The relationship between career growth and organizational commitment

This research examines the relationship between employees' career growth and organizational commitment. Career growth was conceptualized by four factors: career goal progress, professional ability development, promotion speed and remuneration growth, while organizational commitment was conceptualized using Meyer and Allen's (1997) three component model. Survey data, collected from 961 employees in 10 cities in the People's Republic of China, showed that the four dimensions of career growth were positively related to affective commitment, and that three of the facets were positively related to continuance and normative commitment. Only three of eighteen two-way interactions among the career growth factors affected organizational commitment, suggesting that the career growth factors influence commitment in an additive rather than a multiplicative manner.Results focus on how career growth can be used to manage organizational commitment.     

The role of friends in career compromise: Same-gender friendship intensifies gender differences in educational choice

We propose a mechanism of how the desire to maintain friendships can intensify gender differences in educational choice. The required conditions for this mechanism would be that (1) adolescent males and females differ in their overall educational preferences, (2) wanting to stay close to friends motivates some adolescents to adjust their educational choice in line with their friends' choices, and (3) adolescents have a higher share of same-gender, than other-gender, friends. Study 1 confirmed that these criteria were met, and Study 2 found an association between friendship priority and gender typed field of study. In conclusion, adjusting educational choices in order to maintain friendships put adolescents at risk of compromising their true career interests, and also becomes an obstacle to a gender balanced labor market.     

The impact of career boundarylessness on subjective career success: The role of career competencies, career autonomy, and career insecurity

Based on the theoretical frameworks of the career enactment and the stress perspectives, this study develops and tests a model in which career boundarylessness affects subjective career success through its effect on three career competencies—knowing-why, knowing-how, and knowing-whom—and career autonomy and career insecurity. The results provided empirical support for the importance of career autonomy, career insecurity, and the development of knowing-why and knowing-how competencies in the successful pursuit of a boundaryless career. The implications of these findings are discussed.     

Supervisory mentoring and employee affective commitment and turnover: The critical role of contextual factors

Past research has largely ignored the role of contextual factors in the relationships between supervisory mentoring and individual and organizational outcomes. In order to fill this void, we investigate how job scope and career and development opportunities, two critical contextual factors, moderate the supervisory mentoring-affective commitment-turnover links. Integrating social exchange theory with insights from situational approaches to leadership, we hypothesized that (a) job scope would interact with supervisory mentoring in predicting affective commitment and (b) career and development opportunities would interact with affective commitment in predicting turnover such that the conditional effects of supervisory mentoring on turnover would be stronger at high levels of these contextual moderators. Results of a study conducted with a sample of 228 business alumni, using 15-month voluntary turnover as outcome, supported our predictions. We discuss the implications of these findings for mentoring research and practice.     

The professional career on the right track: A study on the interaction between career self-management and organizational career management in explaining employee outcomes

This article explores the relationship between organizational career management and career self-management and addresses the impact on employee outcomes. Within six large organizations, a sample of 491 employees reported on their career self-management initiatives, on their expectations towards organizational career support, and on their commitment and career success. This was complemented by information from their supervisors on career management support offered by HR and line management to these employees. Results show that individuals who take more initiatives to manage their career expect more career support from their employer. Career self-management positively impacts affective commitment and perceived career success, while organizational career management is positively related with affective commitment and career progress. Career self-management moderates the relationship of organizational career management with affective commitment and subjective career success.     

高承诺组织与员工建言:双过程模型检验

以来自36个组织的223名员工为被试,通过上级、同事和员工自评三方配对的问卷数据,研究探讨了高承诺组织与员工建言行为之间的关系。采用多层结构方程模型等方法进行数据分析,结果发现:(1)高承诺组织对员工建言行为(包括上行建言和平行建言)有显著的促进作用;(2)员工知觉到组织内的职业机会在高承诺组织和上行建言之间起部分中介作用;工作满意度在高承诺组织和平行建言之间起部分中介作用;(3)工作绩效在知觉到职业机会和上行建言之间起正向调节作用;人际关系在工作满意度和平行建言之间起正向调节作用;(4)不光如此,工作绩效还调节着"高承诺组织-知觉职业机会-上行建言"这一中介路径;人际关系还调节着"高承诺组织-工作满意感-平行建言"这一中介路径。文章最后对所得结果、理论和实践意义及未来研究做了讨论。     

Relationships among perceived career support,affective commitment,and work engagement

This study sought to test the predictive effects of perceived career support and affective commitment on work engagement. It was hypothesized that perceived career support would relate positively to work engagement and this relationship would be transmitted through affective commitment. Survey data were collected from 115 full‐time employees enrolled as part‐time graduate students in a large public university in Malaysia. Multiple regression analysis yielded results indicating that the relationship between perceived career support and work engagement was mediated by affective commitment. This finding suggests that employers can promote employee work engagement by ensuring employees perceive their organization to be supportive of their career and increasing employees' level of affective commitment.     

