A Study and Investigation of Learned and Inherent Traits, Behaviors,
and Skills of Adolescent Public High School Students that are Deemed
to be Essential to Successfully Secure and Maintain Employment
Jack Stanley Brown, Jr.
Academic Business World Conference
May 1, 2007
Jack Stanley Brown, Jr. 12 Brannon Court Florence, AL 35630 256-710-4057
Table of Contents
Summary
3
Introduction
4
Significance of Study
4
Statement of Problem
4
Assumptions
4
Limitations
4
Review of Related Literature
5-7
Research Design
7
Methodology
7
Sample
7
Instrumentation
7-8
Results
8-9
Works Cited
9
Appendix
10
2
Summary
Objectives
There have been numerous studies and articles on the subject of what types of
skills and traits employers are looking for and require of an employee. Since most high
school students tend to have jobs in the retail and service industries, this study was
designed to investigate what types of traits make a successful employee from the
student’s viewpoint. Considering the limitations of experiences, both work and life, of a
high school student, this study sought to ask the students their feelings on common
statements related to seeking employment and being successfully employed. This
investigation also asked the students to rank in importance key personality traits relating
to a work environment. Finally, this study wanted to determine the main reason(s) that
students want to be employed while they are still in school.
Results
Surveys were distributed to 300 public high school students in grades 10 – 12.
Teachers of Science, Social Studies, Math, and Career Tech courses distributed the
surveys to students in both general and college bound classes. The response rate was
97%. Various statements were presented for students to respond in a form of “strongly
agree”, “agree”, “neutral”, “disagree”, and “strongly disagree”. An overwhelming
percentage (95%) of the students felt that reporting to work on time was very important.
Ninety-one percent felt that their appearance during an interview and while on the job
was important. Thirty-four percent were neutral to the view that an employee should not
disagree with a customer when the customer is wrong; 24% agreed and 23% disagreed.
Twenty-four percent said that it is ok to argue with your boss.
In ranking traits based on level of importance, “Honesty” ranked number one by
41% of the respondents and number two by 24% of the students. “Dependability” was
ranked number one by 38% and number two by 25% of the students. “Friendliness”
came in third and “Willingness to learn” finished fourth. Of note, “Appearance” ranked
fifth by 38% of the students but ranked number one by 22%. Finally, when asked the
question of which is the most important reason to work while still being a student –
getting experience for the future or to get a paycheck; 50.5% selected getting experience;
49.5% choose getting a paycheck as the most important reason to work.
Conclusions
Today’s students are exposed to a variety of influences outside of school mostly
through audio/visual programs and intense media hype and propaganda. Many students
are finding that they have to make judgments and decisions by themselves due to
limitations in family involvement. Social and economic burdens and strains have forced
many high school students into the work force in order to take care of themselves and
help their families. While the majority of students surveyed acknowledge positive work
traits such as honesty and dependability, many students felt that it is acceptable to argue
and disagree with their superiors and their customers. The short-sighted idea of getting a
job just to get a paycheck is also troubling.
Recommendations
Teach the traditional “3 R’s” and add a fourth – “Reality”. Enhance positive
“people skills” training to show how it relates to the student. Embrace the ideals of good
citizenship and promote teamwork and unity.
3
Introduction
Employers want to hire qualified candidates. They want their employees to
successfully meet the duties and responsibilities of their job while exhibiting a positive
work ethic and loyalty to the company. Identifying the prospective employee’s
personality traits, behaviors, and job skills plays a major role in achieving success. Many
employers want and need to hire high school students. These jobs are usually in the retail
and service industries, with most jobs directly related to sales and customer service.
Selecting qualified workers that are also high school students can be challenging due to
limitations on the students’ work experience, education, and life experiences. Many
studies have been done to find out from employers what they want to see in terms of
skills and traits. However, this study sought to determine the important skills and traits
needed to be a successful employee from the students’ perspective.
Significance of Study
How many times has it been said that educating children is the most important
thing society can do. Children are the future of society and community. Today’s highly
competitive employment market combined with the volatility of the global community
requires that teachers not only teach the subject matter, but that they also teach the
student how to succeed in career and life. With more and more students needing jobs due
to social and economic demands, the future needs of society’s workforce is now.
Training students to be successful and productive citizens is important and required.
Statement of Problem
This study will explore and analyze what public high school students perceive to be
important skills and traits needed to be a successful employee.
 Do students recognize the traits that employers seek?
 Do students understand these traits?
 Do students care about the positive and negative effects of these traits?
Assumptions
The following assumptions were considered in conducting this study.
 The students will be honest in their responses to the questions.
 The students will participate in positive manner.
 A sufficient sampling size can be identified to draw reasonable conclusions.
Limitations
The following limitations were considered in conducting this study.
 The scope of this study is limited to public high school students from one school.
 The researcher will not personally distribute the surveys to the students.
 The researcher will not interview any of the students.
 Some students may interpret the survey’s statements differently from others.
 Some students may seek assistance from fellow students in responding to the
survey’s statements.
4
Review of Related Literature
A degree alone is not enough. Employers are looking for more than just technical
skills and knowledge of a degree. They particularly value skills such as communication,
team working and problem solving. Job applicants who can demonstrate that they have
developed these skills will have a real advantage and a better chance to succeed.
These skills are identified as employability skills. Employability skills are not job
specific, but are skills which cut horizontally across all industries and vertically across all
jobs from entry level to chief executive officer (Sherer and Eadie 1987).

