Using longitudinal data from a nine-month e-mentoring program, we analyzed the influence of formal e-mentor networks and family-based role models on increases in both psychosocial and career-related outcomes. Findings indicate that e-mentor network relationship quality positively influenced general- and career-based self-efficacy which, in turn,…

The "opt-out revolution" has become a much-discussed phenomenon over the last decade. According to media reports, highly educated women are increasingly opting out of careers that would place them on the fast track to top management levels. However, little attention has been devoted to whether the opt-out revolution may also apply to highly…

We propose a person-centered framework for conceptualizing subjective careers in an increasingly boundaryless work context. Specifically, we argue that entrepreneurship, professionalism, and leadership (EPL) can serve as three key dimensions of subjective career space. We relate this framework to earlier macro-level national and organizational…

Young people today face a great deal of uncertainty regarding their career opportunities, yet relatively little information is known about the correlates and consequences of uncertain aspirations. Drawing upon the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England (LSYPE) born in 1989/90, this study examined a pathway model investigating whether…

While IT offshoring has generated heated debates both in scholarly circles and in the popular press, its impact on professional role identities and career experiences of situated individuals in both onshore and offshore locations has received much less attention. In this paper, we present a qualitative case study featuring a large global German…

Works councillors are elected representatives of employees in German companies. It is their job to protect and bargain the interests of the employees with the company. We investigated the impact of 558 works councillors' individual political skill on their career success, where career ascendancy is based on success in upward elections and not on…

The present study examined the relation of calling and academic satisfaction with a diverse sample of 312 undergraduate students. The presence of a calling was moderately correlated with academic satisfaction, and a multiple mediation model was utilized to test three potential mediators to this relation: career decision self-efficacy, work hope,…

The study examines school and parental influences on adolescents' occupational exploration. Analyses of data from 859 6th, 8th, and 10th graders attending high- and lower-track high schools in the German federal state of Thuringia suggested more extensive exploration among students closer to the school-to-work transition. Besides cross-sectional…

This study examined the influence of gender, socioeconomic status, and race/ethnicity on the career aspirations of over 22,000 8th and 10th grade youth. The top five occupations identified by youth as aspirations included artist, lawyer, musician, FBI agent, and actor/actress. Top occupations were also reported for each gender x socioeconomic…

Does job control act as a stress-buffer when employees' type and level of work self-determination is taken into account? It was anticipated that job control would only be stress-buffering for employees high in self-determined and low in non-self-determined work motivation. In contrast, job control would be stress-exacerbating for employees who…

The present study applied Image Theory (Beach, 1990) to test how different components of a person's value image (i.e., perceived social status identity and conformity to masculine and feminine gender role norms) interact to influence trajectories toward high career aspirations (i.e., high value for status in one's work and aspirations for…

The present research reports on the impact of occupational self-efficacy and of career-advancement goals on objective (salary, status) and subjective (career satisfaction) career attainments. Seven hundred and thirty four highly educated and full-time employed professionals answered questionnaires immediately after graduation, three years later,…

The predictive utility of social cognitive career theory's (SCCT) interest and choice models was examined in a sample of 600 Portuguese high school students. Participants completed measures of occupational self-efficacy, outcome expectations, interests, social supports and barriers, and choice consideration across the six Holland (1997) RIASEC…

Based on the socioanalytic perspective of performance prediction ([Hogan, 1991] and [Hogan and Shelton, 1998]), this study tests whether the motive to get ahead produces greater performance when interactively combined with social effectiveness. Specifically, we investigated whether interactions of the five-factor model constructs of extraversion…

This study examined the vocational aspirations and parental vocational expectations of high school students and their parents (1067 parent-child dyads). Participants completed a demographic questionnaire and an Occupations List. The Occupations List consisted of 126 occupational titles evenly distributed across the six Holland types. Parents were…