Affective organizational commitment and citizenship behavior: Linear and non-linear moderating effects of organizational tenure

Utilizing a meta-analytical approach for testing moderating effects, the current study investigated organizational tenure as a moderator in the relation between affective organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). We observed that, across 40 studies (N = 11,416 respondents), the effect size for the relation between affective organizational commitment and non-self measures of OCB was .23. However, we also found that organizational tenure moderated the relation in a non-linear way. Before 10 years of tenure, the strength of the commitment–OCB relation increased as organizational tenure increased; after that point, the strength of the commitment–OCB relation decreased as organizational tenure increased. In short, the moderating effect of tenure follows a curvilinear pattern.     

Protean attitude and career success: The mediating role of self-management

A protean career attitude is considered as an important determinant of career success in the contemporary career era. In this article we test a model in which we specify the relationships between protean career attitude, career self-management behaviors, career insight, and career success outcomes (career satisfaction and perceived employability). A survey was conducted among a sample of 289 employees. The results support the idea that a protean career attitude is a significant antecedent of career success and that this relationship is fully mediated by the development of career insight. The implications of these findings for understanding the process through which career attitude affects individuals’ career success are discussed.     

Career indecision and career exploration among older French adolescents: The specific role of general trait anxiety and future school and career anxiety

This study examined the relationship between two forms of adolescent anxiety, career exploration and career indecision. Two-hundred and forty-two French senior high school students filled out a self-report questionnaire that measured career indecision, frequency of career exploration, general trait anxiety, and fear of failing in one’s academic and occupational careers. The results showed that adolescent career indecision and career exploration were positively and significantly related to general trait anxiety and career anxiety. Nevertheless, career anxiety accounted for an additional part of the variance in career exploration and, to a lesser extent, in career indecision. General trait anxiety accounted for an additional part of the variance in career indecision only. In addition, general trait anxiety and career anxiety mediated the relationship between career indecision and career exploration. The discussion focuses on the role of anxiety (personality trait anxiety or an emotion connected to one’s future) in career development. It also addresses the implications of these results for improving counseling practices.     

Felt obligations to reciprocate to an employer,preferences for mobility across employers,and gender: Three-way interaction effects on subsequent voice behavior

Previous research suggests that employees engage in voice behavior to reciprocate for the positive treatment they receive from employers, but less is known about individual differences in employees' willingness to engage in voice behavior to that end. The present study proposes that felt obligations to the organization relate more strongly to voice behavior when employees also have stronger preferences for job stability (rather than job mobility). We also propose that this two-way interaction will be further moderated by gender; specifically, males who feel strong obligations to reciprocate and have strong preferences for job stability are especially likely to engage in voice behavior. Data collected from 209 employees over an 8-month period support both the proposed two-way and three-way interaction effects. Thus, while the norm of reciprocity is widely held, the effects of felt obligations to employers on voice behavior also depend upon both gender differences and individual differences in preferences for job stability.     

Inter-relationships among attachment to mother and father, self-esteem, and career indecision

This study investigated the mediating role of adolescents’ global self-esteem, based on the relationship between adolescents’ mother or father attachment and their career indecision; as well as the mediating role of adolescents’ career indecision on the relationship between mother or father attachment and self-esteem. Two hundred and forty-one adolescents completed a self-report questionnaire that measured the difficulty in making decisions about their future academic and vocational careers, their global self-esteem, and their attachment to their parents. Results showed that the more adolescents felt attached to their mother and father the easier it was for them to make career decisions. The self-esteem mediation hypothesis is supported as a function of parent and adolescent gender. Similarly, the mediating role of career indecision is confirmed and depends on the gender of both parents and adolescents. Interpersonal context, identity development, adolescent career development and the relationship between them are discussed.     

The impact of college on sex-atypical career choices of men and women

This study sought to identify the college environments and experiences associated with changes in sex-atypical career aspirations among men and women. A sample of 17,637 students attending baccalaureate institutions across the country was surveyed upon college entry and again 4 years later. The findings revealed that aspects of the college environment, including the peer culture, faculty interaction, and curriculum, all contribute to shifts to or from nontraditional career choices.     

