Descriptive dimensions of US occupations with data from the O*NET

Several authors have successfully used the Dictionary of Occupational Titles to construct scales measuring occupational work environments. The Dictionary, however, has been replaced by the Occupation Information Network or O*NET, which offers expanded content and higher quality data. This paper reports an exploratory factor analysis of the O*NET (version 4.0). Four factors are identified. Three factors are comparable to the results of earlier analyses: SUBSTANTIVE COMPLEXITY, PEOPLE VERSUS THINGS, and PHYSICAL DEMANDS. A fourth factor, BUREAUCRACY, is discovered that describes work in hierarchical organizations and oriented toward organizational policies and practices. O*NET variables and these factors can be linked to social studies via occupation codes and used as relatively objective and up to date assessments of work environments. Published by Elsevier Science (USA).