Basic Personal Values and Professional Orientations

Abstract

The aim of this study is to give a theoretical perspective of the relation between the personal values and professional orientation. Studies already showed the relation which exists between the personal values and personality, but some studies have examined how personality correlates to work values, although some researchers have analyzed personality and work satisfaction (Furnham, Forde and Ferrari, 1999). Beukman (2005) refers to Guth et al. (1965), and highlights the relation between values and personality. Guth et al. (1965), summarizes this relationship as follows: “Values are not only closely related to personality, they are part of it, and serve as a guiding system to personality when facing solutions and alternatives, values form  a very consistent personality trait of an individual, especially if some values are clearly dominated by the others”. The professional orientation is the tendency and the behavior that express the individual’s desire to follow or apply a certain profession and these orientations influence the individual’s decision-making process related to the professional orientation (Gerber, Wittekind, Grote & Staffelbach, 2009). It is explained that values are related to personality, work satisfaction, motivation, performance, commitment to the organization, occupational choice (Bergins, de Fruyt and Bouwen, 2004; Furnham, Petrides, Tsaousis, Pappas and Gerrod, 2005; Meglino and Ravlin, 1998).

Keywords: basic personal values, professional orientation, career.