Graduate radiographers' expectations for role development – The potential impact of misalignment of expectation and valence on staff retention and service provision

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to investigate the role development expectations of graduate radiographers with a view to predicting the potential impact of a misalignment of these expectations and valence on service delivery and staff retention. A final year cohort of radiography students completed a questionnaire designed to explore topics associated with role development opportunities.MethodStructured questionnaires, in the Likert scale format, utilised 20 attitude questions constructed to elicit information in relation to 3 main themes of investigation; expectation, valence and knowledge.ResultsAll participants (n = 37) stated an expectation for role development opportunities with 97.3% (n = 36) indicating that these expectations would be realised within 5 years of graduation and 75.7% (n = 28) within 2 years of graduation. A significant correlation between expectation for role development and job satisfaction was seen (p < 0.05). 81.1% (n = 30) of participants stated turnover intentions in order to meet their expectations.ConclusionThere is an expectation for role development opportunities for new graduates with a valence noted of the intrinsic reward of meeting these expectations. Expectation and valence are seen to be intrinsically linked with job satisfaction suggesting that misalignment of these would have a potentially negative impact on motivation and retention of the future radiography workforce demonstrating a positive correlation with withdrawal behaviours, including turnover intentions. In a relatively small professional group such as radiography the phenomenon of group cohesion may be strong suggesting that withdrawal behaviours may manifest as ‘resignation in post’, impacting on the quality of care and service provision for patients.