Abstract
Social integration is an important outcome of organizational socialization. It helps adolescents after transition to their first job to adapt rapidly to the new work and organizational situation. Positive social integration, especially a positive apprentice–trainer relationship and work group integration, helps the apprentices not only to overcome the uncertainties linked to this transition, but also to gain access to the resources needed for successful socialization and learning in the organization. The social integration develops within the first months in the new organization. First, we study how two indicators of social integration, namely the apprentice–trainer relationship and work group integration, develop over time. Second, we investigate how an individual’s reliability, the perceived person–occupation fit, and organizational resources predict the level and development of the social integration within the first months in the new job. The study is based on a longitudinal sample of 199 students in transition to work; that is, from compulsory school to apprenticeship at the upper secondary level. To estimate intra-individual development across time in the apprentice–trainer relationship and work group integration, latent growth curve analysis was used. Both indicators of social integration—the apprentice–trainer relationship and work group integration—decrease over time. Pre-entry factors (a person’s reliability and person–occupation fit) predicted the level of social integration but not the development. No effect of the apprentices’ person-occupation fit and reliability could be found for the apprentice–trainer relationship. A negative effect of the person–occupation fit on work group integration was found. Organizational resources only predicted the initial level of the apprentice–trainer relationship. An individual’s reliability and a strong person–occupation fit as before organizational entry help apprentices to become better socially integrated afterwards. These findings are discussed with reference to theoretical and practical implications.
Highlights
Social integration is an important outcome of organizational socialization
Measurement invariance tests To test for longitudinal measurement invariance, we separately calculated a configural invariance model for the apprentice–trainer relationship and work group integration from the 1st to the 5th month of the apprenticeship
In this article, we first investigated how the apprentice–trainer relationship and work group integration develop over time
Summary
Social integration is an important outcome of organizational socialization. It helps adolescents after transition to their first job to adapt rapidly to the new work and organizational situation. Becoming socially accepted and integrated is especially important for newcomers without prior organizational or work-related experiences, as is the case for apprentices in transition from compulsory school to education and training at the upper secondary level in Switzerland (Stalder and Nägele 2011). Theories on social exchange and interpersonal relationships in organizations highlight that organizational socialization is a mutual process and should not be conceptualized as being solely the newcomers’ responsibility (Schaubroeck et al 2013), organizational socialization and learning depends substantially on the apprentices’ willingness and capability to adapt rapidly These attempts need to be supported by trainers and coworkers with the aim to integrate and instruct newcomers, which entails the social acceptance of the apprentices (Masdonati and Lamamra 2009). It is important that newcomers get the information and guidance they need, which can be achieved by allocating enough resources to support them
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