Expanding Links Between Work Values and Occupations: Development of the Occupational Values Inventory (OVI)

This research developed the Occupational Values Inventory (OVI), a 30-item measure that expands the content coverage of work values by linking into a broad range of O*NET occupational descriptors, including Work Activities and Work Contexts, along with salary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The OVI assesses 11 work values— Interpersonal , Outdoor , Physical , Leadership , Salary , Prestige , Variety , Interest , Work Hours , Knowledge Utilization , and Autonomy —providing an updated and refined coverage of work values relevant to people and occupations in the modern labor market. Study 1 ( N = 768) developed and refined the OVI’s scales using conceptual and psychometric criteria, also reporting initial evidence in support of reliability and validity. Studies 2 and 3 further evaluated the reliability and criterion-related validity of the OVI based on longitudinal samples of recent graduates from universities ( N = 816) and community colleges ( N = 560). OVI scales and profiles were correlated with occupational aspirations and choice; work value fit with O*NET occupations correlated with subjective career outcomes including career choice satisfaction. The OVI can provide objective assessment of work values fit between people and a wide range of occupations, and may be used in a range of vocational research and applied settings.