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Gender differences in job orientation: the case of Poland

Robert Frankel (University of North Florida, Florida, USA)
Joseph Tomkiewicz (East Carolina University, North Carolina, USA)
Tope Adeyemi‐Bello (East Carolina University, North Carolina, USA, and)
Mariusz Sagan (Marie Curie Sklowska University, Warsaw, Poland)

Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal

ISSN: 1352-7606

Article publication date: 1 July 2006

1781

Abstract

Purpose

This survey‐based study examines gender‐based perspectives of job orientation, expectations, and motivations in the country of Poland.

Design/methodology/approach

Polish professionals were asked to rate 25 job characteristics according to their importance to the rater on a five‐point scale (5 = very important, 1 = not important). Mean scores were calculated and rank ordered for males and females separately. Two‐tailed t‐tests between male and female scores for each item tested for significant differences. A principle components factor analysis with rotation by the varimax method was performed on the correlation matrix of the 25 job characteristics.

Findings

Results show that males and females differ on 15 of the 25 job characteristics. Standard deviations of the importance ratings were examined. They were higher for males on 21 of 25 items, with a mean standard deviation of 0.96 for males and 0.87 for females. A paired t‐test ((1−(2 = 0)) resulted in rejecting the null hypothesis (p ≤ 0.001). Thus, for the respondents in this study, females as a group are significantly more homogeneous than are the males. Results of factor analysis with orthogonal rotation by the varimax method produced three factors of eigenvalues greater than 1.5, accounting for 37.3 per cent of the total variance. Factor I accounted for 17.9 per cent of the total variance and includes six job characteristics related to long term career objectives. Factor II deals with characteristics which can be classified as intellectual activity and explained 12.7 per cent of the total variance. Factor III included four characteristics related to structure and accounted for 6.7 per cent of the variance.

Research limitations/implications

It would be worthwhile to extend the survey in the future to address three key issues: 1 – group respondents by years of service, for example, less than 5 years, more than 10 years, and so forth; 2 – control for salary levels; 3 – adjust for changes in the unemployment rate.

Practical implications

This research indicates that even though money is an important motivator (number 1 for males and number 5 for females), there are certainly other methods of motivation beyond financial ones. This is particularly significant for foreign corporations investing in Poland. Such knowledge should provide organizations that use it as a competitive advantage not tied exclusively to monetary outlays.

Originality/value

Poland is a developing economy which many observers believe is the most attractive emerging market in the expanding European Union. As such, the findings here should help organizations, both endogenous and exogenous, attract and retain employees.

Keywords

Citation

Frankel, R., Tomkiewicz, J., Adeyemi‐Bello, T. and Sagan, M. (2006), "Gender differences in job orientation: the case of Poland", Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal, Vol. 13 No. 3, pp. 193-203. https://doi.org/10.1108/13527600610683345

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2006, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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