociability, self-management, and integrity).
Schools have recently focused considerable attention on improved
instruction of basic skills and thinking skills, but addressing the issue
of personal qualities has been a special challenge to most who have considered
it. This area of emphasis is broadly referred to as employability skills.
Lankard (1990) defined employability skills as including personal image, interpersonal
skills, and good habits and attitudes. With respect to work attitudes, the
concept of work ethic is related to the desirable characteristics for
a potential employee (Custer & Claiborne, 1991; Hill, 1992). In essence,
the employability skills needed for the high-performance workplace are a tangible
expression of the underlying work ethic, often mentioned in contemporary conversation
but seldom clearly defined.
The work ethic is a cultural norm that advocates being personally
accountable and responsible for the work that one does and is based on a belief
that work has intrinsic value (Cherrington, 1980; Colson & Eckerd, 1991;
Quinn, 1983; Yankelovich & Immerwahr, 1984). The work ethic, as we know
it today, is a secularized construct derived from Weber's (1904, 1905) Protestant
work ethic (PWE) theory. The PWE, asserting that Calvinist theology encouraged
accumulation of wealth, has been widely used as an explanation for the success
of capitalism in Western society. Over the years, however, attitudes and beliefs
supporting hard work have blended into the norms of Western culture, and are
no longer attributable to a particular religious sect (Lipset, 1990; Rodgers,
1978; Rose, 1985). The elements of work ethic that are of greatest significance
in the preparation of people for work are the attitudes and behaviors ascribed
to work ethic rather than a sectarian belief system that inculcates these
characteristics. Those elements are the focal point for this study.
Work ethic is an often mentioned attribute employers want
their employees to have, but one they often say is hard to find. Boardman
(1994) reported the efforts in one community in response to employer complaints
that they were "unable to locate employees who were reliable, drug-free, motivated,
and possessing a work ethic." In response to the problem, programs were established
to provide technical preparation, apprenticeships, Partners in Education projects,
curriculum review, mentoring programs, and employability certification. Five
years later, however, employers still said they were unable to find a dependable
work force.
Again and again work ethic and employability skills are listed
as something needed for job success and are an area that schools in general
and vocational education programs specifically are expected to address. Efforts
in this area, however, often fail or fall short of anticipated outcomes. The
study reported herein is based on the premise that while educators recognize
the need to include work ethic in the curriculum of the school, research-based
guidance to target key concepts for instruction has not been adequately provided.
The task of addressing such an ethereal construct as work
ethic cannot be successfully undertaken without clear objectives to guide
instruction. The basis for these objectives should not be anecdotes or opinions;
this only invites controversy in today's eclectic communities. The basis for
work ethic and work attitudes instruction and the content for related instructional
materials should be derived from sound research which has examined the characteristics
of successful workers in the real world of work.
Previous research has identified numerous affective characteristics
considered desirable for working people. Beech, Kazanas, Sapko, Sisson, and
List (1978) identified 63 affective work competencies considered important
by industry leaders and educators and clustered them into 15 categories. Petty
(1993), building on the line of research conducted by Kazanas (1978), identified
50 work ethic descriptors and developed the Occupational Work Ethic Inventory
(OWEI). The OWEI was used to gather data for the study reported here and provided
a well-grounded basis for identifying key characteristics for success at work.
This study, as well as the line of research on which it was
built, concentrated on the characteristics or outcomes expected of a person
who embraces the work ethic. The stem used on the OWEI, At work I can describe
myself as:, frames the responses for 50 descriptive terms contained in
the instrument. The items which serve as a basis for the OWEI would likely
be desirable personal traits in any circumstance, but the instrument makes
a clear connection between the items and work, therein casting responses within
the purview of employability skills or occupational work ethic attributes.
The purpose of this study was to condense the collective meanings
of the 50 OWEI descriptors into a manageable list of the key themes which
characterize the occupational work ethic, using data derived from the contemporary
workplace. The practical intent was to provide a concise list of concepts
upon which to base work ethic and employability skills instruction and to
provide a basis for refining the OWEI itself. The research question developed
to guide the process of the study was "What factors embody the key themes
which comprise the work ethic in the contemporary workplace?"
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Method
Subjects
The population for this study consisted of workers in public
and private businesses and industries in a single geographic area in the southeastern
United States. The boundaries of the study were limited to control costs and
to maximize the rate of return. To provide a mechanism through which to gather
data from a broad range of occupations, participants in the study were selected
through their place of work. A master database of 1,011 businesses and industries
was compiled using the white pages of telephone directories for the communities
involved in the study along with industrial and business directories provided
through chambers of commerce.
