This article was downloaded by: [University of North Carolina] On: 10 November 2014, At: 23:57 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK
The Journal of Social Psychology Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vsoc20
Congruence between Personality and Job Characteristics in Alcoholics and Nonalcoholics Marguerite F. Levy
a b c
Stephen Herrington
, Walter Reichman
a b c
&
a b c
a
Research Foundation , City University of New York , USA b
Baruch College, City University of New York , USA
c
Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York , USA Published online: 01 Jul 2010.
To cite this article: Marguerite F. Levy , Walter Reichman & Stephen Herrington (1979) Congruence between Personality and Job Characteristics in Alcoholics and Nonalcoholics, The Journal of Social Psychology, 107:2, 213-217, DOI: 10.1080/00224545.1979.9922701 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00224545.1979.9922701
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities
whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content.
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sublicensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http:// www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions
The Journal of Social Psychology, 1979, 107, 213-217.
CONGRUENCE BETWEEN PERSONALITY AND JOB CHARACTERISTICS I N ALCOHOLICS AND NONALCOHOLICS*’ Research Foundation, C i t y University of .Vew York; Baruch College, C i t y University of N e w York; and Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of N e w York
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
MARGUERITE F. LEVY,WALTERR E I C H M A N , ~ AND STEPHENHERRINCTON SUMMARY Adult male alcoholics (N = 75) and nonalcoholics ( N = 75) were compared on personality characteristics and on the relative match of their characteristics to their jobs. Results of the test battery and interview indicated better matching for nonalcoholics. No typical “alcoholic personality” emerged from the data. Finally, McClelland’s hypothesis that alcoholics would have greater need for power was not confirmed. Instead, alcoholics were found to perceive themselves as having less power than nonal coh olics did. A.
INTRODUCTION
There is much truth in the witticism that nothing is work unless you would rather be doing something else. A major criterion for predicting occupational success and satisfaction has been the congruence between an individual’s abilities, interests, values, and other personality characteristics, and the requirements of the job. Therefore, as one aspect of a larger research project, comparisons have been made between alcoholics and nonalcoholics on personality characteristics and on the relative “fit” of their personality characteristics to their jobs. The question of whether alcoholics differ from nonalcoholics in personal-
* Received in the Editorial Office, Provincetown, Massachusetts, on October 28, 1977. Copyright! 1979, by The Journal Press. This IS an expanded version of a paper presented at the meeting of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, 1977. The research reported here is part of a larger project on career development in alcoholics, funded by Grant 5H 84AA 00736-03 from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to Walter Reichman. * Requests for reprints should be sent to the second author at the address shown at the end of this article. 2 13
2 14
JOURNAL O F SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
ity characteristics has often been raised, but the empirical data do not yet provide a definitive answer (7). In planning this research, we assumed that there was no “alcoholic personality.” We did hypothesize, however, that alcoholics would have poorly-defined self-concepts, and that their poor self-concepts might lead to inappropriate career choices.
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
B.
METHOD
Initially, each S completed a series of self-report questionnaires on demographic information, work history, drinking behavior, and perception of power for each job he had held. S s were then given a battery of tests, and, finally, an open-ended interview. The entire procedure took approximately six hours, and Ss were compensated for their cooperation by a $25 honorarium and a specially prepared individual report on their test results. In selecting tests, the guiding criteria were that, where possible, they be standardized, relatively brief, objectively scored, and have norms for different occupational groups. In addition, measures of need for power and perceived power were included because of their apparent relevance to alcoholism, based upon the work of McClelland and his colleagues (4, 5). This article focuses on the test results and the relative match between personality and job characteristics of the alcoholics and nonalcoholics. 1. Subjects
Seventy-five volunteers from organized alcoholism treatment programs were matched with 75 nonalcoholic control Ss who were also volunteers. All Ss were white males. Experimental and control pairs were matched on age ( 5 3 years), education ( 5 2 years), and marital status. The mean age of the experimental and control groups was 43 (SO = 7.7). The educational distribution of S s ranged from completion of high school through the doctoral level. S s were paired by occupational field according to the Roe scale (6). Their occupations, though not evenly distributed, ranged over a wide variety of fields. 2.
