Operationalizing value importance in cross-cultural research: Comparing direct and indirect measures

Abstract

This research compared direct and indirect operationalizations of work value importance across 25 nations using data from the Work Orientations 11 Module of the International Social Survey Program (ISSP). Respondents provided direct ratings of the extent to which each of seven work goals was subjectively important to them. They also rated their satisfaction with each of the same work goals and with their jobs overall. Thus, an indirect operationalization of work value importance was formed from the empirical relationships between satisfaction with each work goal and overall job satisfaction. As expected, results showed that conclusions drawn about cross-cultural differences depended on the method used for operationalizing work values. Implications of the results for the interpretation of cross-cultural differences are discussed.

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