Alessandro Lo Presti

Snakes and ladders: stressing the role of meta-competencies for post-modern careers

Major global changes during the last decades have influenced the individual’s work-life and career. As a result of globalisation, increasing societal complexity and flexibility, careers have lost their linearity and predictability. Traditional models of career development no longer provide a comprehensive explanation for an adequate career development. New theoretical concepts such as protean and boundaryless career attitudes are presented as options to cope with the new situation. In addition, the development of career meta-competencies and skills are introduced as an approach to foster career self-management.Résumé.Serpents et échelles: souligner le rôle des méta-compétences pour les carrières post-modernes. Les changements globaux importants des dernières décennies ont influencé la vie de travail et la carrière de l’individu. En raison de la mondialisation, de la complexité et de la flexibilité sociales croissantes, les carrières ont perdu leur linéarité et leur prévisibilité. Les modèles traditionnels du développement de la vie professionnelle ne fournissent plus une explication complète pour le développement d’une vie professionnelle harmonieuse. Nous présentons de nouveaux concepts théoriques tels que des attitudes de carrière protéiformes et dégagées de toute limitation comme des possibilités de faire face à la nouvelle situation. En outre, on présente le développement de méta-compétences et de qualifications de carrière comme une approche susceptible de stimuler l’autogestion de la carrière.Zusammenfassung.Schlangen und Leitern: Betonung der Bedeutung von Meta-Kompetenzen für postmoderne Berufsverläufe. Größere globale Veränderungen während der letzten Jahrzehnte haben das Arbeitsleben und die Berufsverläufe der Menschen beeinflusst. Als Ergebnis der Globalisierung, die die gesellschaftliche Komplexität und Flexibilität gesteigert hat, haben Berufsverläufe ihre Linearität und Vorhersagbarkeit verloren. Traditionelle Modelle der Beruflichen Beratung stellen nicht mehr länger eine umfassende Erklärung für die angemessene Entwicklung von Berufsverläufen bereit. Neue theoretische Konzepte, wie etwa wandelbare und grenzenlose Karriere-Konzepte, erden als Optionen vorgestellt, um mit den neuen Verhältnissen umzugehen. Darüber hinaus wird die Entwicklung von Meta-Kompetenzen und –Fähigkeiten als ein Ansatz vorgestellt, die Selbststeuerung der beruflichen Karriere zu fördern.Resumen.El juego de las escaleras y culebras: Acentuando el rol de las meta-competencias para las carreras post-modernas. Los cambios globales ocurridos durante las últimas décadas están influyendo la vida laboral del individuo y su carrera profesional. Como resultado de la globalización, y de una mayor complejidad y flexibilidad de la sociedad, las carreras han perdido su linealidad y predictibilidad. Los modelos tradicionales del desarrollo de la carrera ya no proporcionan una explicación comprensiva para el adecuado desarrollo de la carrera. Surgen otras opciones para manejar esta situación, como puede ser el adoptar actitudes flexibles, sin límites, teniendo una mente abierta para aceptar los cambios y adaptarse a nuevas situaciones. Además, se introduce el desarrollo de las meta-competencias y habilidades para la carrera como una estrategia para fomentar la auto-gestión.

An Examination of the Structure of the Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale (Short Form) Among Italian High School Students

This study aims to evaluate the factor structure of Career Decision Self-Efficacy scale-short form in a sample of Italian high school adolescents. confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to test the degree to which a one-factor structure and a five-factor structure provided the best fit. In view of available research the five-factor structure was expected to provide the best fit. Moreover, factorial invariance in males and females was tested. It was expected to be invariant across groups. As expected the five-factor structure showed a better fit than the one-factor model and the factorial invariance resulted invariant across boys and girls.

The Interactive Effects of Job Resources and Motivations to Volunteer Among a Sample of Italian Volunteers

