| The relationship between paramedics' level of education and degree of commitment. | |
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MedLine Citation:
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PMID: 19683112 Owner: NLM Status: MEDLINE |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
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INTRODUCTION: Emergency medical services (EMS) personnel attrition is a serious concern. Two fundamental psychological constructs linked to attrition are organizational and occupational commitment. OBJECTIVE: To determine if there is a relationship between a paramedic's degree of occupational/organizational commitment and the following: (1) levels of education and (2) type of employment. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study of paramedics in 6 states that require continued paramedic national registration. The data collection instrument consisted of demographic and occupational and organizational commitment sections. For level of education, the primary independent variable, each subject was placed into 1 of 3 groups: (1) certificate, (2) associate's or bachelor's degree in EMS (degree), and (3) paramedic certificate or degree with a non-EMS postbaccalaureate degree. Type of employment (fire based vs non-fire based) was also used as an independent variable. Organizational and occupational commitment was measured using validated scales for each. Analysis of variance was used for the comparisons between levels of each of the independent variables. A P < .05 was considered significant. RESULTS: For occupational commitment, the participants with certificate level of education had a significantly higher score (88.9) than did those with either the degree (83.6) or postbaccalaureate (80.9) level of education. There were no significant differences for total organizational commitment. There were also no overall differences in occupational and organizational commitment between fire- and non-fire-based employees. CONCLUSION: Paramedic occupational commitment shows a statistically significant decrease with increased level of education. Factors associated with commitment of more highly educated paramedics need to be explored. |
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Authors:
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Melissa Alexander; Steven Weiss; Darren Braude; Amy A Ernst; Lynne Fullerton-Gleason |
Publication Detail:
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Type: Journal Article; Multicenter Study; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't |
Journal Detail:
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Title: The American journal of emergency medicine Volume: 27 ISSN: 1532-8171 ISO Abbreviation: Am J Emerg Med Publication Date: 2009 Sep |
Date Detail:
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Created Date: 2009-08-17 Completed Date: 2009-09-22 Revised Date: - |
Medline Journal Info:
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Nlm Unique ID: 8309942 Medline TA: Am J Emerg Med Country: United States |
Other Details:
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Languages: eng Pagination: 830-7 Citation Subset: IM |
Affiliation:
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Department of Emergency Medicine, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001, USA. |
Export Citation:
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| MeSH Terms | |
Descriptor/Qualifier:
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Career Choice Cross-Sectional Studies Educational Status* Emergency Medical Technicians* Humans Job Satisfaction* Motivation Personnel Turnover* United States |
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
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