Comparing the Protestant work ethic in the employed and unemployed in Australia

There has been considerable variation in suggestions by popular press and academic researchers that the Protestant work ethic (PWE) is on the decline or is changing. Surprisingly, research investigating the relationship between PWE beliefs and work-related variables is relatively recent, yet is impo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of economic psychology 2005-06, Vol.26 (3), p.327-341
Main Authors: Hassall, Stacey L., Muller, Juanita J., Hassall, Emma J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Attitudes to work
Australia
Biological and medical sciences
Comparative analysis
Cultural change
Economic theory
Employees
Employment
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Latent benefits
Manifest benefits
Motivation. Job satisfaction. Attitude
Occupational psychology
Protestant work ethic
Protestantism
Psychological well-being
Psychology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Studies
Unemployed
Unemployment
Values
Work ethic
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Summary:There has been considerable variation in suggestions by popular press and academic researchers that the Protestant work ethic (PWE) is on the decline or is changing. Surprisingly, research investigating the relationship between PWE beliefs and work-related variables is relatively recent, yet is important given its connection with numerous work attitudes and behaviours. Many PWE scales provide a unitary measure of the construct, despite evidence highlighting its multidimensionality. Using a sample of 206 employed and 193 unemployed participants, the present study investigated the relationship between work variables, such as the latent and manifest benefits of employment and specific PWE dimensions, and further sought to determine if these relationships significantly influenced the psychological well-being of these populations. It was found that analysing the separate dimensions of the PWE with the latent and manifest benefits of employment was valuable in better understanding the contribution each has to the psychological well-being of employed and unemployed individuals. Importantly, no differences existed between the employed and unemployed in their commitment to the values of the PWE.
ISSN:0167-4870
1872-7719
DOI:10.1016/j.joep.2004.06.005