The present study investigates the utility of employing an interdisciplinary set of variables to predict labor force decisions. Comparisons of demographic, economic, high school experience, and psychological-motivational variables indicated that the best prediction of the post-high school plans of 1,074 high school seniors resulted from high school experience variables. However, a combination of the four sets of variables resulted in substantial improvement over any single set of predictors. It is suggested that laborforce behavior can be better understood and predicted if a multidisciplinary approach is utilized.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
ALDERFER, C. P.Existence, relatedness, and growth: Human needs in organizational settings. New York: The Free Press , 1972.
2.
ANDRISANI, P. J. , & NESTEL, G.Internal-external control as contributor to and outcome of work experience . Journal of Applied Psychology, 1976, 61, 156-165 .
3.
BARNES, W. F.Job search models, the duration of unemployment, and the asking wage: Some empirical evidence . Journal of Human Resources, 1975, 10, 230-240 .
4.
BLAU, P. M. , & DUNCAN, O. D.The American occupational structure. New York: Wiley , 1967.
5.
CAMPBELL, D. P.Manual for the Strong-Campbell interest inventory. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press , 1974.
6.
CAMPBELL, D. P. , & HOLLAND, J. L.A merger in vocational interest research; Applying Holland's theory to Strong's data . Journal of Vocational Behavior, 1972, 2, 353-376 .
7.
GOODWIN, L.Do the poor want to work?Washington, D.C.: The Brookings Institution , 1972.
8.
FIELD, H. S. , & SCHOENFELDT, L. F.Development and application of a measure of students' college experiences . Journal of Applied Psychology, 1975, 60, 491-497 .
9.
HACKMAN, J. R. , & OLDHAM, G. R.Development of the Job Diagnostic Survey . Journal of Applied Psychology, 1975, 60, 159-170 .
10.
HALL, D. T.Careers in organizations. Pacific Palisades, Calif.: Goodyear Publishing Co. , 1976.
11.
HERZBERG, F. , MAUSNER, B. , & SNYDERMAN, B.The motivation to work (2nd ed.). New York: Wiley , 1959.
12.
HOLLAND, J. L.Making vocational choices: A theory of careers. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall , 1973.
13.
ILGEN, D. R. , & SEELY, W.Realistic expectations as an aid in reducing voluntary resignations . Journal of Applied Psychology, 1973, 59, 452-455 .
14.
LAWLER, E. E.Motivation in work organizations. Monterey, Calif.: Brooks/Cole , 1974.
15.
LEE, R. , & BOOTH, J. M.A utility analysis of a weighted application blank designed to predict turnover for clerical employees . Journal of Applied Psychology, 1974, 59, 516-518 .
16.
MASLOW, A. H.Motivation and personality (2nd ed.). New York: Harper and Row , 1970.
17.
MURRAY, H. A.Explorations in personality. New York: Oxford University Press , 1938.
18.
NAS Report mixed on NSF social sciences . APA Monitor, 1976, 7, 1-1 .
19.
The national longitudinal surveys handbook. Columbus: Ohio State University Center for Human Resource Research . Author, 1973.
20.
NIE, H. H. , HULL, G. H. , JENKINS, J. G. , STEINBRENNER, K. , & BENT, D. H.Statistical package for the social sciences (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill , 1975.
21.
OWENS, W. A.Toward one discipline of scientific psychology . American Psychologist, 1968, 23, 782-785 .
22.
OWENS, W. A.A quasi-actuarial basis for individual assessment . American Psychologist, 1971, 26, 992-999 .
23.
PARNES, H. S. , & KOHEN, A. I.Occupational information and labor market status: The case of young men . Journal of Human Resources, 1975, 10, 44-55 .
24.
REISS, A. , DUNCAN, O. , HATT, P. , & NORTH, C.Occupations and social status. New York: The Free Press of Glencoe , 1961.
25.
ROSENBERG, M.Society and the adolescent self-image. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press , 1965.
26.
ROTTER, J. B.Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement . Psychological Monographs, 1966, 80 (Whole No. 609).
27.
SHINGLES, R. D.Organizational membership and attitude change. In James A. Caparaso & Leslie L. Roos (Eds.), Quasi-experimental approaches: Testing theory and evaluating policy. Evanston, Ill.: Northwestern University Press , 1973.
28.
SLOAN, F. A. , & RICHUPAN, S.Short-run supply responses of professional nurses: A microanalysis . Journal of Human Resources, 1975, 10, 241-257 .
29.
TATSUOKA, M. M.Discriminant analysis: The study of group differences. Champaign, Ill.: The Institute for Personality and Ability Testing , 1970.
30.
WANOUS, J.Organizational entry. Psychological Bulletin, 1977, in press.
31.
WHITE, J. K. , & JENICKE, L. O.Manpower planning: A macro viewpoint . Proceedings of the 20th Annual Midwest Academy of Management Conference, 1977, pp. 1-11 .