The examination of organizational features of voluntary associations and their effects on the experiences of volunteers traditionally received less attention than other topics. This paper aimed to examine how different features as social and task support, information and appreciation affect volunteers’ experiences in terms of job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and intention to remain. Moreover, potential moderating effects by motivations to volunteer in relation to the abovementioned relations were tested. Through the use of a self-report questionnaire, distributed among 162 Italian voluntary associations (final sample of 1,445 volunteers), structural equation modeling (SEM), and moderated-SEM were carried out to verify hypothesized associations and potential moderations. Job resources were associated with the three outcomes, moreover many moderating effects by the values/understanding and career motivations were found. The results were commented on the basis of the current literature, and some practical suggestions were drawn about voluntary associations’ management and volunteers’ recruitment and selection.RésuméL’étude des caractéristiques organisationnelles des associations bénévoles et leurs effets sur les expériences des bénévoles ont traditionnellement reçu moins d’attention que d’autres sujets. Cet article a vocation à observer la manière dont différents aspects tels que le soutien social et relatif aux tâches, l’information et la reconnaissance affectent les expériences des bénévoles en termes de satisfaction professionnelle, d’engagement organisationnel et d’intention de poursuivre. En outre, les effets pondérateurs potentiels des motivations du bénévolat associés aux relations précitées ont été testés. Grâce à l’utilisation d’un questionnaire d’auto-évaluation, distribué auprès de 162 associations bénévoles italiennes (échantillons final de 1 445 bénévoles), une Modélisation d’Équation Structurelle (SEM - Structural Equation Modeling) et une SEM-pondérée ont été effectuées afin de vérifier les associations hypothétiques et les pondérations potentielles. Les ressources professionnelles ont été associées aux trois résultats, de plus de nombreux effets pondérateurs par les motivations Valeurs/Compréhension et Carrière ont été identifiés. Les résultats ont été commentés sur la base des publications actuelles, et certaines suggestions pratiques ont été tirées quant à la gestion des associations de bénévoles et la sélection comme le recrutement des bénévoles.ZusammenfassungDer Untersuchung von organisatorischen Merkmalen von freiwilligen Vereinigungen und deren Effekt auf die Erfahrung von Freiwilligen kommt traditionell weniger Aufmerksamkeit zu als anderen Themen. Dieser Artikel untersucht, wie verschiedene Merkmale, wie soziale Unterstützung und Hilfe auf Aufgaben, Information und Anerkennung, die Erfahrung von Freiwilligen bezüglich Arbeitszufriedenheit, organisatorisches Engagement und Bleibeabsicht beeinflussen. Außerdem wurden potentielle dämpfende Effekte auf die Motivation zu volontieren in Bezug auf die oben aufgeführten Beziehungen getestet. Mit Hilfe eines auf Selbsteinschätzung basierenden Fragebogens, der unter 162 italienischen freiwilligen Vereinigungen (1445 Volontäre) verteilt wurde, wurden Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) und Moderated-SEM durchgeführt, um hypothetische Vereinigungen und mögliche Schwankungen zu verifizieren. Eine Assoziation zwischen Arbeitsressourcen und den drei Ergebnissen wurde hergestellt. Außerdem wurden viele dämpfende Effekte auf die Motivationen Werte/Verständnis und Karriere gefunden. Die Ergebnisse wurden auf Grundlage der vorhandenen Literatur kommentiert und einige praktische Vorschläge bezüglich Management freiwilliger Vereinigungen und Rekrutierung und Auswahl von Freiwilligen unterbreitet.ResumenEl examen de las características organizativas de las asociaciones voluntarias y sus efectos sobre las experiencias de los voluntarios han recibido tradicionalmente menos atención que otros temas. Este documento tenía como objetivo examinar cómo afectan de manera diferente características como el apoyo social y de tareas, la información y el reconocimiento a las experiencias de los voluntarios en términos de satisfacción laboral, compromiso con la organización e intención de permanecer en la misma. Asimismo, se pusieron a prueba los efectos moderadores potenciales de las motivaciones a ser voluntarios en relación con las relaciones arriba mencionadas. Mediante el uso de un cuestionario de autoinforme, distribuido entre 162 asociaciones voluntarias italianas (muestra final de 1.445 voluntarios), se realizó el Modelado de Ecuaciones Estructurales (SEM) y el SEM-Moderado para verificar las asociaciones planteadas como hipótesis y las moderaciones potenciales. Se asociaron los recursos laborales a los tres resultados, asimismo se encontraron muchos efectos moderadores de las motivaciones Valores/Comprensión y Carrera. Los resultados fueron comentados en base al material publicado actual, y se extrajeron algunas sugerencias prácticas sobre la gestión de las asociaciones voluntarias y sobre la contratación y selección de voluntarios.摘要相对于其他课题而言,人们往往很少关注志愿团体的组织特点以及其对志愿者体验的影响。本文旨在探讨社会和任务支持、信息以及认可等不同特点会在工作满意度、组织承诺以及继续留任意愿等方面对志愿者体验产生怎样的影响。此外,本文还对各种动机在上述关系中对志愿者产生的潜在干扰影响进行了测试。通过向意大利的 162个志愿团队分发自陈式问卷(最终获得 1445 名志愿者的样本),本文进行了结构方程建模(SEM)以及干扰式结构方程建模,以对假设的团体以及潜在的干扰进行验证。其发现工作资源与三项结果相关,此外,还发现了因价值观/理解和职业动机产生的多种干扰影响。本文在现有文献的基础上所提出了一些结论,并就志愿团体的管理以及志愿者的招募和选拔提出了一些切实可行的建议。要約ボランティア団体の組織的な特徴とボランティアの経験への効果的な試みは、従来からあまり注目されてこなかった。本論文の目的は、仕事で得られる満足感、組織的な公約、意向の引き継ぎにおいて、社会的なタスクサポート、情報、見解などの異なる特徴が、どのようにボランティアの経験に影響を与えるかを調査することである。さらに、上記の関係と関連してボランティアの動機に影響を与える可能性を検証した。自己報告のアンケートを用いて、イタリアのボランティア団体のうち162団体(最終的なサンプルは1445名のボランティア)を調査した。構造方程式モデリング(SEM)とモデル化されたSEMから、仮想団体と潜在的な加減について検証したが、仕事のリソースは3つの結果に関連することがわかった。また、価値/理解、キャリアの動機によって多くの加減効果が明らかになった。結果として、現在の資料に基づいて判断すると、ボランティア団体の管理、新人募集、選択に関する実用的な提案があるといえる。ملخصتلقى دراسة الخصائص التنظيمية للجمعيات التطوعية وآثارها على تجارب المتطوعين عادة إهتماما˝ أقل من غيرها من الموضوعات. يهدف هذا البحث إلى دراسة كيف تؤثر الخصائص المختلفة مثل الدعم الإجتماعي ودعم المهمة، المعلومات والخبرات على تقدير المتطوعين من حيث الرضا الوظيفي والإلتزام التنظيمي ونية البقاء. علاوة على ذلك، تم اختبار الآثار المحتملة للإعتدال بواسطة دوافع التطوع فيما يتعلق بالعلاقات المذكورة أعلاه. من خلال إستخدام تقرير إستبيان ذاتي ، موزع على 162 جمعيات تطوعية إيطالية (العينة النهائية من 1445 متطوع)، تصميم معادلة هيكلية (SEM) وتم تنفيذ تصميم معادلة هيكلية (SEM) معتدلة خاضعة للإشراف للتأكد من فرضية الجمعيات و الإعتدال المحتمل. إرتبطت موارد الوظيفة مع النتائج الثلاث، أكثر من ذلك وجد العديد من الآثار المعتدلة بواسطة القيم/التفاهم ودوافع الوظيفة. تم التعليق على النتائج على أساس الأدب الحالي، وتم لفت الإنتباة لبعض الإقتراحات العملية حول إدارة الجمعيات التطوعية و توظيف وإختيار المتطوعين.

