PSYCHODEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE OF STOCKPEOPLE WORKING ON INDEPENDENT AND INTEGRATED SWINE BREEDING FARMS IN QUEBEC

As a part of a larger study, the psychodemographic profile of Quebec p ig stockpeople was described based on a sample of 48 persons working o n independent farms randomly selected in the Richelieu - Saint-Hyacint he region, and on a convenience sample of 38 others employed by 5 orga nizations of integrated swine production chosen among the largest ones in Quebec. The 2 groups of stockpeople were described separately beca use of the differences between the 2 types of production. Demographic data (age, sex, level of education, training and experience in swine p roduction, seniority on the farm) were obtained through a face-to-face interview. The personality profile was assessed using a standard pers onality test (French translation of the Sixteen Personality Factor Que stionnaire). Both the stockpersons on independent farms and those empl oyed by the organizations were more reserved, emotionally stable, seri ous, conscientious, unsentimental, controlled, introverted, and less a nxious than the average person in the general population. However, mul tivariate analyses revealed some differences between these two groups of stockpersons (P = 0.021) as well as between the employees of the di fferent organizations (P = 0.0038). These differences in personality p rofiles may reflect differences in working conditions, particularly re garding the human relationships, and in corporate cultures of the orga nizations.