Work made us what we are: Complexity of work, self-directedness of orientation, and intellectual flexibility of older US and Japanese men

Following Kohn and Schooler's theoretical and analytical frameworks, this study establishes that the reciprocal relationships between self-directed occupational conditions and both self-directed orientation and intellectual functioning are the same for older US and Japanese men. Using longitudinal data from representative samples of US men employed in 1964 and 1994 and Japanese men employed in 1979 and 2006, we conducted multi-group structural equation modeling. In both countries, self-directed complex work increased both self-directed orientation and intellectual functioning. Reciprocally, these two types of psychological functioning had positive effects on self-directed occupational conditions. These findings indicate that although there exist cultural and structural differences in occupational settings, in stable societies, job conditions can continue to affect and reflect central aspects of psychological functioning in relatively late life stages.