Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

Publication Date

7-10-1970

Abstract

The Manpower Development and Training Act (M.D.T.A.) is the largest and one of the oldest of the federal manpower programs. This study is of the M.D.T.A. experience in one state during a one and one-half year period. The sample was limited to those who completed institutional type training programs. Data used were collected in the normal process of program operation and included characteristics of trainees, individual trainee termination information and the post-training report one year after completion of training. The problem was to create sets of relationships, of both theoretical and practical significance, between pre-training characteristics of trainees and post-training Labor Force Status (the criteria variable) which included the categories of Employed, Unemployed and Not in Labor Force. The various training projects were treated as constant. The total N was 1197. The effective N was restricted to the 919 for whom complete follow-up data were obtained. Over 50 variables were initially considered. Final selection of variables for further analysis was determined by the use of techniques of theoretical, rather than statistical, sampling. Elaboration was in the form of multivariate cross-tabulation with particular attention given to deviant cases. Selected independent variables were Sex, Age, and Grades Completed. They were also treated against each other as intervening variables in addition to Marital Status, Prior Labor Force Status, Years Employed and Public Assistance Status. Males were found to be more sensitive than Females to the influences of intervening variants in each Labor Force Status. Age Group categories were compliant, indicating that Age, alone, is not a strong determining factor in post-training employment experience. Although differences in employment success were found by Age Group, whichever group was considered, there was an averaging effect when partitioned with other variables. Grades Completed were strong and consistent indicators of the dependent variable. Only the Prior Employed category of Prior Labor Force Status was shown to be a stronger indicator of post-training Labor Force Status. Those intervening categories maintaining consistently high rates across all categories of each independent variable were then examined together within each category of the dependent variable Labor Force Status. High Employed rates were most consistently represented by 13 or More Grades Completed, Marital Status of Other (divorced or widowed), 3-9 Years Previous Employment and Prior Labor Force Status of Employed. The variants best indicating high Unemployed rates across all categories of the independent variables were 0-8 Grades Completed, 40-49 Age, Public Assistance Recipients and 10 or More Years of Employment. In all cases, Females were less affected than Males. Labor force dropout (Not in Labor Force) was associated with Reentrants to the labor force, Under 2 Years of Employment, 17-19 Age and Single Marital Status. Deviations existed within some of the categorizations, however, the resultant groupings were speculatively shown to posses common within-group traits. These commonalities were discussed in terms of opportunity structures, labor force marginality and interaction effects.

Document Type

Dissertation

Language

English

Degree Name

Educational Leadership

Level of Degree

Doctoral

Department Name

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy

First Committee Member (Chair)

David Lawrence Bachelor

Second Committee Member

Joseph J. Fashing

Third Committee Member

Richard M. Gorman

Fourth Committee Member

Albert W. Vogel

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