Learning Climate Perceptions as a Determinant of Employability: An Empirical Study Among European ICT Professionals.

Claudia M. Van der Heijde,Beatrice I. J. M. Van der Heijden,Jan C. Looise,The Indic@Tor Study Group ,Olga Epitropaki,Nikos Bozionelos,Izabela Marzec,Aslaug Mikkelsen,Dora Scholarios,Piotr Jędrzejowicz

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02471

Abstract

This study investigated the role of age in the relationship between perceptions of learning climate and self- and supervisor-rated employability among European Information and Communication Technology (ICT) professionals. The psychological climate for learning was operationalized by three indicators, namely the perceptions that employees have of the learning value of their job, supervisor support for learning, and the organizational support for learning. As hypothesized, a Structural Equation Model demonstrated that the relationship between age and perceptions of learning climate was negative. The model also showed a strong positive relationship between learning climate and self-reported and supervisor-rated employability. Furthermore, learning climate perceptions appeared important for employability irrespective of life or career stage. An explorative bootstrapping-based test suggested that older workers with managerial responsibilities profit less from psychological learning climate for self-reported and supervisor-rated employability than older workers at non-managerial levels. These findings have important implications for human resource practices that aim to increase lifelong employability.

Highlights

As a result of aging and dejuvenization of the working population, the competitiveness of developed countries in the few decades is forecasted to depend increasingly on the contribution of older workers (Shultz and Adams, 2007; Van der Heijden et al, 2009b)
For the category with managerial responsibilities we found comparable results: age was no longer significantly related to learning climate perceptions or employability
Adding these factors into our model led to a larger proportion of explained variance in the supervisor ratings and self-ratings of employability, especially for workers with managerial responsibilities

Summary

Introduction

As a result of aging and dejuvenization of the working population, the competitiveness of developed countries in the few decades is forecasted to depend increasingly on the contribution of older workers (Shultz and Adams, 2007; Van der Heijden et al, 2009b). Van der Heijde and Van der Heijden’s (2006) competence-based approach to employability is an elaboration of the resource-based view of the firm (Nordhaug and Grønhaug, 1994; Wright et al, 1994). According to this view, competences are one category of possible resources that enable firms to achieve performance and (sustained) competitiveness. When an organization encourages individual development and change its employees are better able to meet new or anticipated demands (see for instance: Argyris and Schön, 1978; Senge, 1990; Fugate et al, 2004; Rothwell and Arnold, 2007)

Methods

Results

Conclusion