A LONGITUDINAL INVESTIGATION OF INTEREST CONGRUENCE AND GENDER CONCENTRATION AS PREDICTORS OF JOB SATISFACTION

Abstract

Based on a rationale derived from discrepancy theories of job satisfaction, person‐environment congruence was examined for its prediction of job satisfaction among college graduates over a 7‐year period. Data were from university records and a survey of 253 graduates who were employed full time. Congruence of the students’college majors and their jobs predicted their subsequent job satisfaction regardless of whether this congruence was a perceptual or a more objective measure, while congruence between the interests the participants expressed on an interest inventory (the Strong‐Campbell Interest Inventory) during their freshman orientation did not. A three‐way interaction of gender, gender concentration of Occupation, and interest congruence predicting job satisfaction was hypothesized. Although a three‐way interaction was significant, it was not as predicted. Potential explanations involving the nature of decisions involving college majors and jobs and the stage of career development of participants are discussed.