How Do Proactive Personality and Internal Locus of Control Play a Role in the Links Between Career Adaptability and Job Search Behaviors of Job Seekers? A Two-Moderator Approach

Yıl 2024, , 15 - 31, 31.03.2024

Merve Gerçek , Cem Güney Özveren

https://doi.org/10.54821/uiecd.1406825

Öz

The present labor market's rapid expansion has pressured individuals to enhance their employability and achieve professional success. Therefore, individuals need to be able to adapt and flourish in the face of unforeseen employment challenges, known as career adaptability. While previous studies have established the benefits of career adaptability in the job search process, there is a lack of understanding regarding the influence of personality characteristics on the relationship between career resources and job search behavior. This study investigates the combined moderating effects of proactive personality and internal locus of control on the link between career adaptability and job search behavior, drawing on career construction theory and planned job search behavior theory. The study sample comprises 308 individuals actively seeking employment in Istanbul and Kocaeli. SPSS AMOS was used for confirmatory factor analysis, and PROCESS Macro was used to examine moderator effects. The findings demonstrated a positive relationship between career adaptability, proactive personality, internal locus of control, and job-seeking behavior. Moreover, as predicted, the combined effect of proactive personality and internal locus of control moderates the relationship between career adaptability and job search behavior, suggesting the relationship is more robust when both traits are high. These findings are essential for researchers in the field of career and job search as well as for practitioners such as career counselors or training and development specialists.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Career Adaptability, Job Search Behavior, Proactive Personality, Internal Locus of Control

Proaktif Kişilik ve İç Kontrol Odaklılık İş Arayanların Kariyer Uyumluluğu ve İş Arama Davranışları Arasındaki İlişkide Nasıl Bir Rol Oynar? İkili Moderatör Yaklaşımı

Öz

Mevcut iş piyasalarının hızla genişlemesi, bireylere kendi istihdam edilebilirliklerini artırmaları ve mesleki başarı elde edebilmeleri için baskı oluşturmaktadır. Bu nedenle, bireylerin beklenmedik kariyer zorluklarına uyum sağlama ve gelişme kapasitesine sahip olmaları kritik öneme sahiptir. Daha önceki çalışmalar, iş arama sürecinde kariyer uyumluluğunun olumlu etkilerine ilişkin bulgulara yer vermis olsa da kariyer uyumluluğu ve iş arayışı davranışları arasındaki ilişki üzerindeki kişilik özelliklerinin etkisi konusunda sınırlı sayıda çalışma bulunmaktadır. Bu çalışmada, Kariyer İnşası Kuramı ve Planlı İş Arama Davranışı Kuramına dayanarak, proaktif kişiliğin ve iç kontrol odaklılığın kariyer uyumluluğu ve iş arama davranışları arasındaki bağlantıda düzenleyici rollerinin incelenmesi amaçlanıştır. Araştırmanın örneklemini İstanbul ve Kocaeli bölgelerinde aktif olarak iş arayan 308 kişi oluşturmaktadır. SPSS AMOS doğrulayıcı faktör analizi için ve PROCESS Macro düzenleyici etkilerin incelenmesi için kullanılmıştır. Elde edilen bulgular, kariyer uyumluluğu, proaktif kişilik, iç kontrol odaklılık ve iş arama davranışları arasında pozitif yönde ilişkiler bulunduğunu göstermektedir. Ayrıca, öngörüldüğü gibi, proaktif kişiliğin ve iç kontrol odaklılığın birlikte, kariyer uyumluluğu ve iş arama davranışları arasındaki ilişkiyi düzenlediği ve her iki özellik de yüksek olduğunda ilişkilerin daha güçlü olduğunu sonucuna ulaşılmıştır. Bu araştırmanın sonuçları kariyer ve iş arama alanındaki araştırmacılar ile kariyer danışmanları veya eğitim-geliştirme uzmanları gibi uygulayıcılar için önemlidir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Kariyer Uyumluluğu, İş Arama Davranışı, Proaktif Kişilik Özelliği, İç Kontrol Odaklılık