Measures
The following attributes were measured in the indicated manner: (a) A p titude: Wesman Personnel Classification Test, Form A, which yields subscores on verbal reasoning and numerical ability (8). (b) Interests: StrongCampbell Interest Inventory, Form T 325 (2). (c) Personality: Sixteen Personality Factors Questionnaire, Form A (3). (d) Work values: Minnesota Importance Questionnaire which determines preferences for specific job-
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
M. F. LEVY, W. REICHMAN, AND S. HERRINGTON
2 15
related reinforcers (1). (e) Need f o r power: Four Thematic Apperception Test cards (4). (f) Perception of power: Responses to 21 items of the questionnaires which Ss completed for each job. These items, developed for this project and selected on the basis of reliability and discrimination between high and low perception of power, were in the form of self-ratings on a five-point, bipolar scale. Examples of these items are grat@edl frustrated, and worried about tomorrowlsecure about tomorrow. The mean for all jobs each S had held was used as the overall score. (g) Congruence: Difference between an S’s score and the norm for each of his occupations on the Wesman, Strong-Campbell, Sixteen PF, and Minnesota Importance Questionnaire. In addition, a power-discrepancy measure was computed on the basis of the difference between each S’s standardized need for power score and his mean standardized perception of power score.
C. RESULTS Differences between the groups were significant on only two of the absolute test measures. Nonalcoholics scored as more intelligent on the personality test [F (1, 147) = 37.23,p < .002], and they perceived themselves as having had more power across jobs than alcoholics did [F (1, 672) = 65.29,p < .002].3 Among the congruence measures, there were three significant differences. Nonalcoholics were more closely matched to their occupations in interests [F (1, 711) = 20.34, p < .002]; and in work values [F (1, 660) = 11.27, p < .002]. There was also a larger discrepancy between need for power and perceived power among alcoholics [F (1, 662) = 27.30, p < ,0021. D. DISCUSSION In view of the fact that alcoholic subjects in this research were all volunteers from organized treatment programs, the results cannot be interpreted as necessarily applicable to alcoholics in general. Since, however, the Ss did come entirely from such programs as Alcoholics Anonymous, it is especially interesting that no typical “alcoholic personality” emerged. Among professionals working in the area of alcoholism it is widely claimed that all alcoholics who go through formal rehabilitation programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous are molded into a AU probability levels are based on two-tailed tests. Degrees of freedom vary because the number of jobs Ss had held vaned, and also because some of the stones written in response to the TAT cards could not be scored for need for power.
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
2 16
JOURNAL O F SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
common type. Therefore, one would expect that both the amenability of the S s to entering such programs and the effects of the programs might have enhanced any personality similarity among the alcoholic S s . Yet, in spite of these influences, it was still not possible to differentiate the alcoholic from the nonalcoholic S s on personality variables. Other findings which have theoretical relevance are those with regard to need for power and perception of power. Since alcoholics and nonalcoholics were found not to differ in the need for power, it initially appeared that the results were contrary to McClelland’s hypothesis that alcoholism is an expression of a frustrated need for power. When the perception of power was taken into account, however, a significant difference did emerge. The alcoholics, although they had the same need for power as the nonalcoholics, consistently perceived themselves as having had significantly less power than did the nonalcoholics. Although further documentation of these findings will be needed to substantiate this interpretation, it appears that McClelland’s theory may need to be modlfied to indicate that the difference between alcoholics and nonalcoholics is not in need for power, but, rather, in perceived power. Although the aptitudes and personality profiles of the alcoholics were as suitable as those of nonalcoholics for their jobs, discrepancies arose in the domains of interests and work values. In both areas, the alcoholics’ characteristics were significantly less congruent with the job characteristics than were those of nonalcoholics. These results support the hypothesis that the alcoholics were indeed more likely to have been in jobs that were not congruent with their self-concepts.
REFERENCES I.
2. 3.
4.
5. 6. 7.
BORGGN, F H . , WEISS.D. J . . TINSLEY, H . E. A , , DAWIS,R. V . , & LOFQUIST,L. H. The measurement of occupational reinforcer patterns. Minu. Stud. in I“. Rehab., 1968. 25. CAMPBELL, D. P. Hancibook for the Strong Vocational Interest Blank. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford Univ. Press, 1971. CATTELL,R. B . , EBER, H. W.. & TATSUOKA, M . M . Handbook for the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire. Champaign, Ill.: Inst. for Personal. & Abil. Test., 1970. MCCLELLAND, D. C. Power: The Inner Experience. New York: Irvington, 1975. MCCLELLAND, D. C.. DAVIS,W. N . , KALIN, R., & WANNER, E. The Drinking Man. New York: Free Press, 1972. ROE, A . The Psychology of Occupations. New York: Wiley, 1956. ROEBUCK, J. B . , & KESSLER,R. G . The Etiology of Alcoholism. Springfield, Ill.: Thomas, 1972.
M . F . LEVY, W. REICHMAN, A N D S . HERRINGTON 8.
WESMAN, A. G . Wesman Personnel Classification Test Manual. New York Psychological C o p . , 1965.
