STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TO WORK AND STUDIES: PRACTICAL CASE

Abstract

Intensive global competition, higher customer expectations and greater focus on quality have resulted in much greater requirements placed upon employees today than decades ago (Quinn and Spreitzer 1997). The challenge has been to internalize a new type of organizational behavior in order to operate successfully under unfamiliar conditions. Learning, both institutional and individual, and the ensuing corporate changes are seen as a prerequisite for the success and survival of organizations. This paper analyses the attitudes to work and studies of Lithuanian and Estonian students. The main research question is: what main attitudes do students have to their work and studies, are any differences in attitudes between different specialties of students in Lithuania and Estonia and, if so, what are the reasons for these differences? The paper reports the findings of a study of 236 university students in Lithuania and Estonia, which revealed their main attitudes to work and studies, factors that can influence their career.