live to work or work to live impact of career identity on career development across dutch and...
TRANSCRIPT
Live To Work Or Work To Live
Impact of career identity on career development across Dutch and Chinese teachers
Dr. Huadong YangDr. Piety Runhaar
Emmy Soer Yishu Wang
Organisational Psychology and HRD University of Twente
Career is a path to develop my
professional skills.
Career is just like climbing a ladder.
Career is just like climbing a ladder.
I need a decent life, so I need a career.
I need a decent life, so I need a career.
Career is the evolving sequence of a person’s work experiences over time.
(Arthur, Hall & Lawrence, 1989)
Defining career
Career development
Different models of career development
• Life-span models
Super’s model (1959);
Career shifts and transitions during a life span.
• Individual differences
Career anchors (Schein, 1978):
Technical-functional; Managerial;
Security & stability; Creativity; Autonomy & independence.
Career patterns Kanter (1989) :
Professional; Bureaucratic; Entrepreneurial
• Two types of development
Horizontal development: (Task-oriented)
Do a better job;
Achievement by excellent work.
Vertical development: (Process-oriented)
Gain more responsibilities; authority and status;
Getting to the to top; higher salary.
Career development in our study
Influence of career identity on career development
In career development, most individuals inject their own identity into the situation by “being themselves”…and by taking on roles in which they can express their identity.
(Arthur, Hall & Lawrence, 1989)
Career identity
How central one’s career is to one’s identity. (London, 1983)
Work centrality The desire of
upward mobility
Job involvementProfessional orientationCommitment to work Identification with organization
AdvancementRecognitionDominance Money
Work centrality Task-oriented development
The desire of upward mobility
process-oriented development
The function of self-construal
• Individual’s sense of self in relation to others (Markus & Kitayama; 1991; Hardin, 2006)
Independent self-construalUnique and autonomous entity;
Independent from others; Express self.
Interdependent self-construalIs defined through relationships with others;
Connected with social context;
Occupy one’s proper place.
Work involvement Task-related Career development
Independent self-construal
Upward mobility process-related Career development
Interdependent self-construal
Method
Participants72 teachers and 10 school leaders from 10 schools in the Netherlands.Teachers: Mage = 40 (23 to 61); 80% female; 64 HBO and above
Instruments: Career development (leaders)6 items for the “task-related” career development (α =.85).“This teacher likes to participate in activities which can improve his/her teaching skills”.
5 items for the “process-related” career development (α =.87).“This teacher shows great enthusiasm for the activities which can lead to a promotion”.
• Career identityWork centrality (5 items; α =.68): “My work as a teacher is an important part of my life”
Desire of upward mobility (6 items; α =.69): “Getting a promotion is a strong motivation for me to work hard.”
• Self-construalIndependent self-construal (9 items; α =.72): “I prefer to do my own things.”
Interdependent self-construal (7 items; α =.70).“Having harmonious relationships with colleagues is my path to success”
Method
Results
Task-related career development
Control
Age -.06
Gender -.10
Experience .01
Predictor
Work centrality .19*
Independent self-construal -.06
Interaction
Work * Independent -.01
F 1.30
R2 .15
Results
Process-related career development
Control
Age -.12
Gender -.12
Experience .02
Predictor
Desire of upward mobility .49**
Interdependent self-construal .03
Interaction
Upward * Independent .22*
F 3.17**
R2 .30
2
3
4
Low High
Desire of upward mobility
Pro
cess
-rel
ated
ca
reer
dev
elo
pm
ent
Low interdependent High interdependent
Study 2
Purpose:
Replicate Study 1 in the Chinese cultural context, and examine how the impact of career indentify on career development differs across cultural contexts.
Hypotheses
• H1: The impact of work centrality on the task-oriented career development is stronger among Dutch employees than among Chinese employees.
Dutch Culture: Western; Individualistic; Independent
Work centralitytask-related career
development
Hypotheses
• H2: The impact of the desire for upward mobility on the process-oriented career development is stronger among Chinese employees than among Dutch employees.
Chinese Culture: Eastern; Interdependent; Collectivistic;
The desire for upward mobility
Process-oriented career development
• Participants 95 Chinese teachers; 15 team leaders (from 4 schools)
72 Dutch teacher; 10 team leaders
• ProcedureTeam leaders: career development activities
Teachers: career identity; self-construal.
• MeasuresCareer identity scale; in/inter-dependent self-construal scale; career development scale
Method
Work centralityTask-oriented career
development.18**
The desire for upward mobility
Process-oriented career development
.29**
Results: Main Effect
Results: Interaction Effect
The desire for upward mobility
Process-oriented career development
Ongoing Studies
Work centralityTask-related career
development
The desire for upward mobility
Process-related career development
HR practices
X
HR practices
＋
Implication
• Employees
Develop one’s career in accordance with career identity.
• Organizations
Organizational career should take individuals’ career identity into account.
Results: Additional Analysis
Work centralityTask-related career
development
Independent Self construal
The desire for upward mobility
Process-related career development
Interdependent self construal
X
X
Work Attitudes
• We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give. WINSTON CHURCHILL
• I'm a great believer in luck and I find that the harder I work, the more I have of it. THOMAS JEFFERSON.
• My father taught me to work; he did not teach me to love it. ABRAHAM LINCOLN
Work to live (A story on Internet)
• When I was a kid, I would ask my mom why she and my father had to work. She would always tell me that they had to, so we could have the money to buy food, to pay for the bills, to pay for our schooling…
To be successful means that you have to sacrifice some things, and sometimes you end up sacrificing your family, your friends, your life; you achieve your professional goals, but you lose yourself. Then, you wonder if the loss is worth the gain?