The cost of being marginalized: how workplace ostracism shapes decent work perception

This study aimed to identify the factors affecting decent work and life satisfaction among middle-aged and older re-employed individuals in their 50s or older, based on Psychology of Working Theory(PWT). Specifically, the research model hypothesized the direct impact of perceived social class on work volition, decent work, and life satisfaction and indirect link between these variables. Also, the research model tested whether proactive personality moderates the relations among social class, work volition, decent work, and life satisfaction. To do so, an online survey was conducted with 400 middle-aged and older re-employed individuals, and data was analyzed using structural equation modeling. The analysis revealed that the perceived social class of re-employed individuals had an indirect significant effect on decent work through work volition. Additionally, work volition was found to have a significant direct effect on life satisfaction and an indirect effect through decent work. While the direct path from social class to life satisfaction was significant, the indirect paths through work volition and decent work were also significant. Finally, the moderation effect of proactive personality on the research model was examined. The proactive personality of re-employed individuals did not moderate the influence of social class and work volition on life satisfaction. But it was found that the direct impact of decent work on life satisfaction was significantly higher in the low proactive personality group. These results extend the applicability of PWT in Korean population, highlight the importance of social environmental context in perceptions of decent work and life satisfaction among re-employed individuals, and suggest potential intervention through work volition.

Predictors of decent work across time: Testing propositions from Psychology of Working Theory

PurposeThis study aims to examine how Chinese rural-urban migrant workers' socio-economic status was associated with their decent work.Design/methodology/approachGrounded in the psychology of working theory (PWT), this study tested the path from rural-urban migrant workers' socio-economic status to decent work via work volition, with this path moderated by environmental uncertainty and trade union support. 470 rural-urban migrant workers from four manufacturing enterprises were investigated.FindingsResults indicated that rural-urban migrant workers' socio-economic status was positively associated with rural-urban migrant workers' decent work through work volition. In addition, environmental uncertainty weakened the impact of socio-economic status on work volition while trade union support strengthened the relationship between socio-economic status and work volition.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the growing research on the PWT by testing its utility among rural-urban migrant workers in the Chinese context. The study also identifies the crucial effects of environmental uncertainty and trade union support, which are distinctive characters of contemporary China, in the formation process of rural-urban migrant workers' decent work. A detailed explanation of the results and implications is discussed in the end.

The present study tested key tenets of the Psychology of Working Theory (PWT) in a sample of 526 racially and ethnically diverse employed adults. The authors investigated how economic resources and marginalization predicted decent work through experiences of work volition and career adaptability. Support for the hypotheses was mixed. There was a direct, negative relation between marginalization and decent work; a direct, positive relation between economic resources and work volition; and a direct, negative relation between marginalization and work volition. There was a positive relation between work volition and career adaptability as well as with decent work. Work volition was also found to significantly mediate the relations between marginalization and economic resources to decent work. These results suggest that the primary reason why greater economic resources and lower experiences of marginalization predict engaging in decent work is attributable to an increased sense of choice in one's career decision making. Results suggest the need for further investigation using the PWT to understand how racially and ethnically diverse employed adults secure decent work. Practical implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record

Decent work in a transition economy: An empirical study of employees in China

Grounded in Psychology of Working Theory (PWT), the current study investigated predictors of decent work among a sample of employed women (N = 528). A structural equation model was examined finding that women's experiences of marginalization, work volition, and career adaptability all directly predicted the attainment of decent work, and economic constraints and marginalization experiences indirectly predicted decent work via work volition. Additionally, workplace climate for women employees was examined as both a predictor and moderator variable to explore best positioning of this additive construct. Workplace climate did not significantly moderate any model paths; however, it was a unique predictor of work volition and decent work, suggesting that this construct may be better positioned as a predictor variable in understanding the work experiences of women. These results highlight the importance of further investigating the role of workplace climate in PWT as well as the need for refining our understanding of how marginalized employees achieve decent work. Implications of the present study's results are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Objectives This study examined the mediating effects of work volition and career adaptability in the relationship between economic constraints and decent work among counselors. Methods To this end, a survey was conducted with 234 counselors in South Korea. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS Statistics 26 and Process Macro 4.2, through frequency analysis, descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, multiple regression analysis, and bootstrap-based mediation analysis. Results The study revealed that work volition mediates the relationship between economic constraints and decent work. Furthermore, both work volition and career adaptability were found to play a dual mediating role in the relationship between economic constraints and decent work. Additionally, for male participants, age and marital status significantly influenced perceptions of decent work, while economic constraints had a greater impact on female participants compared to their male counterparts. Conclusions This study applied the Psychology of Working Theory (PWT) to counselors and proposed intervention strategies to help them attain decent work. It is significant in that it identifies the barriers preventing male and female counselors from perceiving their work as decent and helps understand the practical conditions needed for counselors to recognize their work as decent.

Psychology of Working Theory (PWT) has recently gained empirical support; however, its assumptions have yet to be tested for cultural responsiveness in Latinx communities, one of the fastest-growing worker populations in the U.S. The current study had two major aims: (a) to translate and validate instruments measuring PWT constructs from English into Spanish, and (b) to test theorized PWT predictors of decent work in a sample of Latinx workers ( N = 287). First, we translated and validated instruments measuring economic constraints, lifetime marginalization, work volition, and decent work using confirmatory factor analyses (CFA). We then tested a structural model predicting decent work. Results partially supported PWT hypotheses, suggesting its utility and cultural responsiveness in studying the work patterns and conditions in Latinx communities. Practical implications are discussed.

