The Generations at Work in Puerto Rico: A View From Industrial-Organizational Psychology and the Development Stages

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to determine whether there are truly generational and/or stage of development differences concerning the variables of meaning of work, motivation, work centrality, and intention to quit. The sample was composed of 948 participants from different workplaces in Puerto Rico. Regarding the generation to which the participants belong, 7.3% (n= 69) belong to the Baby Boomers generation, 30.9% (n= 293) belong to generation X, and finally, 61.8% belong to the Millennial generation. In terms of stages of development, 68% (n=653) of the participants belong to the early adulthood stage, 28.5% (n= 270) of the participants belong to the middle adulthood stage, and 2.6% (n= 25) of the participants belong to the older adulthood stage. There were significant differences according to generations in centrality and intention to quit variables. There were significant differences by stage of development between the centrality, motivation, and intention to quit variables. No significant differences were found for the meaning of work variable by generations or by stage of development.