Department of Psychology Baruch College, City University of New York 1 7 Lexington Avenue New York, New York 10010
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
217
The Journal of Social Psychology Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vsoc20
Congruence between Personality and Job Characteristics in Alcoholics and Nonalcoholics Marguerite F. Levy
a b c
Stephen Herrington
, Walter Reichman
a b c
&
a b c
a
Research Foundation , City University of New York , USA b
Baruch College, City University of New York , USA
c
Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York , USA Published online: 01 Jul 2010.
To cite this article: Marguerite F. Levy , Walter Reichman & Stephen Herrington (1979) Congruence between Personality and Job Characteristics in Alcoholics and Nonalcoholics, The Journal of Social Psychology, 107:2, 213-217, DOI: 10.1080/00224545.1979.9922701 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00224545.1979.9922701
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities
whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content.
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sublicensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http:// www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions
The Journal of Social Psychology, 1979, 107, 213-217.
CONGRUENCE BETWEEN PERSONALITY AND JOB CHARACTERISTICS I N ALCOHOLICS AND NONALCOHOLICS*’ Research Foundation, C i t y University of .Vew York; Baruch College, C i t y University of N e w York; and Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of N e w York
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
MARGUERITE F. LEVY,WALTERR E I C H M A N , ~ AND STEPHENHERRINCTON SUMMARY Adult male alcoholics (N = 75) and nonalcoholics ( N = 75) were compared on personality characteristics and on the relative match of their characteristics to their jobs. Results of the test battery and interview indicated better matching for nonalcoholics. No typical “alcoholic personality” emerged from the data. Finally, McClelland’s hypothesis that alcoholics would have greater need for power was not confirmed. Instead, alcoholics were found to perceive themselves as having less power than nonal coh olics did. A.
INTRODUCTION
There is much truth in the witticism that nothing is work unless you would rather be doing something else. A major criterion for predicting occupational success and satisfaction has been the congruence between an individual’s abilities, interests, values, and other personality characteristics, and the requirements of the job. Therefore, as one aspect of a larger research project, comparisons have been made between alcoholics and nonalcoholics on personality characteristics and on the relative “fit” of their personality characteristics to their jobs. The question of whether alcoholics differ from nonalcoholics in personal-
* Received in the Editorial Office, Provincetown, Massachusetts, on October 28, 1977. Copyright! 1979, by The Journal Press. This IS an expanded version of a paper presented at the meeting of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, 1977. The research reported here is part of a larger project on career development in alcoholics, funded by Grant 5H 84AA 00736-03 from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to Walter Reichman. * Requests for reprints should be sent to the second author at the address shown at the end of this article. 2 13
2 14
JOURNAL O F SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
ity characteristics has often been raised, but the empirical data do not yet provide a definitive answer (7). In planning this research, we assumed that there was no “alcoholic personality.” We did hypothesize, however, that alcoholics would have poorly-defined self-concepts, and that their poor self-concepts might lead to inappropriate career choices.
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
B.
METHOD
Initially, each S completed a series of self-report questionnaires on demographic information, work history, drinking behavior, and perception of power for each job he had held. S s were then given a battery of tests, and, finally, an open-ended interview. The entire procedure took approximately six hours, and Ss were compensated for their cooperation by a $25 honorarium and a specially prepared individual report on their test results. In selecting tests, the guiding criteria were that, where possible, they be standardized, relatively brief, objectively scored, and have norms for different occupational groups. In addition, measures of need for power and perceived power were included because of their apparent relevance to alcoholism, based upon the work of McClelland and his colleagues (4, 5). This article focuses on the test results and the relative match between personality and job characteristics of the alcoholics and nonalcoholics. 1. Subjects
Seventy-five volunteers from organized alcoholism treatment programs were matched with 75 nonalcoholic control Ss who were also volunteers. All Ss were white males. Experimental and control pairs were matched on age ( 5 3 years), education ( 5 2 years), and marital status. The mean age of the experimental and control groups was 43 (SO = 7.7). The educational distribution of S s ranged from completion of high school through the doctoral level. S s were paired by occupational field according to the Roe scale (6). Their occupations, though not evenly distributed, ranged over a wide variety of fields. 2.
