Abstract
M.A.
Recent political and socio-economic changes that have faced South Africans suggested a need to
investigate how the youth of the country view the world of work. The abolition of apartheid has
opened new doors to careers for several cultural groups that were previously discriminated against.
High levels of unemployment and affirmative action policies on the other hand, have firmly closed
career doors for many.
The Meaning of Working International Research Team (1987) have researched the psychological
aspects of the meaning of working, using a heuristic research model that takes cognisance of not
only an individual's personal and family situation, but also of how their career history and the
macro socio-economic environment influence three major meaning constructs: work centrality;
societal norms and entitlements; and work goals. Rather than study the role of work in isolation,
this study combines the Meaning of Working framework with Super's (1982) developmental
approach to working and life role salience. Super's approach also recognises that man does not
exist in a vacuum when it comes to career choices and includes the consideration of psychological,
economic and sociological forces. Not all life satisfaction is gained from the work role, but may be
found in other roles such as those of homemaker, student, citizen or leisurite.
The aim of this study was twofold. The first aim was to describe the meaning that working has for
the youth of South Africa, including their expectations, aspirations and existing experience of
work. Secondly, the study sought to investigate the possible effects that culture may have on the
meaning of working and life role salience, including the influence of socio-economic status and
gender. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to this effect, including the use of
MANOVA, ANOVA, Scheffe multiple comparisons, Hotelling's T2, Student's t-tests, principal
factor analysis and Spearman's rank order correlation coefficient. The research design was ex post
facto quasi-experimental.
The sample consisted of 367 standard 9 students, from a total of 19 schools situated within the
Gauteng area. It was divided into three main cultural groups: an Afrocentric group of 207 black
pupils from non-integrated schools situated within the East Rand townships of Tembisa, Tokoza,
Vosloorus and Katlehong; an Accultural group of 59 black pupils attending fully integrated schools in areas outside the townships; and a Eurocentric group of 101 white pupils attending the
same schools as the Accultural sample. A questionnaire was administered which included a
biographical section, an abridged version of the Meaning of Working Questionnaire and the Life
Role Inventory.
The results of the study included the finding that all cultural groups were unrealistic in their
expectations about the availability of work. Most respondents indicated the wish to continue with
tertiary education, university being the most popular choice of the Afrocentric and Eurocentric
groups and technikon for the Accultural group. Members of the Afrocentric group were far more
likely to be influenced by their parents and families in their career decision making. Meaning of
working patterns for the different groups were similar, irrespective of culture, socio-economic
status or gender. South African youth define working primarily in terms of economic dimensions,
their most highly valued work goal being good pay. They also define working as a means by which
they may contribute to society.