NCJ Number
86679
Date Published
1981
Length
36 pages
Annotation
This Canadian study is designed to determine whether probationers' employment status, including their ability to obtain and maintain a job, is related to their perception of the attractiveness of work and associated barriers and losses as measured by the Vocational Opinion Index (VOI).
Abstract
A total of 112 probations between the ages of 16 and 24 were administered the VOI by their supervising probation and parole officer. It was found that attractiveness of work was not related to employment status, but it was positively related to age. Persons who are usually unemployed, as well as those who quit or were fired, perceived more barriers to work than those who indicated a previous stable employment record. Those who were unemployed at the time of the study, and who demonstrated a lack of concern about finding a job were found to perceive employment as depriving them of time with family and friends. To reduce perceived barriers to work, employment programs could be enhanced by intensifying the development of job search skills, as well as by reducing anxieties to new situations and people. Creative programming is needed that deals with unemployed clients' reluctance to enter the labor market. The study supports the use of VOI as a diagnostic tool for the selection of different types of employment programs. A total of 13 tables and 17 references are included. (Author abstract modified)