PAY PREFERENCES AND JOB SEARCH DECISIONS: A PERSON-ORGANIZATION FIT PERSPECTIVE

The present study investigated the degree to which pay preferences influenced job search decisions in both hypothetical and actual organizations, and the degree to which preferences for particular compensation attributes depended on job seekers' dispositional characteristics. Based on prior theory and research, we hypothesized that certain pay systems generally would be preferred by job seekers, that these pay systems would affect applicant attraction to organizations, and that different types of job seekers would be attracted to different types of pay systems. The sample comprised 171 college students who were seeking jobs during the study, and who represented six majors, three degree types, and two degree levels. Experimental policy-capturing results and results obtained about actual companies with which the job seekers would potentially interview supported hypotheses that organizations perceived to offer high pay levels, flexible benefits, individual-based pay, and fixed pay policies were more attractive to job seekers. Results further suggested that the attractiveness of these pay policies may be heightened by greater levels of fit between individual personality traits and compensation system characteristics.     

Family Perceptions of Living with Alzheimer's Disease

The purpose of this study was to identify the major themes that 38 multigenerational families emphasized in their conversations about living with Alzheimer's disease. Interviews were conducted with families that were providing home care in the early stages of the disease. Family perceptions were analyzed with the aid of a computer content analysis program. Families emphasized four themes: (a) the awareness that something was “wrong”; (b) the uncertain nature of the diagnosis; (c) excluding a family member; and (d) the ambiguous nature of family life with Alzheimer's disease.     

Paramodeling Effects in Counselor Training

This study was based on the hypothesis that modeling techniques utilized in counselor training may foster unintended and often undetected behaviors in counseling trainees. Samples of counselor trainees viewed either a series of expert modeling or coping modeling video-tapes. Specifically, it was hypothesized that counselor trainees who viewed expert models would illustrate concommitant or paramodeling phenomena by exhibiting a decrease in anxiety toward participation in a counseling interview. Similarly, it was predicted that those who viewed the coping models would demonstrate paramodeling phenomena by exhibiting an increase in tolerance of ambiguity. Results confirmed the hypotheses across the first sample, the cross-validation sample, and both samples combined. Implications regarding counselor training are discussed.     

Career Counseling With Handicapped Persons

This article presents a comprehensive overview of the career counseling process for handicapped persons, with emphasis on developmental differences, assessment techniques, occupational information and exploration, and job placement techniques.