Career Goal Progress Research Articles

Factors Affecting Organizational Commitment in Catering Industry: Haidilao as a Case Study

Organizational commitment is crucial for organizational development. This study analyzes the case of Hai Di Lao to explore the factors influencing organizational commitment in the restaurant industry. The research methodology includes an online survey, yielding 418 valid responses. The results indicate that both results orientation and employee orientation significantly impact organizational commitment through mediating variables: career goal progress, career competence development, promotion rate, and salary growth. Specifically, results orientation significantly affects career goal progress, career competence development, promotion rate, and salary growth, while employee orientation also significantly influences these career-related outcomes. This study emphasizes the critical role of career competence development, promotion opportunities, and salary growth in enhancing employee loyalty, providing empirical evidence for HR managers and organizational leaders in the restaurant industry to design effective retention strategies. Additionally, it recommends that future research adopt longitudinal methods to explore other potential mediating variables, such as job satisfaction and work-life balance, on organizational commitment.

How Career and Non-Work Goal Progress Affect Dual Earners’ Satisfaction: A Whole-Life Perspective

Many career self-management models assume that career goal progress promotes satisfaction, but research on the topic has yielded mixed results. Adopting a whole-life perspective, this study examines how career and non-work goal progress relate to career, non-work, and life satisfaction and explores crossover effects and gender differences between dual-earner partners. We tested our research model using Actor-Partner Interdependence Modeling on a two-wave dataset of 190 heterosexual dual earners (i.e., 95 couples). Career goal progress was not related to any of the satisfaction indicators. For men, non-work goal progress was marginally positively related to career and non-work satisfaction and positively related to life satisfaction. For women, non-work goal progress was not related to any satisfaction indicator. Between partners, men’s non-work goal progress was positively related to women’s non-work and life satisfaction, whereas women’s career goal progress was negatively related to men’s life satisfaction. Implications for research and career practice are discussed.

The Effect of Career Growth on Employee Turnover Intention in Sarawak Construction Industry

This study examines the effect of career growth dimensions (career goal progress, professional ability development, promotion speed, and remuneration growth) on turnover intention in the Sarawak construction industry. Using a quantitative method and cross-sectional design, data was collected through an online survey questionnaire and analysed using multiple regression analysis. Results indicate that career goal progress and professional ability development have a significant effect on turnover intention, while promotion speed and remuneration growth do not have any significant effect on turnover intention. These findings emphasise the importance of career growth opportunities and professional development strategies to enhance employee satisfaction and reduce turnover. Organisations should reassess retention strategies and consider other factors influencing turnover intention to improve employee retention efforts.

Career Growth: A Review of Literature and Implications for the Civil Service in a Developing Country

The need for the Civil Service to deploy Career Growth practices in order to increase workers performance and hone positive behaviour and attitudes has become urgent. Moreover, there are several documented studies across various cultures and countries on the organisational and individual benefits of career growth. Curiously, literature on career growth practices in the civil service of developing countries is under-researched. Considering this gap, this study conducted a literature review on career growth and highlighted its implications on the Civil Service in Nigeria. Based on the review, the study anchored the performance implications of career growth using career goal progress, professional ability development, and organisational rewards growth as foci. The study recommended that: opportunity for employees to attain or achieve their career goals and objectives should be provided; employees should be encouraged to participate in developmental programs and perform developmental tasks; workers should get coaching on how to define and achieve career objectives; more opportunity should be given to workers to learn new skills; salaries should be paid regularly; and government should reintroduce incentive programs, transportation allowances, meal subsidies, utility allowances, leave grants, and entertainment allowances.

