Masters Thesis

An analysis of the relationship between personal values and average job tenure

Retention of human capital presents a critical challenge to contemporary organizations due to massive costs associated with employee turnover. The goal of the current project was to address the question of how personal values relate to employee turnover behaviors across jobs, individuals, and organizations. We explored relationships between personal values, as defined by Schwartz theory of basic human values, and average job tenure. Using the 57-item version of the Schwartz Value Survey (SVS57), we found that average job tenure related negatively to stimulation values. No support is found for associations between average job tenure and self-direction, conformity, tradition, and security values. This study provides preliminary insights on the utility of personal values in predicting employee turnover. For organizations plagued with the problem of high turnover rates, these findings show promise in using Schwartz Value Survey as a selection tool.

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