THE WORK ETHIC GAP: COMPARING PERCEPTIONS OF STUDENTS, EDUCATORS, AND EMPLOYERS

Work ethic has been a constant, but elusive topic for decades. This study sought to identify the differences in perception of work ethic in between students, educators, and employers. Seventy-two participants observed videos of workers in various tasks and rated the perceived work ethic of the person in the video by using a sliding Likert scale. Additionally, participants were asked to comment as to why they rated the worker the way they did. Quantitative analyses were used to determine differences in the participant’s work ethic ratings. Qualitative analyses interpreted respondents’ comments to better understand the results. Results indicated that while educators assess work ethic with an eye for improvement and effort, employers assess work ethic with a focus on effective and efficient completion of a task. Students lack the experience to judge other’s work ethic consistently.