Development and Psychometric Evaluation of the Career Growth Scale for Nurses

The purpose of this study was to develop the Career Growth Scale for Nurses (CGSN) and to evaluate its psychometric properties. This study was conducted in four phases: (1) creating a pool of potential items through a qualitative design, (2) developing a preliminary scale using a modified two-round Delphi process, (3) refining the preliminary scale to finalize the scale using a cross-sectional survey, and (4) evaluating the psychometric properties of the final scale using another cross-sectional survey. A sample of 858 registered nurses from 12 general hospitals was recruited for this study. The final scale consisted of 17 items categorized into three factors: career goal progress, professional ability and attribute improvement, and career promotion and prestige increase. The three factors accounted for 75.4% of the observed variance of career growth. The overall Cronbach's α was .96, and the intraclass correlation coefficient was .92. The content validity index was.97. Confirmatory factor analysis showed acceptable model fitness. These results showed that the CGSN has good psychometric properties and can be used to evaluate specific career growth among nurses. This new instrument can further help nurse managers and clinical nurses themselves assess career growth and identify unsatisfactory aspects of growth, thereby designing tailored training programs and evaluating the effectiveness of such interventions.

Career Progression of Women: Does Work-life Balance Matter?

The study empirically examined the influence of work-life balance practices on the Career Progression of Women at the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection (MoGCSP). Given the reliance on an explanatory research design, the study utilized a structured questionnaire for gathering the primary data quantitatively from 209 randomly selected participants. A second-order model was configured in SMART PLS for testing the directional hypotheses formulated. The results indicated that work-life balance practices have a moderately significant positive predictor on both career goal progress and promotion speed. However, it significantly predicts a weak positive variance in professional development ability of career progression. The practical implication is that the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection through its agency, must continually provide favorable work-life balance practices for its female staff to make female workers happy, satisfied, and progress in their various careers. The study offers a better theoretical understanding of how work-life balance, if handled well, may influence female workers' career progression, even in a situation where men predominate, as per role theory. Empirically, the study enriches the theoretical understanding of how work-life balance, if properly managed, would affect female workers in progression in their careers even in a masculine context, as established by the role theory in Sub-Saharan country-context.

CAREER GROWTH AND EMPLOYEE DEDICATION IN THE BAYELSA STATE CIVIL SERVICE

This study investigated the relationship between Career Growth and Employee Dedication of the Bayelsa State Civil Service. The study identified 4,413 civil servants between Grade Level 8 and Grade Level 14. A sample of 367 representatives was drawn using Yamene’s (1967) formular. Data retrieved from 281 valid copies of the questionnaire were analyzed to generate descriptive outputs, with the aid of the International Business Machine Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 28.0.1. Three hypotheses were tested using Spearman’s Rank Order Correlation Coefficient. All dimensions of Career Growth (career goal progress, professional ability development and organisational rewards) were found to have positive and significant relationship with dedication. The study concluded that higher levels of career goal progress, professional ability development and organisational rewards are associated with higher levels of dedication. The study recommends that government should: (i) enable workers attend more developmental programs, and carry out developmental assignments; coached workers on how to set and attain career goals for specific positions, (ii) create more opportunities for workers to develop new professional skills, knowledge and competencies, and (iii) review reward system to re-introduce incentive schemes such as transportation allowance, meal subsidy, utility allowance, and non-financial incentives such as compliments, public recognition, and awards. KEYWORDS: Career Growth, career goal progress, professional ability development, and organisational rewards growth, dedication

Effect of Employee Management Practices on Employee Performance in Trans Nzoia County Government, Kenya

This paper examines the relationship between human resource management practices and employee performance in Trans Nzoia County government. Despite receiving considerable funds from the National Treasury and other local revenue, underperformance as a problem among employees characterizes most of the county governments in the country; underperformance in the county is depicted by failure to meet set targets, late coming, unjustified absenteeism, and unsatisfactory revenue collection. The paper specifically focused on the influence of compensation and career management practices on employee performance. The paper is an output of a study that was carried out on “human resource management practices and employee performance” in Trans Nzoia County. The study was guided by Human Capital Theory advanced by Theodore Schultz. It employed a correlational survey design. The target population comprised all the102 employees attached to the Department of Public Service Management in Trans Nzoia County. A questionnaire was used to collect primary data. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the collected data. The regression analysis results indicated that both compensation and career management practices (β1= 0.462, P value=0.000<0.05 and β4 = 0.579, P value=0.000<0.05) respectively had a significant positive effect on employee performance. It was concluded that both compensation and career planning affect employee performance. The paper thus, makes contribution to the extant literature regarding relationship between HRM practices and employee performance by establishing that compensation and career management practices are essential in predicting employee performance specifically in Trans Nzoia County government since a similar study had not been conducted in the area. Furthermore, the study recommends that county governments in Kenya should design effective compensation policy that will ensure employees are compensated according to the value they bring to the organization and the market standards, additionally employees should be allowed to embrace career planning prospects in fast tracking their career goal progress, self-management and professional abilities.

