'If a man will begin in certainties," said Francis Bacon, "he will end in doubts." That could be the motto of academic re- searchers who have been studying American workers' values and attitudes, and how both affect the workplace.
Despite years of valiant effort, scholars have been unable to link cause and effect in explanations of workers' attitudes and behavior. For example, it is impossible to say with "scientific" certainty that workers with interesting jobs are better...