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Title: An Analysis of Nonpecuniary Job Attributes as Determinants of Workers' Quit Behavior
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Reed, W. Robert
An Analysis of Nonpecuniary Job Attributes as Determinants of Workers' Quit Behavior
Ph.D. Dissertation, Northwestern University, 1985
Cohort(s): NLSY79
Publisher: UMI - University Microfilms, Bell and Howell Information and Learning
Keyword(s): Job Search; Job Turnover; Quits; Well-Being; Working Conditions

Organizational and industrial psychologists stress the role of nonpecuniary job attributes as determinants of workers' well-being. This research examines this postulate in the context of workers' quit behavior. Recent job search theory is joined with survival analysis techniques to estimate determinants of workers' quit behavior. Two questions are addressed. Which job attributes appear to be most significant? How much income on average would workers be willing to forego in order to obtain marginal increases in selected nonpecuniary job attributes? A model of search on the job is developed which relates job attributes to voluntary job tenure. Cox's proportional hazards model is proposed as an appropriate estimation technique. Estimation is performed using data from the NLSY 1979-1982. A number of nonpecuniary job attributes are found to be statistically significant determinants of workers' quit behavior. Estimates of marginal rates of substitution of income for nonpecuniary job attributes are quite large for some of the variables. Using an alternative model of worker quit behavior, a worker acquires information about the job's attributes during the course of employment. The relationship between job attributes and voluntary job tenure is demonstrated for this case. This learning on the job model requires different estimation techniques and more detailed data than does the search on the job model. Data constraints are unfortunately binding and estimation of this structural model is not performed.
Bibliography Citation
Reed, W. Robert. An Analysis of Nonpecuniary Job Attributes as Determinants of Workers' Quit Behavior. Ph.D. Dissertation, Northwestern University, 1985.