Two prominent models of values, one in work and the other in life, were examined as they each related to the dimensions underlying the Spherical Model of Interests (Tracey & Rounds, 1996) as measured by the Personal Globe Inventory (PGI; Tracey, 2002). The technique of external property vector fitting was utilized to plot the value constructs onto two- and three-dimensional interest structures in a sample of 206 college students. Results, when compared across both theoretical and empirical definitions of interest space, indicated that all work values and fewer basic values related to two dimensions, but that only the work value of Achievement and the life value of Power related to the Prestige dimension. Implications for research and for assessment that involves integrating the results of values and interest inventories are discussed.
The results indicate that especially with work values, there is a large overlap between values and interests as represented by the PGI. All of the work values could be plotted onto the two dimensions of the PGI (using both the empirical and theoretical models). These values primarily resided in the People and Ideas quadrant, except for Recognition, which resided in the People and Data quadrant. This indicates that the interest dimension of Data–Ideas primarily distinguishes Recognition from the other work values. In addition, two of the work values (Recognition and Achievement) were significantly related to Prestige when it was theoretically defined and one (Achievement) when it was empirically defined. Achievement therefore related to Prestige across both definitions.
Basic values were less related to interests overall. Three basic values were related to interests when examining the two-dimensional theoretical structure of the PGI and one when taking account of only Prestige. Power, Security, and Tradition for the most part resided in the People and Data quadrant, with Power being aligned with the Data–Ideas dimension. Power was the only basic value that also related to Prestige. With the empirical model, however, there were more relations in two dimensions. Seven of the values were adequately described using the two-dimensional model, while two values, Power and Hedonism, were also related to Prestige. The relations of the basic values of Achievement, Benevolence, Hedonism, and Universalism to interests were unique to the empirical two-dimensional model, while the relation of Hedonism to Prestige was unique to empirically defined Prestige. Power related to Prestige regardless of the definition used.
Given that the results differed somewhat across theoretical and empirical models, focusing on results that co-occurred across models provided a means of indentifying consistent findings. Using this approach, all six work values and three basic values were identified as relating to interests in the two dimensions of the PGI representing Data–Ideas and People–Things. The addition of the Prestige dimension beyond these two dimensions was only significant for two values, one work (Achievement) and one basic (Power), across both theoretical and empirical models. This approach also allowed the contribution of prestige to be isolated as opposed to considering all three dimensions simultaneously.
The positive association between Achievement and Prestige indicates that higher Prestige interests are associated with the work value of Achievement. In past research, ability, effort, and skill were found to underlie the Prestige component of the PGI (Sodano & Tracey, 2008). Thus, the positive association between Achievement and the Prestige dimension with its underlying meaning is evident given that the use of abilities and gaining a sense of accomplishment are associated with the Achievement work value. However, the negative relation between Prestige and Power indicates that the basic value of Power is being associated with lower Prestige. This lower Prestige construal of Power is thus associated with lower ability, effort, and skill. More specifically, the social power aspect of the Power value is about control or dominance over people and resources (e.g., Schwartz, 1992), which can be viewed as physical power. This may be salient for this sample, which contains a higher number of women than men.
The validity of the findings is increased by considering only results that co-occurred across theoretical and empirical analyses, in addition to employing a statistical criterion as a test of the overlap rather than an arbitrary cutoff criterion. However, it would still be necessary to conduct examinations with a broader sample of undergraduates and even non-college individuals in order to maximize the generalizability of the findings. Further research can explore the relations between career certainty and satisfaction and person–environment congruence for those who possess the values and interests that have been shown to correspond here relative to those that do not.
Implications for assessment are as follows. Since the spatial model of interests provides a good visual representation of interests, the locations of the values can be consulted when the results of interest and value assessments are being integrated. Most work values were associated with interests in people and ideas, while some basic values and one work value were associated with interests in data and people. All work values except for Recognition are to some extent associated with abstract interests (i.e., ideas), while the basic values of Power, Security, and Tradition, plus the work value of Recognition, are to some extent associated with data interests. The three basic values plus the work value of Recognition differ from the remaining work values primarily on the continuum of data to ideas interests. However, all values that overlap with interests except Power are to some extent associated with interests in people. The addition of Prestige showed how work Achievement also related to higher prestige interests and how basic Power also related to lower prestige interests.
This study considered the application of the PGI to work and basic values. Few values were related to just Prestige, but overall many values could be integrated into the Spherical Model of Interests. Therefore, the findings presented here indicate that there are many cases where interest and value constructs overlap. The spatial relations observed between interests and values can aid in conceptualizing these constructs through their relations within an established dimensional model of interests. Further, these observations can be utilized to help inform career assessments that involve integrating results of both types of inventories.