The outcomes of effective career discussion at work

This article examines the outcomes that resulted from career discussions experienced by 104 employees. Employees appeared to benefit from discussions about their careers with individuals in a wide range of roles. Many effective career discussions produced multiple outcomes, and some of these were long-lasting. The most common types of outcomes experienced were a clearer view of future direction, self-insight, awareness of opportunities, and feeling reassured or better about self or work. The findings highlight the need for future research into the effectiveness of career interventions to take more account of multiple outcomes and how these evolve over time. Also, organizations need to encourage informal career discussions and informal mentoring.     

The mediating role of affective commitment in the relation of the feedback environment to work outcomes

The Feedback Environment, as opposed to the formal performance appraisal process, is comprised of the daily interactions between members of an organization (Steelman, Levy, & Snell, in press). Relations between the feedback environment and work outcome variables such as Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) were examined through the mediating effects of affective commitment. Results indicate that affective commitment mediates the relation between the feedback environment and organizational citizenship behavior, and this mediated relation is stronger for OCBs directed at individuals than directed at the organization as a whole. Conclusions and implications are discussed.     

Combined effects of the three commitment components on focal and discretionary behaviors: A test of Meyer and Herscovitch’s propositions

The purpose of this study was to test theoretical propositions advanced by Meyer and Herscovitch (2001) concerning the interactive effects of affective, normative, and continuance commitment on focal (staying intentions) and discretionary (citizenship) behavior. Study measures were gathered from a sample of 545 hospital employees. Several a priori predictions regarding commitment profile differences were confirmed. Significant three-way interactions were found for both staying intentions and citizenship behavior. The pattern of relations for both behavioral criteria partially confirmed the hypotheses, but also provided evidence of possible “context effects” whereby the meaning and implications of the commitment components varies as a function of the other components. These effects were most notable for normative commitment and may offer new insight into the nature of this construct. Implications for commitment theory and its application were discussed.     

Dimensionality of organizational commitment in volunteer workers: Chamber of commerce board members and role fulfillment

This study explores the multi-dimensionality of organizational commitment of volunteer chamber of commerce board members using the Meyer and Allen (1997) scale. The effect of organizational commitment on desirable board member roles is also tested. Theory is developed by uniting past research in both organizational commitment and employee motivation. A proposed scale is tested using Confirmatory Factor Analysis with data gathered from 616 respondents at 116 chambers of commerce in 36 states. Structural Equations Modeling is then used to examine the effects of organizational commitment on several critical roles the board member is hoped to perform. Unlike prior research using Meyer and Allen’s (1997) scale that focused on paid employees, our results indicate that normative, affective, and continuance commitment based on low alternatives are the three distinct constructs applicable to volunteer employees. Moreover, these components have a positive effect on board member’s roles.     

The role of narrative in career construction theory

Career construction theory (CCT) (Savickas, 2005) approaches career counseling and career development from a constructivist and narrative perspective. As career theories move towards incorporating holistic approaches that take into consideration individuals' subjective experiences, narrative theory offers a means to draw out and clarify this story. Career construction theory, effectively integrates narrative and career conceptualizations to holistically create clarity in understanding what, how, and why individuals author their lives and careers in order to help individuals develop a cohesive identity, adapt within their environment, and construct the next chapter of their career story.     

Family and career path characteristics as predictors of women’s objective and subjective career success: Integrating traditional and protean career explanations

This study examined the effects of family and career path characteristics on objective and subjective career success among 916 employed mothers. Among family variables, age at first childbirth was positively related and career priority favoring the husband was negatively related to both income and subjective career success; number of children was negatively related and years elapsed since first childbirth was positively related to income only. Among career path variables, career gaps, interorganizational mobility and proportion of one’s career spent in part-time work were negatively related to income; career gaps were negatively related to subjective career success. Income was positively related to subjective career success. Results suggest that integration of traditional and protean career perspectives helps to explain women’s career success.     

Nonstandard career paths and profiles of commitment to life roles: A complex relation

The career paths (ascending, interesting, uninteresting, descending) of 124 White Canadian francophones (62 men, 62 women) who had experienced nonstandard and precarious work for the last three years were examined in relation to the participants’ profiles of commitment to three life roles (work, family, and duality, that is, investment in both career and family). The paths were derived from the content analysis of the data collected through semi-structured individual interviews. Quantitative tools were used to assess the importance of life roles and to compare the career paths as well as the commitment profiles with respect to specific and general anxiety. Among other results, a significant relationship was found between unsatisfying career paths and the duality profile, on the one hand, and higher levels of specific and general anxiety, on the other. The results are discussed with respect to the scientific literature. Implications for career counseling are suggested.