A random sample of 285 (Krejcie and Morgan, 1970) was selected
from the master database of businesses and industries using a random number
generator. The sample was sorted by geographic location and efforts were made
to contact each firm to request participation in the study. Persons from a
total of 158 (55.4%) firms agreed to take part in the research. Of the remaining
firms, 62 (21.8%) were either cross-listed, out-of-business, or not actually
located within the bounds of the study. The other 65 (22.8%) did not accept
the invitation to participate.
In most instances a manager or owner was selected as the contact
person for firms participating in the study. Contact was made with this person
to determine how many instruments would be needed and copies of the OWEI were
counted and distributed. A total of 1,840 instruments were delivered and 1,151
(62.6%) completed instruments were collected over a two month period of time.
Frequency counts for respondents grouped by gender, age, and full-time work
experience are provided in Table 1.
Table 1.
Frequency Counts for Respondents by Gender, Age, and Full-Time
Work Experience.
Design and Instrumentation
The research design used in this study was ex-post facto with
data collected using the survey method. The instrument used to collect data
in this study was the Occupational Work Ethic Inventory (OWEI). Petty (1993)
developed the OWEI to provide a succinct, but accurate measure of work ethic
endorsement by building on extensive prior research related to work ethic.
A panel of experts was used to select the list of items included on the instrument
and the process followed was similar to one used by Kazanas (1978) in his
development of the Affective Work Competencies Inventory and reported by Petty
and others (Petty, Kazanas, & Eastman, 1981).
The OWEI has been used in previous studies by Hatcher (1995),
Hill (1992), Petty & Hill (1994), and Petty (1995). The correlation alpha
for the instrument has ranged from .90 (Hatcher, 1995) to .95 (Hill, 1992)
in previous use. The 50 items contained on the OWEI represented key work ethic
and work attitude concepts identified from previous research. The instrument
used a stem of At work I can describe myself as:, followed by the following
scale for rating their standards for each item: 1 = Never; 2 = Almost
Never; 3 = Seldom; 4 = Sometimes; 5 = Usually; 6
= Almost Always; and 7 = Always. This scaling is similar to
that recommended by Nunnally (1978). The Likert scale responses for each OWEI
item provided the raw data for this study.
To derive a concise list of explanatory constructs from the
responses collected, a factor analysis was completed. This process was similar
to that used in a study by Petty (1995) and was implemented to address the
research question developed to guide the study. Factor analysis is a technique
for achieving parsimony by identifying the smallest number of descriptive
terms to explain the maximum amount of common variance in a correlation matrix
(Tinsley & Tinsley, 1987). The descriptive terms generated encompass the
meaning of the 50 items within a shorter, more practicably useful list.
Data Analysis
To extract the initial factors, a principal-components analysis
was used. To eliminate error variance that would be included along with common
variance and specific variance at this stage, Kaiser's criterion was applied
prior to factor rotation, thus retaining only those factors with an eigenvalue
of 1.0 or greater. Orthogonal rotation using a Varimax procedure was employed
in this study to minimize the number of loadings on a factor, thus simplifying
its structure and making it more interpretable. Extracted factors were examined
and named based on an analysis of the instrument items which loaded on each
one.
Using squared multiple correlations as the initial communality
estimates, principal-components analysis of the data yielded 4 factors which
met the Kaiser's criterion to be retained. Generating factor solutions with
a greater number of factors resulted in some which had an eigenvalue which
was less than 1. A scree test was performed and it also supported a four-factor
solution. To further refine and focus the results, however, orthogonal rotation
using a Varimax procedure was used. The factor matrix produced by this process
provided a meaningful and concise list of constructs representative of the
items included on the OWEI.
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In response to the research question developed to guide this
study, a four-factor solution was identified after careful analysis of the
data. For three of the factors, a label which captured a key work ethic or
employability skills construct was identified after examining the items which
loaded on each factor; the labels chosen were interpersonal skills, initiative,
and being dependable. The fourth factor consisted of items on the
instrument which had been reversed.
In interpreting the items which loaded on each factor, the
.30 level is a generally accepted minimum factor loading because it indicates
that approximately 10% of the variance for a corresponding variable has been
explained by a factor (Tinsley & Tinsley, 1987). Using this criteria,
the four factors collectively explained 48 of the 50 items contained on the
OWEI and accounted for 38.86% of the total variance. The end result was a
manageable list of factors which embody the meaning of the items on the OWEI
and can be used to provide a practical focus for efforts to influence or assess
key work ethic characteristics.
Factor 1. Interpersonal skills. This factor
was comprised of items related to working relationships with other people.
The descriptors which loaded here included personal characteristics which
would facilitate good interpersonal relationships and would contribute to
job performance in a setting where cooperation was important. Table 2 provides
factor loadings, item means, standard deviations, and the actual items which
loaded on this factor.
Table 2.
Variable Loadings and Item Means for OWEI Factor 1: Interpersonal
Skills.
