The interplay of career involvement and goal conflicts: An eight-wave study with STEM professionals

Based on a “whole-life”-perspective and integrating theories of self-identity and resource management, the present longitudinal study examines the dynamic relationship between career involvement and conflicts between work and nonwork goals in a sample of 3095 German-speaking doctoral students and doctorate holders (37.0% women) from various STEM fields. We expected increases in goal conflicts to decrease career involvement, and simultaneously tested reciprocal relationships, that is, from involvement on conflicts. The random intercept cross-lagged panel model (RI-CLPM) was used to analyze within-person associations across eight measurement occasions (6-month time intervals) while controlling for between-person effects. At the between-person level, career involvement and goal conflicts were negatively correlated. At the within-person level, results showed negative cross-lagged effects from goal conflicts to career involvement as well as negative cross-lagged effects from career involvement to goal conflicts. This indicates that the interplay of goal conflicts and career involvement can result in either an upward or a downward spiral. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Proactive career behaviors and subjective career success: The moderating role of national culture

Although career proactivity has positive consequences for an individual's career success, studies mostly examine objective measures of success within single countries. This raises important questions about whether proactivity is equally beneficial for different aspects of subjective career success, and the extent to which these benefits extend across cultures. Drawing on Social Information Processing theory, we examined the relationship between proactive career behaviors and two aspects of subjective career success—financial success and work‐life balance—and the moderating role of national culture. We tested our hypotheses using multilevel analyses on a large‐scale sample of 11,892 employees from 22 countries covering nine of GLOBE's 10 cultural clusters. Although we found that proactive career behaviors were positively related to subjective financial success, this relationship was not significant for work‐life balance. Furthermore, career proactivity was relatively more important for subjective financial success in cultures with high in‐group collectivism, high power distance, and low uncertainty avoidance. For work‐life balance, career proactivity was relatively more important in cultures characterized by high in‐group collectivism and humane orientation. Our findings underline the need to treat subjective career success as a multidimensional construct and highlight the complex role of national culture in shaping the outcomes of career proactivity.     

会计学原理课程的教学引导

大学阶段是学生从学生时代走向社会的过渡阶段,是学生积蓄能力,充实自我的阶段.专业课教师的博学善诱将有助于学生挖掘自身优势规划自己的学习目标,变被动接受的学习方式为主动探求的学习方式,培养学习能力,激发学生学习兴趣,进行职业规划,使大学生活更加丰富更加充实.     

Relationship between protean career orientation and work–life balance: A resource perspective

Despite the commonly held belief that a protean career orientation (PCO) enables employees to achieve more balance in their lives, little is known about the relationship between PCO and work–life balance. Using two waves of data collection separated by 2.5 years, this study examined the relationship between PCO and work–life balance among a sample of 367 college‐educated employees in the United States. Analysis was conducted to empirically distinguish PCO from conceptually related constructs, and structural equation modeling was used to examine the process that explains the linkage between PCO and balance. We found that PCO was positively related to work–life balance. We also found support for the role of several resources (social capital, psychological capital, and perceived employability) that explain the relationship between PCO and balance. In particular, PCO was associated with extensive career planning activities that were related to the accumulation of three forms of career capital—human capital, social capital, and psychological capital. In turn, social capital and psychological capital were associated with high employability, which was related to greater work–life balance for individuals who take a whole‐life perspective on their careers. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of the findings and provide suggestions for future research. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

PERSPECTIVES ON ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND ITS MANAGEMENT: EXAMPLES FROM FOREST HYDROLOGY1

ABSTRACT: This paper uses the varying perspectives of researchers, funders, users or purchasers, and the wider community of stakeholders who have an interest in the outcome of research, to describe the socio-economic and organizational context in which forest hydrology research, as a particular form of environmental science, is carried out. The kinds of products from research, and the outcomes from research desired by these different parties are discussed. Implications for research organizations, their research strategies, and for the researchers within those organizations are discussed using the Porter-Harvard model of the context for the competitive strategies of enterprises. Some possible implications for research funding, research management, career paths for researchers, and the initial and lifetime education/learning needs of researchers and their managers are suggested. These considerations and implications are then related to the kinds of knowledge, skills, experience, and behaviors which are likely to be needed for a 21st century career in environmental research.     

How does spouse career support relate to employee turnover? Work interfering with family and job satisfaction as mediators

Employee turnover is a major concern because of its cost to organizations. Although theory supports the influence of nonwork factors on turnover, our understanding of the degree to which nonwork factors relate to actual turnover behavior is not well developed. Using a sample of 5505 U.S. Army officers, we assessed the extent to which spouse career support related to reduced turnover four years later through work interfering with family (WIF) and job satisfaction as mechanisms. Results revealed that spouse career support decreased the odds of turnover, and WIF and job satisfaction sequentially mediated this relationship, with lower WIF and higher job satisfaction reducing the odds of turnover. Practical implications of using family support systems as retention interventions are discussed. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An experimental study of the interaction effects of incentive compensation,career ambition,and task attention on Chinese managers' strategic risk behaviors

Building on the person–pay interaction model, we developed and tested a model for the influence of managers' career ambition and task attention on their responses to incentive compensation under different conditions of firm performance. We argued that managers with greater career ambition and task attention will be more responsive to incentive compensation, thereby engaging in more strategic risk behaviors, such as strategic risk taking and strategic change. Results of our experiment using a managerial decision‐making game with a sample of Chinese managers partially supported this contingency perspective. Under the condition of performance decline, managers' career ambition only accentuated the positive relationship between incentive compensation and strategic change. By contrast, task attention strengthened the positive relationships between incentive compensation and both strategic risk taking and strategic change. However, under the condition of performance growth, neither managers' career ambition nor their task attention influenced their responses to incentive compensation. We discuss the implications for how organizational leaders can use incentive compensation to influence the strategic risk behaviors of managers. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.