Scale Analysis

The Work Values Inventory – 140 (WVI-140) is a self-report instrument designed to systematically assess the values that individuals consider important within the workplace. Work values represent desirable characteristics, conditions, and outcomes of employment and serve as criteria when individuals make career-related decisions. They should not be confused with professional abilities or vocational interests. Instead, they primarily reflect what employees expect from their work and what they consider meaningful in their professional lives.

The extended 140-item version provides a detailed assessment of fourteen work-value dimensions: Autonomy, Creativity, Variety, Structure, Self-development, Influence, Work-life Balance, Financial Reward, Security, Prestige, Performance, Working Conditions, Work Relationships, and Altruism. These dimensions encompass both intrinsic work values, such as personal development and creativity, and extrinsic or contextual values, such as financial compensation, employment security, and working conditions.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the WVI-140 is to develop an individualized profile of work-related priorities. This profile can help individuals identify which characteristics of a job contribute to their sense of meaning, motivation, and satisfaction.

The instrument may also support the examination of the degree of compatibility between an individual’s personal values and their current or preferred working environment. Research indicates that person-job and person-organization fit are associated with more positive work attitudes. Nevertheless, a work-values profile alone cannot reliably predict occupational performance or career success.

Scoring and Interpretation

The WVI-140 consists of 140 statements that respondents evaluate according to their perceived importance using a five-point Likert scale, ranging from 1 (Not Important at All) to 5 (Very Important).

Responses are grouped according to their corresponding dimensions. A total score or mean score is then calculated for each work value, following the official scoring key of the version being administered. Higher scores indicate that the respondent assigns greater relative importance to the corresponding work value.

Interpretation is most useful when it focuses on the relative ranking of the fourteen dimensions within the same individual rather than exclusively on separate absolute scores. Since respondents may consider several employment conditions important, researchers or career counsellors should examine the highest- and lowest-scoring dimensions, possible conflicts between different values, and the extent to which the individual’s main work values are satisfied within their current working environment.

There is no universally “ideal” work-values profile, and there are no right or wrong answers. Scores should be interpreted as personal priorities rather than indicators of competence or psychological adjustment.

Applications

The WVI-140 may be used in career counselling, career planning, the exploration of alternative occupations, and the management of professional transitions, such as entering the labour market, changing jobs, or reconsidering one’s career direction.

Within organizational settings, it may provide useful information for job design, employee development, motivation strategies, and the examination of perceived compatibility between employees and organizations. Understanding employees’ work values can help organizations identify the working conditions, rewards, and opportunities that different individuals consider important.

In research settings, the WVI-140 dimensions may be examined in relation to variables such as job satisfaction, organizational commitment, turnover intention, professional well-being, work engagement, motivation, and the satisfaction of basic psychological needs at work.

The instrument can also be used to investigate differences in work values according to demographic, occupational, or organizational characteristics. However, comparisons based on age or generational membership should be interpreted cautiously, as observed differences may also reflect career stage, socioeconomic conditions, occupational experiences, or broader historical circumstances.

Psychometric and Methodological Considerations

Reliability and validity should not be assumed solely because the questionnaire contains a large number of items. In every research application, the internal consistency of the individual dimensions, the factorial structure of the instrument, and its relationships with theoretically relevant variables should be evaluated.

For use in populations speaking a language different from that of the original instrument, a documented process of translation and cultural adaptation is required. This process should include forward translation, review by experts, back-translation where appropriate, pilot testing, and an assessment of the clarity and cultural relevance of the items.

Measurement equivalence should also be established before comparing scores between different linguistic, cultural, occupational, or demographic groups. The use of locally established normative data is preferable to the uncritical application of cut-off points or reference values developed in different populations.

Responses may be influenced by social desirability, temporary employment experiences, current dissatisfaction, organizational changes, or changes in personal priorities. Work values are relatively stable but may evolve as individuals acquire new experiences, assume different responsibilities, or move through different stages of their careers and personal lives.

For this reason, WVI-140 results should ideally be interpreted alongside a structured interview, information about the respondent’s employment context and, where necessary, additional measures of vocational interests, personality, job satisfaction, or career adaptability.

The WVI-140 is intended to support self-awareness, counselling, and research. It should not be used as the sole criterion for recruitment, employee exclusion, promotion, or any other high-impact employment decision. Before administering or reproducing the instrument, users should also verify the licensing, copyright, and authorized-use requirements associated with the specific version.

Conclusion

The WVI-140 offers a multidimensional approach to understanding what individuals seek from their employment. Its main contribution lies in the systematic identification and discussion of professional priorities and in highlighting possible areas of compatibility or incompatibility between an individual, a job, and an organization.

Careful scoring, appropriate cultural adaptation, psychometric evaluation, and consideration of the broader employment context are essential for the responsible interpretation of its results. When used appropriately, the instrument can contribute to greater career self-awareness, more informed professional decisions, and a better understanding of the relationship between personal values and workplace experiences.

References

Busque-Carrier, M., Ratelle, C. F., & Le Corff, Y. (2022). Work values and job satisfaction: The mediating role of basic psychological needs at work. Journal of Career Development, 49(6), 1386–1401.

Kristof-Brown, A. L., Zimmerman, R. D., & Johnson, E. C. (2005). Consequences of individuals’ fit at work: A meta-analysis of person-job, person-organization, person-group, and person-supervisor fit. Personnel Psychology, 58(2), 281–342.

Ros, M., Schwartz, S. H., & Surkiss, S. (1999). Basic individual values, work values, and the meaning of work. Applied Psychology, 48(1), 49–71.

Schwartz, S. H. (1992). Universals in the content and structure of values: Theoretical advances and empirical tests in 20 countries. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 25, 1–65.

Schwartz, S. H. (2012). An overview of the Schwartz theory of basic values. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2(1).

123test. (n.d.). Work values test. Retrieved August 24, 2026, from