Living the Good (Work) Life: Implications of General Values for Work Values
Advances in the understanding of general values from personality and social psychology apply to work values. In this paper, I introduce the concepts of values, value priorities, motivational goals, value types, and personal value systems used to clarify work values. I also introduce the terms basic and broad value and work value types. Second, I organize O*NET work values with Schwartz's 1992 structural model of general values and discuss the implications. Third, I discuss issues to consider when addressing work values, such as life roles, developmental levels, work and life experiences as well as context and cultural variables. Fourth, I conclude the article by providing student learning outcomes about work values for career advising.
Contributor Notes
Aaron H. Carlstrom, PhD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Special Education, Counseling, and Student Affairs at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas, where he serves on the faculty for the graduate programs in academic advising. Dr. Carlstrom earned his PhD in counseling psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. His research interests focus on the career development of students in middle school through college. He has been a member of NACADA since 2009. Dr. Carlstrom can be reached at acarlstr@k-state.edu.
