A Road Less Traveled?: A Qualitative Study of Personal Characteristics and Formative Experiences Leading College and University Graduates into Public Sector Service Careers

Hendrix, Steve

A Road Less Traveled?: A Qualitative Study of Personal Characteristics and Formative Experiences Leading College and University Graduates into Public Sector Service Careers

dc.contributor.advisor	Houser, Neil
dc.contributor.author	Hendrix, Steve
dc.date.accessioned	2022-05-23T17:12:12Z
dc.date.available	2022-05-23T17:12:12Z
dc.date.issued	2022-05
dc.date.manuscript	2022-05
dc.description.abstract	Growing out of the larger concern for the general status of civic engagement in the U.S., this study focused on professional public service as a form of civic engagement and sought to understand the motivational factors that led recent college and university graduates into careers in public service. In examining the broad spectrum of motivational factors that draw college and university students toward professional public service, this study engages literature from the fields of Public Service Motivation (PSM) and undergraduate civic education. In addition to exploring the range of formational and transformational factors that contribute to an individual’s public service ambition, personal characteristics, dispositions, ethical beliefs, and reward preferences were also considered. Additional attention was given to the impact of higher educational experiences within the larger examination of motivational influences leading individuals into public service careers. As a qualitative study, research was conducted using a narrative inquiry approach, drawing data from semi-structured interviews of 13 active public servants in three different geographical locations within the U.S. Each participant had graduated with a baccalaureate degree between five to 10 years from the time the interviews were conducted and had entered full-time professional public service shortly after completing an undergraduate degree. Using a praxis interpretive framework, built on the basic structure of being - doing - reflecting (becoming), the findings revealed three key conclusions: 1) the participants were intrinsically drawn to professional public service; 2) the respondents’ reward perspectives were largely non-material in character; and 3) the professional public service pathways of the participants were guided by the need for self-actualization.	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	https://hdl.handle.net/11244/335828
dc.language	en_US	en_US
dc.rights	Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International	*
dc.rights.uri	http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/	*
dc.subject	Public Service Higher Education	en_US
dc.thesis.degree	Ph.D.	en_US
dc.title	A Road Less Traveled?: A Qualitative Study of Personal Characteristics and Formative Experiences Leading College and University Graduates into Public Sector Service Careers	en_US
ou.group	Jeannine Rainbolt College of Education::Department of Instructional Leadership and Academic Curriculum	en_US