Measures
The following attributes were measured in the indicated manner: (a) A p titude: Wesman Personnel Classification Test, Form A, which yields subscores on verbal reasoning and numerical ability (8). (b) Interests: StrongCampbell Interest Inventory, Form T 325 (2). (c) Personality: Sixteen Personality Factors Questionnaire, Form A (3). (d) Work values: Minnesota Importance Questionnaire which determines preferences for specific job-
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
M. F. LEVY, W. REICHMAN, AND S. HERRINGTON
2 15
related reinforcers (1). (e) Need f o r power: Four Thematic Apperception Test cards (4). (f) Perception of power: Responses to 21 items of the questionnaires which Ss completed for each job. These items, developed for this project and selected on the basis of reliability and discrimination between high and low perception of power, were in the form of self-ratings on a five-point, bipolar scale. Examples of these items are grat@edl frustrated, and worried about tomorrowlsecure about tomorrow. The mean for all jobs each S had held was used as the overall score. (g) Congruence: Difference between an S’s score and the norm for each of his occupations on the Wesman, Strong-Campbell, Sixteen PF, and Minnesota Importance Questionnaire. In addition, a power-discrepancy measure was computed on the basis of the difference between each S’s standardized need for power score and his mean standardized perception of power score.
C. RESULTS Differences between the groups were significant on only two of the absolute test measures. Nonalcoholics scored as more intelligent on the personality test [F (1, 147) = 37.23,p < .002], and they perceived themselves as having had more power across jobs than alcoholics did [F (1, 672) = 65.29,p < .002].3 Among the congruence measures, there were three significant differences. Nonalcoholics were more closely matched to their occupations in interests [F (1, 711) = 20.34, p < .002]; and in work values [F (1, 660) = 11.27, p < .002]. There was also a larger discrepancy between need for power and perceived power among alcoholics [F (1, 662) = 27.30, p < ,0021. D. DISCUSSION In view of the fact that alcoholic subjects in this research were all volunteers from organized treatment programs, the results cannot be interpreted as necessarily applicable to alcoholics in general. Since, however, the Ss did come entirely from such programs as Alcoholics Anonymous, it is especially interesting that no typical “alcoholic personality” emerged. Among professionals working in the area of alcoholism it is widely claimed that all alcoholics who go through formal rehabilitation programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous are molded into a AU probability levels are based on two-tailed tests. Degrees of freedom vary because the number of jobs Ss had held vaned, and also because some of the stones written in response to the TAT cards could not be scored for need for power.
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
2 16
JOURNAL O F SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
common type. Therefore, one would expect that both the amenability of the S s to entering such programs and the effects of the programs might have enhanced any personality similarity among the alcoholic S s . Yet, in spite of these influences, it was still not possible to differentiate the alcoholic from the nonalcoholic S s on personality variables. Other findings which have theoretical relevance are those with regard to need for power and perception of power. Since alcoholics and nonalcoholics were found not to differ in the need for power, it initially appeared that the results were contrary to McClelland’s hypothesis that alcoholism is an expression of a frustrated need for power. When the perception of power was taken into account, however, a significant difference did emerge. The alcoholics, although they had the same need for power as the nonalcoholics, consistently perceived themselves as having had significantly less power than did the nonalcoholics. Although further documentation of these findings will be needed to substantiate this interpretation, it appears that McClelland’s theory may need to be modlfied to indicate that the difference between alcoholics and nonalcoholics is not in need for power, but, rather, in perceived power. Although the aptitudes and personality profiles of the alcoholics were as suitable as those of nonalcoholics for their jobs, discrepancies arose in the domains of interests and work values. In both areas, the alcoholics’ characteristics were significantly less congruent with the job characteristics than were those of nonalcoholics. These results support the hypothesis that the alcoholics were indeed more likely to have been in jobs that were not congruent with their self-concepts.
REFERENCES I.
2. 3.
4.
5. 6. 7.
BORGGN, F H . , WEISS.D. J . . TINSLEY, H . E. A , , DAWIS,R. V . , & LOFQUIST,L. H. The measurement of occupational reinforcer patterns. Minu. Stud. in I“. Rehab., 1968. 25. CAMPBELL, D. P. Hancibook for the Strong Vocational Interest Blank. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford Univ. Press, 1971. CATTELL,R. B . , EBER, H. W.. & TATSUOKA, M . M . Handbook for the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire. Champaign, Ill.: Inst. for Personal. & Abil. Test., 1970. MCCLELLAND, D. C. Power: The Inner Experience. New York: Irvington, 1975. MCCLELLAND, D. C.. DAVIS,W. N . , KALIN, R., & WANNER, E. The Drinking Man. New York: Free Press, 1972. ROE, A . The Psychology of Occupations. New York: Wiley, 1956. ROEBUCK, J. B . , & KESSLER,R. G . The Etiology of Alcoholism. Springfield, Ill.: Thomas, 1972.
M . F . LEVY, W. REICHMAN, A N D S . HERRINGTON 8.
WESMAN, A. G . Wesman Personnel Classification Test Manual. New York Psychological C o p . , 1965.
Department of Psychology Baruch College, City University of New York 1 7 Lexington Avenue New York, New York 10010
Downloaded by [University of North Carolina] at 23:57 10 November 2014
217