Motivational Conflict and Volitional Career Actions in Young Adults: Ego Depletion as an Explanatory Mechanism

We assessed the underlying mechanisms through which career motivational conflict was related to career volitional action in young adults. We tested a model in which career motivational conflict (parent-child career incongruence and career goal progress discrepancy) was related to reduced career volitional actions (career decision self-efficacy and career engagement) via self-regulatory failure (ego depletion in reference to talking to parents about their careers or thinking about their careers). Participants were 260 young adults (75.8% female; M age = 19.89 years) enrolled at a large, multi-campus university in South-East Queensland, Australia. We confirmed greater career-related motivational conflict, in both forms, was associated with lower volitional actions. Furthermore, self-referenced depletion explained the relationships between career goal progress discrepancy and poorer career decision self-efficacy and less career engagement. These findings have implications for how counsellors might assist young people to improve their career volitional actions by reducing the effects of career motivational conflict.

Social self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and goal progress among American college students: Testing temporal relations by gender and race/ethnicity

ABSTRACT The transition to college represents an exciting time for adolescents and young adults, but it could also pose a challenge as they adapt to a new environment. According to social cognitive career theory, self-efficacy, outcome expectations and goal progress are key predictors of positive adjustment. While these variables have received considerable empirical attention, they are understudied using longitudinal designs and in the social domain. To fill this gap, the present study adopted the RI-CLPM to examine temporal relations as within-person processes between social self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and goal progress among first-year college students (N = 831) who completed measures of study variables at three time points with a lag of four to five weeks. As hypothesized, results derived from the entire sample identified social self-efficacy as a temporal precursor of social outcome expectations and goal progress. A similar temporal pattern emerged for European American students and students of color. However, while a bidirectional model offered the best fit for male students, no cross-lagged paths were significant for their female counterparts. These findings highlight the importance of self-efficacy and outcome expectations and provide implications for promoting positive social adjustment among college students who have different gender and racial/ethnic backgrounds.

Employees' adoption of HR analytics – a theoretical framework based on career construction theory

PurposeDrawing upon the career construction theory, the present study aims to propose and test a mediation model exploring the association among technology readiness, adoption of human resource (HR) analytics by HR professionals, and organizational career growth.Design/methodology/approachA survey has been conducted to collect data from HR professionals (N = 347) working in various industrial sectors in India. The data collected is analyzed for mediation using SPSS PROCESS Macro (Model 4).FindingsThe study provided evidence about the mediating role of individual adoption of HR analytics between technology readiness (motivators, inhibitors) and organization career growth (career goal progress, professional ability development, promotion speed and remuneration growth).Research limitations/implicationsFirstly, the results provide evidence in relation to the career construction theory with respect to adoption of human resource analytics by HR professionals. Secondly, the study findings validate the technology readiness model in the context of adopting HR analytics. Thirdly and most significantly, the study proposes a novel theoretical framework for adoption of HR analytics by HR professionals in organizations.Practical implicationsThe findings imply that HR professionals' technology readiness (motivators and inhibitors) can facilitate better adoption of HR analytics in organizations. Moreover, the adoption of HR analytics shall promote better career growth for HR professionals.Originality/valueThe present study builds and tests a theoretical framework based on technology readiness, individual adoption of HR analytics, and organization career growth. The study is the first of its kind to the best of the authors' knowledge.

