Career Satisfaction of Sales Professionals: The Role of Personality

According to P-E fit theory from a vocational psychology perspective (see Holland, 1985), individuals differ in their attitudes, values, beliefs and behaviors, which in turn affect their career choices and their satisfaction with those choices. These differences, collectively termed personality, influence both work and life outcomes. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between personality traits and career satisfaction in a sample of sales professionals. An archival dataset was examined that included the Big Five and other work-related, narrow personality traits, as well as career satisfaction variables. All traits were significantly and positively related to career satisfaction except for Image Management, which was significantly, but negatively related to career satisfaction. The highest correlations were found between the measure of career satisfaction and emotional stability, optimism, and work drive. Implications for career planning and development, and personnel recruitment, selection, and training are discussed, along with future research recommendations

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BROAD AND NARROW PERSONALITY TRAITS AND CHANGE OF ACADEMIC MAJOR

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between personality traits and academic major change in two samples of college undergraduates. Utilizing a field study design, a total number of 859 undergraduates completed an online inventory that included the “Big Five” and other -related, narrow personality traits, as well as academic major change and various demographic variables. A number of expected and unexpected findings emerged. As hypothesized, the traits of Sense of Identity and Extraversion were significantly and negatively related to decisions to change major, but only for certain grade levels. Contrary to expectations, Career Decidedness and Optimism were significantly and positively related to academic major change across groups, regardless of class ranking. When parsing the data by college year, additional and significant relationships appeared. Extraversion and Sense of Identity were positively related to academic major change among freshmen, sophomores and seniors, which was a significant and unexpected finding. Conscientiousness, and Emotional Stability were unrelated to academic major change overall, but were significantly and positively related to students changing major at least one time. Among non-directional hypotheses, Work Drive was negatively associated with academic major change across all groups, as well as among juniors and sophomores. Openness was both positively (sophomores) and negatively (juniors) related to major change. A final analysis that looked at students who changed majors two or more times, both Self-directed Learning and Work Drive significantly and positively correlated with the dependent variable. Both Career Decidedness and Optimism increased the odds of being a major changer in a logistic regression analysis of a residence hall sample. Implications for career planning and advising are discussed, along with future research recommendations

Innovative business, entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship

Innovation is not merely the development of something new, especially in the world today. There are different types of innovation, as well as different ways to apply it. Dr. Nancy Forster-Holt, a professor at the College of Business here at the University of Rhode Island, brought insight to these burning questions during her discussion of innovation in the business world. First, I will discuss the two types of innovation and how they play a part, then I will discuss innovation in the business model, the production process, and the final product itself. I will provide solid examples of forms of innovation, and how they represent innovation in a world where everything has already been thought of

Marriages between American men and Japanese women and the problems these marriages encounter as viewed in Japan

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston Universit

EFFECTS OF A VISUAL BARRIER FENCE ON THE BEHAVIOR AND MOVEMENTS OF BLACK-TAILED PRAIRIE DOGS

Prairie dogs prefer an open view of their surroundings and may abandon an area with visual obstructions. We examined the effects of a visual barrier fence, which had a see-through visibility of 60%, on the foraging, vigilance, and aggressive behaviors of adult female black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) in central Nebraska. We expected animals near a visual barrier to spend more time in vigilance and less time foraging. Adult female prairie dogs exposed to a visual barrier spent a greater amount of time foraging and less time in a headbob position than those not exposed to a fence (P = 0.087, P = 0.015). We also examined changes in prairie dog home ranges and use of an area in response to these visual barrier fences, expecting that prairie dogs would move away from fences over a 54-day period. If they invaded other territories, we expected to see more aggression on colonies with a fence. The size, shape, and location of home ranges and core activity areas of adult females did not change over time as a result of the presence of a visual barrier fence. We observed only 1 act of aggression during the study period. This apparent lack of aggression is likely due to the fidelity of study animals to established home ranges. The number of prairie dogs using areas at various distances from a visual barrier fence also did not change over this time (P \u3e 0.90). These results indicate that the visual barrier fence tested did not cause prairie dogs to be more vigilant and aggressive, nor did it affect their pre-established spatial use within the colony

The Effect of Interactive Multimedia on the Critical Writings of Art History Survey Students

In response to ideological issues that have emerged the last two decades from feminism, multiculturalism and postmodernism, the introductory art history survey is undergoing major revisions not only in structure and content, but also in instructional methodology. Art history professionals and art educators alike are questioning whether pedagogical methods traditionally employed in the survey are adequate for meeting the goals of visual literacy and development of critical and analytical skills. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of supplemental study resources for art history survey students, specifically an interactive multimedia (IM) computer program designed to help students acquire and retain a deeper understanding of works of art. Two research questions were asked: Is IM a more effective instructional format than traditional slide study on achievement measures? Will use of IM impact students' levels of understanding and strengthen and direct their choice of search strategies