Peter E. Mudrack

TL;DR: In this article, gender socialization theory hypothesizes gender differences in ethics variables whether or not individuals are full-time employees; occupational socialization hypothesizes the gender similarity in employees, and the conflicting hypotheses were investigated using questionnaire responses from a sample of 308 individuals.

Abstract: We argue that because conventional organizational controls have limited relevance for temporary employees, work ethic values may be a critical predictor of employee perseverance and commitment. A field study was conducted to examine the relationships between belief in the work ethic, job attitudes, intentions to quit, and turnover in a sample of temporary service employees in a large Canadian theme park. When turnover was measured as a function of remaining employed with the organization until the end of the season, the turnover rate was 10% for high work ethic employees versus 33% for low work ethic employees (X2[1, N = 128] =9.57, p Although research on the Protestant work ethic (PWE) has declined over the years, some of the earliest research on work values involved the relationship between belief in the work ethic and job attitudes (Aldag & Brief, 1975; Blood, 1969). The relationship between the PWE and work attitudes and behaviour is a topic that continues to be taken seriously by managers, scholars, and policy makers (Nord, Brief, Atieh, & Doherty, 1988), and continues to be an area of interest among those involved in research (Furnham, 1990a, 1990b, 1990c; Furnham & Koritsas, 1990). Furthermore, in recent years, a number of investigators have expressed concern that the work ethic may be changing or eroding (Cherrington, 1980; Ravlin & Meglino, 1987; Spence, 1985). Others have argued that the work ethic is alive and well (Furnham, 1990c), and have suggested that it is worthwhile to find out if work values are linked to behaviours such as job performance, turnover, and absenteeism (Shapira & Griffith, 1990). In the present study, we are particularly interested in the relationships between the work ethic and attitudes and behaviours among individuals holding temporary employment. Both scholars and practitioners have noted the increasing trend toward short-term employment relationships, what Fortune refers to as the "contingency workforce," where individuals agree to work with an employer on specific assignments for a limited period (Fierman, 1994; Pfeffer & Baron, 1988; Troy, 1990). Whereas longterm employment is often associated with a variety of benefits that provide security and help wed the individual to the employer, short-term appointments are often associated with simple economic exchanges. Under such conditions, employees are less likely to be motivated by traditional organizational control systems (e.g., promotions, supervision) and are more likely to be motivated by personal needs, desires, and dispositions. This may be especially true in service industries, such as the one studied here, where the relevance of traditional control systems to the management of the service-client interface is inherently limited (Bowen & Schneider, 1988). We regard the work ethic as a critical personal attribute that may strongly predict the propensity of temporary workers to identify with their work in the absence of effective organizational controls. Work Ethic Research Belief in the work ethic has been conceptualized as an individual difference variable that is acquired early in life and can exert a profound influence on the development of adult work attitudes and behaviours. According to Cherrington (1980), belief in the work ethic "has been defined very narrowly to refer to a positive attitude about work-a belief that work itself is important and that doing a good job is essential" (p. 19). Individuals who endorse the PWE have been described as having conservative attitudes and endorsing values of achievement, equity, obedience, salvation, cleanliness, security, and politeness (Furnham, 1990c; Furnham & Koritsas, 1990). …

TL;DR: In this article, adults in small groups evaluated their peers' functional role behaviors (i.e., task, maintenance, individual) in classroom settings, and three role categories generally emerged from these group ratings and were interrelated as predicted.

TL;DR: The authors explored the connections between four PWE components and three multidimensional work variables: time structure and purpose, work locus of control, and Type A behavior, and found that only the PWE Hard Work facet correlated with structured and purposive time, and with internal work co-ordination.

TL;DR: This article explored the psychometric properties of ten workplace behaviors of a dubious ethical nature and determined that the hierarchical position adopted by respondents influenced the perceived acceptability of these behaviors. But, they did not examine the role of individual difference variables as correlates of perceived acceptance.