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Conclusions and Recommendations
Based on the results of this study, constructs were identified
and labelled which provided a concise definition of those work ethic attributes
measured by the OWEI. Examination of the instrument items which loaded on
factors representative of these constructs resulted in three of them being
labelled interpersonal skills, initiative, and being dependable.
A fourth factor, consisting of items which had been reversed during construction
of the OWEI, was interpreted as a response pattern that emerged as a result
of the negative perceptions communicated by these descriptors.
The work ethic factors identified in this study provide a
research-based guide for educators who are endeavoring to prepare students
for the transition from school to work. School curriculum should be examined
to determine if and how these issues are being addressed. While there may
not be specific "lessons" or "assignments" dedicated to these items, a conscious
effort should be made to address these constructs and their relevance to the
workplace wherever possible in the learning processes of the school.
Several specific suggestions are offered for consideration
by vocational educators. One of the ways students can be encouraged to consider
their own work ethic is by being administered the OWEI. The instrument can
then be scored, not for purposes of testing students, but as a launching point
for discussing work ethic and the various aspects of this concept that are
important for success in work. Figure 1 provides an example scoring sheet
which could be used for this activity.
Figure 1.
Occupational Work Ethic Inventory Scoresheet
In the blank beside each item, write your answer from the
OWEI. The items are grouped by categories of work ethic characteristics for
discussion purposes. Total the answers for each category and divide by the
number indicated to determine a score for each.
Factor 1
_______ 17. appreciative
_______ 22. patient
_______ 28. likeable
_______ 29. helpful
_______ 31. pleasant
_______ 32. cooperative
_______ 33. hard working
_______ 37. cheerful
_______ 41. devoted
_______ 42. courteous
_______ 43. considerate
_______ 46. well groomed
_______ 47. friendly
_______ 48. loyal
_______ 50. modest
_______ Total
_______ Score (total divided by 15)
Factor 2
_______ 5. independent
_______ 6. ambitious
_______ 7. effective
_______ 10. initiating
_______ 11. perceptive
_______ 14. efficient
_______ 15. adaptable
_______ 18. accurate
_______ 20. conscientious
_______ 27. persevering
_______ 35. orderly
_______ 36. enthusiastic
_______ 38. persistent
_______ 40. dedicated
_______ 45. productive
_______ 49. resourceful
________ Total
_______ Score (total divided by 16)
Factor 3
_______ 1. dependable
_______ 3. following regulations
_______ 4. following directions
_______ 8. reliable
_______ 12. honest
_______ 16. careful
_______ 23. punctual
_______ Total
_______ Score (total divided by 7)
The importance of work ethic should be enunciated, with both
students and colleagues, as
an aspect of preparation for work. A cumulative effort to model and emphasize
appropriate work ethic characteristics can best influence students to embrace
these important skills for the high-performance workplace. Through deliberate
efforts to have conversation about interpersonal skills, initiative,
and being dependable, within the context of all subject matter addressed
in the curriculum, maximum effectiveness can be achieved. The approach here
should not, however, be one of encouraging blind acceptance of these characteristics,
but should rather be a give-and-take exchange of ideas where individual choices
are explored.
Another place these constructs find relevance for vocational
educators is for consideration when making recommendations to potential employers
on behalf of students. Prior research has clearly shown that work ethic is
of concern to employers. The factors identified in this study can guide those
who are asked to evaluate work ethic as a part of the employability skills
needed for success at work.
Educators in all content areas should seek ways to embed consideration
of work ethic throughout the instructional program. For many vocational program
areas, however, opportunities for dealing with work ethic constructs are more
prevalent because of the
nature of the existing curriculum. Vocational education, perhaps more than
some other program areas, utilizes semi-structured and ill-structured problems
within the learning activities presently used. Problems students deal with
are often set by using a case study
or a realistic work environment. Answers may be a choice of many possible
solutions and approaches to solving these problems may differ from person
to person. It is within this setting that work ethic can best be addressed.
Lecturing about the merits of interpersonal skills, initiative,
and being dependable will likely have little lasting impact. Facilitating
a situation where students must mentally grapple with choices about these
issues for themselves, with others, and thereby weigh the merits of these
issues within a social context is likely to have the greatest benefit.
One final consideration for vocational educators is the opportunity
for encouraging development of work ethic through student organizations. These
students groups have sometimes been viewed by others in the school community
strictly as an extracurricular activity; expendable in times of tight budgets
and reduced funding. Conscious recognition and promotion of the educational
significance of these organizations with regard to employability skills should
be a salient strategy for advisors of student organizations.
This study represents another step along a continuum of work
ethic research. Further work is needed to better understand the processes
through which work ethic is inculcated and how schools can successfully integrate
these constructs into the curriculum. These efforts will lead to educational
experiences which address the full range of preparation for work including
not only learning of academic content and problem solving skills, but also
strengthening personal employability skills.
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Copyright©1999. Roger B.Hill, Ph.D
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