Looking for a route in turbulent waters: Employability as a compass for career success

The labour market has changed dramatically in the last few decades; in particular, lifetime employment within the same organization is now less frequent and careers have increasingly become boundaryless and unpredictable. Therefore, individuals need to take charge of their career development and try to increase their chances in the labour market. This is why employability has become a key and urgent concept for employees and employers, policy makers, scholars, and practitioners. Despite this increasing interest, employability still lacks a mainstream definition and a comprehensive theoretical model. To address this void, the present integrative review aims to (a) provide a new definition of employability contrasting it with previous contributions, (b) depict accurately the current body of evidence, and based on gaps in research published to date, (c) provide a heuristic model to inspire future research and address unresolved issues.

Una valutazione del modello Job Demands-Resources su un campione di operatori della salute

Il benessere occupazionale degli operatori della salute e un tema della massima importanza per l’opinione pubblica, i policy maker, il management ospedaliero nonche gli scienziati sociali. Il modello Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) e stato applicato con successo su molteplici categorie professionali per valutarne la qualita della vita lavorativa, e solo recentemente su gruppi di operatori sanitari. L’obiettivo del presente studio e esplorarne la validita su di un campione di 210 operatori italiani della salute. Le analisi, condotte mediante regressioni gerarchiche, hanno evidenziato molteplici relazioni significative, molte delle quali conformi alle evidenze gia disponibili su tale modello teorico. L’autonomia lavorativa e l’autoefficacia occupazionale predicono il work engagement, nonche lo strain (unitamente al carico di lavoro e al supporto sociale da parte dei colleghi). Inoltre, l’autoefficacia e il supporto sociale da parte del supervisore agiscono da buffer circa gli effetti negativi delle richieste lavorative su strain e work engagement. Tali risultati sono stati commentati alla luce della letteratura e al fine di evidenziarne le implicazioni pratiche.

Occupations at Risk and Organizational Well-Being: An Empirical Test of a Job Insecurity Integrated Model

