Demographic factors affecting white attitudes to black advancement in a South African organization

Abstract

An empirical study was undertaken in a South African organization in which white attitudes to black advancement were analyzed in terms of eight demographic variables - home language, sex, age, length of service, education, job grade, department, and geographical location. The scale employed was found to have acceptable psychometric properties in terms of internal consistency and factor structure. Education, language, job grade, department and location showed significant statistical relationships with attitudes to black advancement. No differences were found for sex, age or length of service. These variables accounted for 22 of the variance. The majority of the variance in attitude to black advancement is still unexplained.

Opsomming
'n Empiriese studie is in 'n Suid-Afrikaanse organisasie onderneem waarin die houdings van blankes tot swart ontwikkeling ondersoek is in terme van agt demografiese veranderlikes - huistaal, geslag, ouderdom, diensjare, opvoedingspeil, posvlak, afdeling, en geograflese ligging. Die meetinstrument het aanvaarbare psigometriese eienskappe vertoon in terme van beide betroubaarheid en faktorsamestelling. Opvoedkundige peil, huistaal, posvlak, afdeling en ligging het beduidende verbande met houding teenoor swart ontwikkeling getoon. Geen verskille is ten opsigte van geslag, ouderdom en diensjare gevind nie. Hierdie veranderlikes het 22 van die variansie verklaar. Die grootste gedeelte van die variansie wat blankes se houding teenoor swart ontwikkeling bepaal, bly nog onverklaar.