What skills and traits do employers value most in prospective entry-level
employees?

Why have employability skills become so important in contemporary workplaces?

What educational practices has research shown to be effective in imparting
employability skills and traits to students?
A review of the literature indicated that employers have no quarrel with the skills
performance of today's graduates, but they do have serious reservations when it comes to
their nontechnical abilities.
Another name for these "nontechnical abilities" is employability skills. Employability
skills are the attributes of employees, other than technical competence, that make them an
asset to the employer.
These employability skills include reading, basic arithmetic and other basic skills;
problem solving, decision making, and other higher-order thinking skills; and
dependability, a positive attitude, cooperativeness, and other affective skills and traits.
Other personal qualities include flexibility, creativity, common sense, identifying one’s
strengths and development needs, and continuously improving one’s own performance.
Employers’ criteria can be stated as follows:

Cognitive Skills/Brainpower: The ability to identify and solve problems; work
with information and handle a mass of diverse data, assess risk and draw
conclusions.

Generic Competencies: High-level and transferable key skills such as the ability
to work with others in a team, communicate, persuade and have interpersonal
sensitivity.

Personal Capabilities: The ability and desire to learn for oneself and improve
one’s self awareness and performance. To be a self starter (creativity,
decisiveness, initiative) and to finish the job (flexibility, adaptability, tolerance to
stress).

Technical Ability: For example, having the knowledge and experience of working
with relevant modern laboratory equipment.

Business and/or Organization Awareness: An appreciation of how businesses
operate through having had (preferably relevant) work experience.
5

Practical Elements - Vocational Courses: Critical evaluation of the outcomes of
professional practice; reflect and review own practice; participate in and review
quality control processes and risk management.
Specific occupational skills are less crucial for entry-level employment than a
generally high level of literacy, responsible attitudes toward work, the ability to
communicate well, and the ability to continue to learn.
In a summary of several studies on the needs expressed by employers for entry-level
job qualifications results suggest that:
 employers place greatest importance on employee attitudes,
 employers emphasize basic skills over job-specific skills
 employers deem it important for workers to have an understanding of the work
environment (Natriello 1989).
Employers find far too many entry-level job applicants deficient in employability
skills, and want the public schools to place more emphasis on developing these skills.
Valuing employability skills-to the point of assigning them an even higher priority than
job-specific technical skills-employers are understandably distressed to find so many
entry-level job applicants lacking these skills. Various reasons given by employers for
not hiring young people for entry-level jobs, including:

Low grades and low levels of academic accomplishments

Poor attitudes, lack of self-confidence, lack of goals, poorly motivated

Inadequate basic skills (reading, writing, math)

