A comparison of the job attitudes and interest patterns of air traffic and airway facility personnel.

PDFTech ReportFAA-AM-79-11DOT/FAA/AM-79/11Air traffic controllersAttitudesJob satisfactionQuestionnairesUnited StatesCivil Aerospace Medical InstituteSmith, Roger C.Civil Aeromedical InstituteUnited States. Office of Aviation MedicineNTL-AVIATION-Air Traffic ControlNTL-PLANNING AND POLICY-SurveysUS Transportation CollectionAir traffic control specialists (ATCSs) and airway facility technicians (AFTs) were compared on measures of job attitudes and interests. A total of 792 ATCSs and 2,366 AFTs completed the Strong Vocational Interest Blank (SVIB) and questionnaires concerning job satisfaction and job attitudes. Both groups indicated high overall job satisfaction and general agreement about areas of job satisfaction and dissatisfaction. However, ATCSs reported more satisfaction than AFTs from various aspects of the work itself and from salary, while AFTs were more satisfied with responsibility, working conditions, and Civil Service retirement. The AFTs were more favorable to management than ATCSs.On the SVIB, ATCSs had higher scores than AFTs on scales concerned with interpersonally oriented vocations (e.g., social service, sales) and lower scores on technical-scientific occupational scales. The findings suggest that these two employee groups have much in common with respect to their attitudes toward work while at the same time having certain discriminable characteristics that have implications for both personnel and motivational programs