The U.S. has a history of marginalizing Black people. Marginalization impedes Black Americans’ ability to secure wealth, education, and meaningful work. The Psychology of Working Theory (PWT) uses a social justice lens to understand how contextual factors inform the labor market experiences of those who work and want to work. PWT highlights the ways economic constraints and marginalization predict access to decent work. We tested the PWT model with two measures of marginalization, general ethnic discrimination, and racial microaggressions, with a sample of 241 Black workers to add to the extant literature about the suitability of the PWT for racial minorities. Diverging from previous studies, we found that marginalization predicted career adaptability. Consistent with previous studies, marginalization and economic constraints predicted Black workers’ work volition and perceived access to decent work. Work volition mediated the relationship between general ethnic discrimination and economic constraints with the perception of attaining decent work.

High levels of poverty and unemployment are pervasive barriers to Nigerian emerging adults entering the job market. The current study employed the Psychology of Working Theory to explore career engagement, academic satisfaction, and life satisfaction predictors in a nation experiencing the intersections of high poverty and high unemployment rate. We tested a model predicting these outcomes from economic constraints and marginalization mediated by work volition, career adaptability, and perceptions of future decent work. We administered online surveys to 310 undergraduates in Nigeria. Career adaptability and work volition predicted the perception of future access to decent work. Also, those who reported higher chances of securing decent work after graduation reported greater academic and life satisfaction and career engagement. While economic constraints predicted career adaptability in this model, marginalization did not predict career adaptability. In contrast with previous studies, economic constraints, and marginalization were not predictive of work volition or future decent work perception. We also found a positive relationship between economic challenges and career adaptability against the propositions of the Psychology of Working Theory (PWT). The implications of our findings were discussed.

This brief provides a concise summary of relevant knowledge from applied and vocational psychology on decent work and psychology of working theory (PWT). The concept of decent work emerged from policy initiatives by the International Labour Organization (ILO), which created an aspirational set of baseline conditions that define reasonable working conditions across the globe. A related theoretical initiative framed around the growing inclusive, humanitarian, and social justice–informed movements within applied psychology is PWT. PWT integrates macro-level factors (i.e., economic constraints and marginalization) with work volition and career adaptability to understand how people can access decent work and fulfill their work-based needs (survival, social contribution, and self-determination) that facilitate work and life satisfaction. The brief describes the implications of decent work and PWT in informing humane changes in organizations, public policy, and individual career/organizational practice.

Psychological ownership within psychology of working theory: A three-wave study of gender and sexual minority employees

This study was conducted by applying the Psychology of Working Theory (PWT) to young workers. Whether the subjective social status perceived by young workers had a significant effect on obtaining decent work, and whether the mediating effect of work meaning, work volition, and career adaptability appeared in this pathway was verified using a structural equation model. The survey was conducted on 500 young workers, and the results of the study are as follows. First, the subjective social status recognized by young workers had a positive and direct effect on decent work, and the work meaning, work volition, and career adaptability had a partial mediating effect on the relationship between the two variables. In addition, it was found that subjective social status predicts the work meaning and work volition. Second, work volition and career adaptability did not directly significantly affect decent work. Third, the work meaning of young workers not only had a mediating effect on obtaining decent work, but also had a significant direct influence. Based on these results, the significance of this study and suggestions for subsequent studies were presented.

People from lower social classes experience significant difficulties in many life domains including work, yet their work lives continue to be understudied in psychology. This study examined the applicability of the Psychology of Working Theory (PWT), which emphasizes the role of socioeconomic constraints in shaping work and well-being outcomes, in a non-Western, collectivist cultural framework. Specifically, we tested the associations of social class with work volition and career adaptability in predicting decent work and job and life satisfaction with a sample of 401 low-income Turkish employees. Results of structural equation modeling analyses supported all hypothesized paths of the proposed model. Social class predicted decent work directly and indirectly through work volition and career adaptability, and decent work predicted job satisfaction and life satisfaction. In addition to extending the research on the international utility of the PWT, these results support the notion that social class has a crucial role in low-income working adults' access to decent and fulfilling work along with their attainment of well-being. The results of this study also underline the importance of promoting decent work among low-income individuals to improve their personal and work lives. Implications for practice with low-income Turkish employees and directions for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

PurposeSustainable development must address the challenge of ensuring decent work for all (SDG 8) and promoting good health and well-being (SDG 3). This study aims to assess the relationship between decent and meaningful work and their impact on work engagement and job satisfaction among adult workers. Decent work goes beyond mere employment, encompassing standards for a fulfilling life, including fair compensation and workplace security, while fostering personal development and social integration. Following the psychology of working theory (PWT), decent work is a prerequisite to the attainment of meaningful work, viewed as a positive belief system about one’s work and its potential positive impact on life and the world.Design/methodology/approachA sample of 276 adult workers, aged 21–70 years (M = 43.55, SD = 11.76), was surveyed to explore the association between decent and meaningful work and the following impact on work engagement and job satisfaction. Structural equation modelling was employed.FindingsThe study identified meaningful work as a crucial mediator between decent work and the outcomes of work engagement and job satisfaction.Practical implicationsThe findings highlight the importance of cultivating meaningful work experiences to enhance workplace well-being.Organisations should prioritize interventions to promote both decent and meaningful work to align with sustainable development goals and improve employee satisfaction and engagement.Originality/valueOur findings emphasize the pivotal role of decent work and, consequently, meaningful work in shaping employees’ well-being.