Lack of enthusiasm, lack of drive, little evidence of leadership potential

Lack of preparation for the interview

Inadequate preparation for type of work, inappropriate background

Lack of extracurricular activities
And Beach (1982) cites research indicating that fully 87 percent of persons losing
their jobs or failing to be promoted were found to have "improper work habits and
attitudes rather than insufficient job skills or knowledge".
Employers expect to train new employees in company-specific procedures and to
acquaint them with the behavioral norms, standards, and expectations of their workplace.
They often provide training in job-specific technical skills as well. But they are emphatic
in their conviction that the schools should take most of the responsibility for equipping
young people with general employability skills.
A key feature of classes that successfully teach employability skills is that instructors
hold and communicate high expectations for the learning and behavior of their studentswhether or not the overall culture of the school holds high expectations for them
(Lankard 1990).
The general educational research shows that holding and communicating high
expectations for students' learning and deportment are critical features of effective
6
schooling. Unfortunately, in some secondary school settings, vocational classes are
treated as low-ability tracks and/or repositories for troublesome students. Since research
also shows that low expectations are frequently communicated to students in lower
tracks, students in vocational programs are oftentimes given negative messages about
their capacity to learn and conduct themselves appropriately.
Those teachers, in vocational and other programs, who do hold and communicate
high expectations for their students, generally find those students to be quite responsive.
If, in creating a workplace-like learning environment, they communicate employer-like
expectations for basic skill application, punctuality, dependability, thoroughness,
decision-making capability, cooperation, and so on, students have opportunities to
practice and perfect these skills and traits. This, in turn, enhances the desirable
employability qualities of skill-related self-confidence and general self-esteem.
In addition to its critical role in the U.S. economy, preparedness in employability
skills is also an important contributor to the individual's self-regard and general wellbeing. Giving greater attention to this developmental area can therefore be expected to
contribute to both social betterment and personal fulfillment.
When carefully structured and thoughtfully conceived, employability skill
development enables all individuals, young and old, to develop needed self-confidence
and motivation, to meet successfully the challenges of work, to survive, and to flourish.
Graduates need to demonstrate to employers that they can 'hit the ground running'. In
addition to working hard to gain a degree, students should engage in extra curricular
activities and obtain work experience in order to develop skills that will make them better
prepared for the world of work. It is also important for students to become self-aware and
develop the confidence to market themselves effectively.
Research Design
The research design is in the form of a phenomenological study. This design is
used to attempt to understand the perceptions, perspectives, and feelings in regard to
employability skills identified by high school students. Teachers distributed surveys in a
variety of courses to approximately 30% of the student body.
Methodology
The purpose of this study was to explore, identify, and analyze various traits that
the students would consider important in being a successful employee. The researcher
wanted to know if there were common trends in the various traits presented and what
were the students’ feelings and thoughts concerning employment skills.
Sample
Data were collected from surveys completed by public high school students. The
information given by the students was tabulated into percentages of the population in
order to analyze the findings and draw conclusions.
Instrumentation
The researcher prepared a Likert scale survey that had 10 statements and/or
questions for the student to indicate his/her feelings regarding each statement. Initially
the researcher prepared the survey using words and terms that are commonly used by
teenagers. A more “professional” version of the survey was also prepared and used by
the researcher after consultation with school administration. In addition to the Likert
scale, the researcher asked the students to rank, by level of importance, five personality
7
traits that are generally accepted as valuable traits for employees to exhibit. The survey
also asked each student to choose whether working while being a student was important
for the experience or working was important to just get a paycheck. View the survey in
the Appendix.
Survey Response Tally Sheet
Question #
Strongly
Agree
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
1
18%
31%
39%
11%
1%
2
10%
28%
29%
26%
7%
3
56%
36%
6%
1%
1%
4
3%
21%
33%
32%
11%
5
1%
13%
39%
40%
7%
6
3%
22%
31%
29%
15%
7
9%
24%
34%
23%
10%
8
74%
21%
3%
1%
1%
9
10%
37%
41%
9%
3%
10
2%
6%
22%
51%
19%
8
Appearance
1’s: 22%
2’s: 11% 3’s: 10% 4’s: 18% 5’s: 39%
5
Dependability
1’s: 38%
2’s: 25%
2
Friendliness
1’s: 13% 2’s: 16% 3’s: 26%
3’s: 14% 4’s: 12% 5’s: 11%
4’s: 25%
5’s: 20%
3
1’s: 41%
Honesty
1
Willingness to learn
4
Experience
2’s: 24%
3’s: 15% 4’s: 10% 5’s: 10%
1’s: 18% 2’s: 16% 3’s: 20% 4’s: 25%
5’s: 21%
50.5%
1
Check
49.5%
2









31% agree that employers want to hire students
28% agree that you must have high grades to get a job
55% strongly agree that appearance is important
32% say employers do mind if you miss work
40% say that you work for the customer first
24% agree that it is ok to disagree with a customer
74% strongly agree that getting to work on time is important
37% agree that employers should be flexible when you want off
51% say that you should not use company supplies for personal use
Works Cited
Beach, D. P.
"A Training Program to Improve Work Habits, Attitudes, and Values." Journal of
Epsilon Pi Tau 8/2 (1982): 69-74.
Natriello, G.
What Do Employers Want in Entry-Level Workers? An Assessment of the
Evidence. National Center for Education and Employment Occasional Paper No.
7. New York: Columbia University, 1989.
Sherer, M., and Eadie, R.
"Employability Skills: Key to Success." Thrust 17/2 (1987): 16-17.
Lankard, B. A.
Employability - The Fifth Basic Skill. ERIC Digest No. 104. Columbus, OH:
ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education, 1990.
9
Appendix
Student Survey
Please describe how you feel about each statement by circling a choice.
1.
2.
Employers want to offer students a job.
Strongly Agree
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
I must have high grades in school to get a job.
Strongly Agree Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
3.
My appearance is important during a job interview and while on the job.
Strongly Agree Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
4.
Employers don’t mind if I miss work as long as I tell them why.
Strongly Agree
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
5.
I work for my company first, then for the customer.
Strongly Agree Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
It is ok to disagree with the customer when they are wrong.
Strongly Agree Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
6.
7.
It is ok to argue with your supervisor when he/she treats you wrongly.
Strongly Agree
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
8.
Showing up for work on time is a very important responsibility.
Strongly Agree Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
9.
Employers should be flexible when I want time off from work.
Strongly Agree
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
10. It is ok to use my company’s supplies for my personal and/or school use.
Strongly Agree Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
On a scale of 1-5, with 1 being the most important, rank the following traits in terms of
importance to being a successful employee.
Appearance
_____
Dependability
_____
Friendliness
_____
Honesty
_____
Willingness to learn
_____
To you, check which is the most important reason to work while in school?
To get experience for my future.
_____
To get a paycheck.
_____
10