One of the more visible effects of the societal changes is the increased feelings of uncertainty in the workforce. In fact, job insecurity represents a crucial occupational risk factor and a major job stressor that has negative consequences on both organizational well-being and individual health. Many studies have focused on the consequences about the fear and the perception of losing the job as a whole (called quantitative job insecurity), while more recently research has begun to examine more extensively the worries and the perceptions of losing valued job features (called qualitative job insecurity). The vast majority of the studies, however, have investigated the effects of quantitative and qualitative job insecurity separately. In this paper, we proposed the Job Insecurity Integrated Model aimed to examine the effects of quantitative job insecurity and qualitative job insecurity on their short-term and long-term outcomes. This model was empirically tested in two independent studies, hypothesizing that qualitative job insecurity mediated the effects of quantitative job insecurity on different outcomes, such as work engagement and organizational identification (Study 1), and job satisfaction, commitment, psychological stress and turnover intention (Study 2). Study 1 was conducted on 329 employees in private firms, while Study 2 on 278 employees in both public sector and private firms. Results robustly showed that qualitative job insecurity totally mediated the effects of quantitative on all the considered outcomes. By showing that the effects of quantitative job insecurity on its outcomes passed through qualitative job insecurity, the Job Insecurity Integrated Model contributes to clarifying previous findings in job insecurity research and puts forward a framework that could profitably produce new investigations with important theoretical and practical implications.

The Protean and Boundaryless Career in Italy: Game on?

In the last thirty years many scholars have realized that careers have lost their linearity and associated predictability.

With a little help from my family: A mixed-method study on the outcomes of family support and workload

Our aim was to investigate some predictors and outcomes of family-to-work enrichment (FWE) via a mixed-method approach. We sampled 447 married employees of an Italian factory. Survey results from Study 1 showed that emotional support from family positively predicted FWE, while this latter mediated the associations between the former on one side, and work engagement and life satisfaction on the other. Moreover, extra-household support directly associated positively with life satisfaction. Evidence from 20 anthropological in-depth interviews (Study 2) returned a more complex picture, highlighting the gendered role of partners inside couples, the importance of kinship support, the sense and the value of filiation and parenthood in their connection with job roles, the complex and continuous interplay between family and life domains. In combination, results from both studies stressed the importance of family support; additionally, evidences from Study 2 suggested that FWE could be better understood taking into account crossover dynamics and the compresence of work-to-family enrichment and conflict. In sum, these studies contributed to shed light on FWE dynamics, an under-researched topic in Italy, whose knowledge could be of great empirical and practical value.

On the Effects of Ethical Climate(s) on Employees' Behavior: A Social Identity Approach

The spread and publicity given to questionable practices in the corporate world during the last two decades have fostered an increasing interest about the importance of ethical work for organizations, practitioners, scholars and, last but not least, the wider public. Relying on the Social Identity Approach, we suggest that the effects of different ethical climates on employee behaviors are driven by affective identification with the organization and, in parallel, by cognitive moral (dis)engagement. We compared the effects of two particular ethical climates derived from the literature: An ethical organizational climate of self-interest, and an ethical organizational climate of friendship. Three hundred seventy-six workers completed measures of Ethical Climate, Organizational Identification, Moral Disengagement, Organizational Citizenship Behaviors (OCBs), and Counterproductive Work Behaviors (CWBs). Structural equation modeling confirmed that the two ethical climates considered were independently related to organizational identification and moral disengagement. These, in turn, mediated the effects of ethical climates on OCBs and CWBs. We discuss results in light of the social identity approach, and present some practical implications of our findings.

Corrigendum: A Crossover Study From a Gender Perspective: The Relationship Between Job Insecurity, Job Satisfaction, and Partners' Family Life Satisfaction

Background: In the last years, many changes have involved the labor context: new ways of working, more flexibility and uncertainty, new and more insecure job contracts. In this framework, perceived job insecurity, worker’s perception about potential involuntary job loss, has received renewed interest, also for those workers with a permanent contract in Italy. Consequences of job insecurity on work-related outcomes such as job satisfaction have been demonstrated; nevertheless, its possible effects outside the workplace seem to be underestimated so far. Moreover, literature highlighted the importance to consider gender as a possible moderator in the relationship between one partner’s stressors and the other partner’s strain. Aim: According to spillover and crossover theories, this study aim was to investigate the relationship between job insecurity and family life satisfaction of both partners, through the mediation of job satisfaction. The model has been simultaneously tested in two groups, women and men, in a sample of permanent workers. Method: The research involved a convenience sample of 344 employees with permanent contract (53% female) from different occupational sectors. Participants (focal persons) and their partners filled out a self-report questionnaire. Results: The multi-group SEM indicated a full mediation of job satisfaction in the relationship between job insecurity on the one side, and both individual’s and his/her partner’s family life satisfaction on the other side in both groups. Conclusion: These study findings highlighted how job insecurity may be indirectly and negatively related to both members’ family life satisfaction, through the mediation of job satisfaction. As regards gender, similar spillover and crossover patterns emerged, contributing to that literature that highlights a greater similarity in the models of interaction between work and family among women and men. Interventions should be aimed at reducing perception of job insecurity among workers, including those with permanent contract. Employers should improve communication and flow of information about future organizational changes. Moreover, interventions useful to monitor and reinforce employees’ job satisfaction should be planned. Finally, career practitioners may provide counseling and coaching projects aimed at strengthening employees’ employability and their ability to deal with changes.