Close Relationships and Career Goals: How Significant Others Facilitate Career Goal Attainment

Abstract

Career goals are an important aspect of career management, yet few studies investigate the processes involved in career goal attainment. Our study addresses the question if the most significant other person in one’s social environment can facilitate career goal attainment. Drawing on transactive goal dynamics theory (Fitzsimons, Finkel, & vanDellen, 2015), we assume that if the most significant other shares one’s career goal more resources (e.g., time) are available for goal pursuit. We further assume that the amount of shared resources relates positively to goal attainment and that goal coordination moderates this relationship. We conducted a three-wave online study with German politicians (N = 83) who had the career goal to be elected as Member of Parliament, and collected objective data about the candidates’ goal attainment (i.e., election success). Our analyses revealed no significant main effect of shared goals on goal attainment, but we found a significant indirect effect through shared resources. Goal coordination did not moderate the effect of shared resources on career goal attainment. Our results provide first evidence about the influence of the most significant other on career goal attainment and imply that career researchers should take account of the social context individuals are embedded in.