Motivation and Employee-Supervisor Discrepancies in a Psychiatric Vocational Rehabilitation Setting

Supervisor ratings of employees' motivation and adjustment in psychiatric rehabilitation settings are among the best predictors of future work potential (Anthony & Jansen, 1984). Additionally, some research reports low correlations between supervisor ratings and employee self-reports with regard to adjustment and motivation. Consequently, we examine (a) how current program participation and estimates of readiness for competitive employment relate to employee and supervisor ratings of motivation; and (b) the correlates of rating discrepancies between employees and supervisors. Program participation and work-readiness were associated with both employee and supervisor ratings of motivation after controlling for employee benefit plan, residential status, and social adjustment. Additionally, the degree of supervisor-employee discrepancy in these ratings was negatively correlated with program participation, workreadiness, and estimates of premorbid social competence. The role of motivational factors in vocational rehabilitation and the dynamics of supervisor and employee perceptions of work motivation and adjustment are discussed. The choice of an occupation and the concern for work are considered by many psychological theorists as hallmarks of both maturity and identity formation (Adler, 1958; Erikson, 1959; Sullivan, 1953). Such conceptions emphasize work as an important aspect of one's integration into society as well as a developmental achievement. Accordingly many psychiatric rehabilitation programs emphasize REHABILITATION PSYCHOLOGY VoL 37, No. 3 ,1992 © 1992 by the Division of Rehabilitation Psychology of the American Psychological Association Published by Springer Publishing Company, Inc., 536 Broadway, New Yoik, NY 10012