Omani Youth Attitudes Toward Work: A Field Study On Students Of Sultan Qaboos University
Sultan Qaboos University, Oman
ABSTRACT
This study attempts to uncover Omani youth attitude towards the culture of work and what it implies in terms of concerns and preferences. The study problem focuses on testing the hypothesis that youth generation especially university students are more individualized and self-centered, and expected among them a high rate of conspicuous attitudes (prestige and money) at the expense of implicit attitudes account for work (such as assistance, social values, altruism and friendship). Theoretically, the study relied on the concept of work culture in sociological literature, as well as some theoretical frameworks. Methodologically, this is an exploratory study used a measure of "work culture" and applied to a random sample of students from Sultan Qaboos University. The research results show that work culture among university students is arranged in a structure dominated by self-development, independence, and the exchange of knowledge, experiences and skills, job security, social and material stability, and support and help for others. These are followed, at a lower level, by social networking, community service, and gaining family respect, social status, relationships with work colleagues, achievement, decision-making and leadership, and finally the possession of money. This arrangement of youth attitudes reflects a kind of double-standard in the cultural component to work. The study concludes that the results of such type of studies will help those concerned with the employment of the workforce to understand that the new young workers today are different from the workers of the same age group at an earlier point in time. Thus it is necessary to adapt administrative and management strategies for the coming generations.
KEYWORDS
attitudes toward work, self-direction, emerging workforce, self-development, independence, and job security