Learning from each other: leaders' social representations of career beginners and career beginners' self-assessment

Abstract

Today's youth face prejudice and stereotyping in the workplace; in times of crisis, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, their prevalence and strength may increase. We conducted a qualitative study of social representations of key exchange partners – leaders and career beginners. In the first phase, we conducted semi-structured interviews to identify the dominant social representations that small business leaders (N = 9) hold about career beginners. In the second phase, we examined how future career beginners (N = 26) responded to five hypothetical work situations based on the leaders' social representations. The social exchange partners shared the narrative that career growth, advancement, and financial incentives are important motivators for career beginners, but contradicted each other in their accounts of career beginners' initiative levels and in their accounts of preferred leadership styles. The findings help to raise awareness of the mutual representations and expectations of different age groups in the work context.