The phenomenon of social selectivity is a problem, which occurs in various European countries. The presented paper investigates the situation in Germany – a country characterized by a strong vocational training system, which is aiming to include young people from different educational and social backgrounds. However, former research shows that the opportunities to gain high level school-leaving certificates in Germany are very crucially influenced by the social background of young people. The phenomenon of social selectivity within the general educational school system is perpetuated in initial vocational education and training via the different school-leaving certificates. This is visible in the strong correlation between high-level school-leaving certificates and training occupations with a higher social prestige. The individual social background indirectly influences the transition into initial VET through school-leaving certificates, which makes the transition to different VET positions socially selective (Beicht & Walden, 2015).

This paper investigates whether social selectivity also exists with regard to adolescents’ work values, i.e. the importance individuals place on different job characteristics (Mortimer & Lorence, 1979; Johnson, 2001). Young people’s choice of an apprenticeship is determined by various factors such as their interests, social expectations, requirements in the VET system and market conditions (Ahrens et al., 2021). In the literature, two major value dimensions have repeatedly been identified. We also refer to this differentiation between extrinsic and intrinsic values (Mortimer & Lorence, 1979). Extrinsic values concern the rewards derived from the job but external to the work itself (e.g., income, prestige, and security). In contrast, intrinsic values involve rewards obtained directly from work experience (e.g., interest, challenge, responsibility, autonomy, and similar gratifying features). Intrinsic values can be differentiated further into two groups: The first one involves the use of abilities, expression of interests, and creativity. The second is a people-oriented set of concerns related to the chance to work with people and to be useful for society (Mortimer & Lorence 1979, p.1362). Sociodemographic aspects explain differences in these work values: A lower family SES is associated with higher extrinsic work values, whereas a higher SES relates to intrinsic and autonomy work values (e.g. Johnson, 2002). Research results regarding the effect of education are not consistent. Research also shows that work values undergo changes due to transitioning to work (Lechner et al., 2017). Our research aims to investigate the interrelatedness of different work values and the individual social background. We assume that selection and socialization processes can explain the variance of intrinsic, people-oriented, and extrinsic values among individuals in different vocational fields. Furthermore, we assume that young people select their training occupations based on their personal work values. Hence, when entering the labour market they attempt to choose a job that best gives them the rewards they perceive as most important. For example, people highly valuing extrinsic rewards select training occupations with a high potential to generate income, whereas individuals who prioritize people-oriented values choose occupations providing them opportunities to work with people. Regarding the interrelatedness of work values and social background referring to Mortimer and Lorence (1979) we assume that the importance of values in the process of occupational selection is greater at upper socioeconomic levels, because these individuals have higher qualifications and more social capital leading to a broader range of occupational opportunities (Mortimer & Lorence 1979, p. 1364).

This paper tries to answer the questions 1. whether individuals from a lower social background have different work values from those from a higher social background and 2. which other (not only individual) factors besides social background determine individuals’ ability to realize the fulfilment of their work values in their current job. 

The empirical analyses are based on a sample of more than 7,000 pupils from all school types taking part in starting cohort 4 of the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS) (see Blossfeld & Roßbach, 2019). We focus on three waves of the panel: In wave 3 the pupils were in grade 10, after which many adolescents leave school to begin an apprenticeship while others continue to obtain a higher school-leaving certificate. Participants were presented a number of work values for which they should indicate the importance these values had for them. In wave 9, when all participants had left school and started or already finished VET, the importance of the work values was assessed again. For both waves, we use t-tests to compare the rating of values according to different aspects of parental background. We also conduct comparisons between both waves. In wave 11 the content of the work values was presented again but this time to assess the degree of fulfilment of these aspects in a person’s current job. We use these variables to once again compare the groups according to their parental background to investigate whether they differ in having been able to fulfil those values they had rated as important when still at school. To avoid effects due to different levels of professional qualification, we only include those who have successfully finished VET. In the next step we conduct linear regressions to investigate whether further socio-demographic variables have an effect on the degree of fulfilment of the values assessed. Subsequently we expand the regressions by characteristics of participants’ jobs (e.g., sector and company size). In a last step, we compare the results for this subjective outcome (participants’ ratings of the job aspects) with objective outcomes like income.

Social background is a relevant factor influencing educational and professional pathways in many European countries (Eurofound, 2017). Therefore, our results can be of interest beyond the German context. As could be expected from the cited research literature, the results of our group comparisons show differences between pupils with and without an academic parental background. Pupils with an academic parental background attribute e.g. a higher value to autonomy, and a lower value to a good working atmosphere and job security as compared to pupils whose parents did not attend university. Comparisons based on a mean-split of parents’ ISEI lead to similar results. Nevertheless, all groups value extrinsic as well as intrinsic work aspects. After leaving school, the importance of career aspects decreases, while other values like autonomy increase. Regarding the fulfilment of work values, the two aspects of parental background only show a relationship with one work value each. Of the other socio-demographic aspects considered, only gender and to some degree the pupil’s school-leaving certificate are related to the degree of fulfilment of some of the values. A significant contribution to the explained variance in the fulfilment of some work values comes from the sector the adolescents work in. While we replicate findings that social background is related to differences in the importance attributed to different work values, it is thus hardly related to the degree of fulfilment of these values. Rather, different sectors seem to offer opportunities for the fulfilment of different values. Therefore, school leavers should be able to choose a training occupation and subsequent employment that offers the opportunity for fulfilling their values.

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