Nurses' perceptions of career growth: A qualitative descriptivestudy.

To explore nurses' experiences and perceptions of career growth and its influencing factors, as career growth is more closely associated with individual attitudes and behaviours in the new career era. A qualitative descriptive design was used. Thirty-one nurses from 10 secondary and 8 tertiary hospitals in Sichuan Province of China were purposively selected to participate in this study. The data were collected using individual semi-structured face-to-face interviews. Two researchers independently reviewed the transcripts and emergent coding. The data were analysed using qualitative content analysis. The nurses' perceptions of career growth fully described the nurses' experience and occurred in five dimensions: career promotion, career goal progress, professional ability and quality improvement, professional identity development and increase in personal prestige. The factors influencing career growth were identified at the organizational, individual and social levels. Career growth in nursing was complex, changed over time and showed several specific characteristics compared with other careers. The nurse-specific symbol of career growth was professional identity development, which reflected career progression characteristics. Career growth is a multi-dimensional concept with varying influencing factors. The meaning of career growth for nurses is distinct from that for employees in other careers. Nursing managers should guide nurses to comprehensively assess their career growth from multiple perspectives, and professional identity development deserves more attention. Both organizations and individuals should take responsibility for career management to pursue career growth.

The Impact of Career Growth on Knowledge-Based Employee Engagement: The Mediating Role of Affective Commitment and the Moderating Role of Perceived Organizational Support.

Based on social exchange theory and attribution theory, this paper explores the role of affective commitment and organizational support in the relationship between career growth and the engagement of knowledge workers. The results show that (1) career growth has a positive impact on knowledge workers’ organizational engagement; (2) career goal progress and professional ability development promote job engagement; (3) career growth has a positive effect on affective commitment, which in turn influences employee engagement; (4) affective commitment plays a mediating role in the effect of career growth on engagement; and (5) perceived organizational support positively moderates the relationship between career growth and affective commitment.

Career Goal Discrepancy, Career Distress, and Goal Adjustment: Testing a Dual Moderated Process Model in Young Adults

Identifying a large discrepancy in young people’s career goal progress can lead to distress, activating meaning-making, self-regulatory mechanisms aimed at resolving the uncomfortable situation. We assessed these important career-regulatory processes in a theoretical model by testing the indirect effects of career goal discrepancy on goal adjustment (assimilation and accommodation) via career distress, and assessed the conditionality of these effects based on two moderators (career calling and negative career feedback). In a cross-sectional study, we recruited 287 young adults with a mean age of 23.79 years ( SD = 3.35), and tested complex dual moderated process model (OLS regression). Greater career goal discrepancy was associated with more career distress, and, in turn, less assimilative and more accommodative tendencies. These indirect effects depended on the level of career calling and negative career feedback. The findings can be used to tailor interventions to optimise the consequences of identified gaps in young people’s career progress.

Predictive Influence of Career Growth on Work Stress of Electrical/Electronic Trade Teachers

This study investigated the predictive influence of career growth on work stress of electrical/electronic trade teachers. The study adopted correlation research design and the structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the respondent. The entire one hundred and eighty five (185) electrical/electronic trade teachers of technical colleges in three states of Nigeria were employed for the study. The data collected were analyzed using mean and standard deviation. Meanwhile, hierarchical and standard multiple linear regression analysis was used to establish predictive influence of career growth of electrical/electronic trade teachers on their job stress. Meanwhile, two-way repeated analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to establish the status of interaction effect of age and gender, experience and gender, type of teacher and age and type of teacher and experience on career growth, and job stress of electrical/electronic trade teachers. The study found that career growth and its sub-factors—career goal progress, professional ability development, promotion speed, and remuneration growth—positively predicted job stress of electrical/electronic trade teachers. The study claimed that there were interaction effects of age and gender, experience and gender, type of teacher and age and type of teacher and experience on career growth, and job stress but not statistically significant among electrical/electronic trade teachers.

