Work Values Inventory – WVI
Assesses the perceived importance of 21 job characteristics grouped into comfort and security, competence and growth, and status and independence dimensions.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Work Values Inventory – WVI was developed by Manhardt (1972). It is designed to measure Work Values. The scale is intended for use with Adults / Employees.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 21 items organized into 3 factors/subscales: Comfort and security, Competence and growth, Status and independence.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Comfort and security | 1,2,3,4,5 | 5 |
| Competence and growth | 6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14 | 9 |
| Status and independence | 15,16,17,18,19,20,21 | 7 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 1 = Unimportant, 2 = Slightly Important, 3 = Moderately Important, 4 = Important, 5 = Very Important.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 21 to 105. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low overall work values importance: 21 – 49
- Moderate overall work values importance: 50 – 77
- High overall work values importance: 78 – 105
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of Comfort and security: .63-.72; Competence and growth: .65-.80; Status and independence: .62-.68.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 5 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.