The Positive Career Goal Discrepancy Scale: Development and Initial Validation

The 15-item Positive Career Goal Discrepancy Scale was developed to assess emerging adults’ appraisals of the extent to which their current career progress exceeds their set career goals. We generated 32 items based on a literature review, focus groups, and expert reviews, used EFA ( N = 244, M age 18.7 years; 65% women) to reduce the number of items, and CFA ( N = 254, M age 18.7 years; 68% women) to confirm the factor structure and demonstrate superior reliability at the total score level (ω reliability = .91). Validity testing demonstrated that the scale was distinct from a measure of negative career goal discrepancy and related, as expected, to constructs in the nomological net: correlated positively with career satisfaction and optimism, and negatively with negative career goal discrepancy. The scale is a useful addition to the career literature and is likely to stimulate research into positive career goal progress in young people.

Reciprocal Relation Between Career Values and Career Goal Progress: A Two-Wave Longitudinal Study

Existing research tends to treat individuals’ career values as relatively stable and independent factors that shape subsequent attitudes and behaviors, yet overlooks reverse causal effects. Employing the self-determination theory and the cognitive dissonance theory, we empirically tested the reciprocal relationship between career values and career goal progress, and the dynamic relations among different dimensions of career values. Data were collected using a time-lagged panel design across one year among a large sample of Chinese college students (N = 2339). Results show that intrinsic fulfillment value (Time 1) positively predicts career goal progress (Time 2); career goal progress (Time 1) is positively related to all three kinds of career values (Time 2). In addition, external compensation value at Time 1 attenuates intrinsic fulfillment value and work-life balance value at Time 2, and work-life balance value at Time 1 is negatively related to intrinsic fulfillment value at Time 2. Theoretical and practical implications of this research are discussed.

Reaching Your Career Goals: Will it Make You and Your Partner Happy? A Dual-Earner Perspective.

This paper investigates the impact of career goal progress on career and life satisfaction in a dual-earner context. We explore three competing perspectives on the role of partner’s career goal progress: partner coordination, reinforcement and hindrance. Hypotheses were tested using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) on two-wave data of 98 dual-earner couples (i.e., 186 employees). Our results establish a direct effect between individual career goal progress and individual life satisfaction for men, but not for women. We also found a negative covariance between individual and partner career goal progress, which supports the partner coordination perspective. Implications for future research are discussed.

Why do millennials stay in their jobs? The roles of protean career orientation, goal progress and organizational career management

In this paper we report a time-lagged study over six months analyzing the indirect effect of protean career orientation on changes in turnover intentions via personal work goal progress in a sample of millennial employees. Consistent with protean career theory and social exchange theory, we found that protean career orientation indirectly leads to decreases in turnover intentions over time and this effect was moderated by organizational career management practices. This effect was observed because the relationship between goal progress and decreases in turnover intentions became less salient when organizations were perceived to offer high levels of formal career practices. We discuss the implications for research and practice.

Sacrifice—but at what price? A longitudinal study of young adults’ sacrifice of basic psychological needs in pursuit of career goals

Examining two, 3-wave prospective longitudinal samples of university students pursuing a career goal, we propose that young adults make personal sacrifices during goal pursuit. Specifically, we introduce the concept of basic psychological need sacrifice and suggest it is distinguishable from the sacrifice of maintenance and leisure activities. We found that sacrificing basic psychological needs had enduring affective and self-regulatory costs through the effect of increased need frustration over the academic year. Moreover, we found that the sacrifice of psychological needs stemmed from controlling motivational processes, such as extrinsic life aspirations, controlled career goal motivation (assessed at the start of the academic year) and controlled motivation for sacrificing (assessed midyear along with the three types of sacrifices). Psychological distress and need frustration were assessed at baseline and end-of-academic-year, while career goal progress was assessed at the end of the academic year. Implications of these findings for basic psychological needs theory are discussed.