Kaynakça

• Ajzen, I. (1985). From intentions to actions: A theory of planned behavior. In Action control: From cognition to behavior (pp. 11-39). Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg.
• Ajzen, I., Fishbein, M., Lohmann, S., & Albarracín, D. (2018). The influence of attitudes on behavior. The Handbook of Attitudes: Basic Principles, 1, 197-255.
• Bagozzi, R. P., & Edwards, J. R. (1998). A general approach for representing constructs in organizational research. Organizational Research Methods, 1(1), 45-87.
• Bakker, A., Tims, M., & Derks, D. (2012). Proactive personality and job performance: The role of job crafting and work engagement. Human Relations, 65(10), 1359-1378.
• Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The Exercise of Control. New York: Freeman.
• Bandura, A. (2007). Much ado over a faulty conception of perceived self-efficacy grounded in faulty experimentation. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 26(6), 641–658.
• Barber, B. K., Olsen, J. E., & Shagle, S. C. (1994). Associations between parental psychological and behavioral control and youth internalized and externalized behaviors. Child Development, 65(4), 1120-1136.
• Bateman, T. S., & Crant, J. M. (1993). The proactive component of organizational behavior: A measure and correlates. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 14(2), 103-118.
• Bilal, M., Chaudhry, S., Amber, H., Shahid, M., Aslam, S., & Shahzad, K. (2021). Entrepreneurial leadership and employees’ proactive behaviour: Fortifying self determination theory. Journal of Open Innovation Technology Market and Complexity, 7(3), 176.
• Blau, G. (1994). Testing a two-dimensional measure of job search behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 59(2), 288-312.
• Bretz Jr, R. D., Boudreau, J. W., & Judge, T. A. (1994). Job search behavior of employed managers. Personnel Psychology, 47(2), 275-301.
• Brown, D. J., Cober, R. T., Kane, K., Levy, P. E., & Shalhoop, J. (2006). Proactive personality and the successful job search: A field investigation with college graduates. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(3), 717.
• Browne, M. W., & Cudeck, R. (1992). Alternative ways of assessing model fit. Sociological Methods & Research, 21(2), 230-258.
• Cai, Z., Guan, Y., Li, H., Shi, W., Guo, K., & Liu, Y., et al. (2015). Self-esteem and proactive personality as predictors of future work self and career adaptability: An examination of mediating and moderating processes. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 86, 86–94.
• Caliendo, M., & Uhlendorff, A. (2015). Locus of control and job search strategies. Review of Economics and Statistics, 97(1), 88–103.
• Caliendo, M., Cobb-Clark, D. A., Hennecke, J., & Uhlendorff, A. (2019). Locus of control and internal migration. Regional Science and Urban Economics, 79, 1–19.
• Caska, B. A. (1998). The search for employment: motivation to engage in a coping behavior. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 28(3), 206-224.
• Cobb-Clark, D. A. (2015). Locus of control and the labor market. IZA Journal of Labor Economics, 4, 1-19. Crant, J. M. (2000). Proactive behavior in organizations. Journal of Management, 26(3), 435-462.
• Crossley, C. D., & Highhouse, S. (2005). Relation of job search and choice process with subsequent satisfaction. Journal of Economic Psychology, 26(2), 255–268.
• Çarkıt, E. (2022). Gelecekteki çalışma benliğine ilişkin ayrıntında kariyer uyumluluğu ve kariyer iyimserliğinin rolü. Ahmet Keleşoğlu Eğitim Fakültesi Dergisi, 4(2), 347-359.
• DiPrete, T. A., & Eirich, G. M. (2006). Cumulative advantage as a mechanism for inequality: a review of theoretical and empirical developments. Annual Review of Sociology, 32, 271–297.
• Duffy, R. D. (2010). Sense of control and career adaptability among undergraduate students. Journal of Career Assessment, 18, 420–430.
• Ellis, R. A., & Taylor, M. S. (1983). Role of self-esteem within the job search process. Journal of Applied Psychology, 68(4), 632.
• Feldman, D. C., & Leana, C. R. (2000). A study of reemployment challenges after downsizing: What ever happened to laid-off executives? Organizational Dynamics, 29, 64–75.
• Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39-50.
• Gerçek, M. (2018). Mesleki kaygı ve kariyer uyumluluğu arasındaki ilişkiler: Öğretmen adayları açısından bir inceleme. Trakya Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 20(2), 297-312.
• Gerçek, M. (2023). Serial multiple mediation of career adaptability and self-perceived employability in the relationship between career competencies and job search self-efficacy. Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, (Early Cite).
• Guan, Y., Deng, H., Sun, J., Wang, Y., Cai, Z., Ye, L., et al. (2013). Career adaptability, job search self-efficacy and outcomes: a three-wave investigation among Chinese university graduates. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 83(3), 561–570.
• Guan, Y., Guo, Y., Bond, M. H., Cai, Z., Zhou, X., Xu, J., & Ye, L. (2014). New job market entrants' future work self, career adaptability and job search outcomes: Examining mediating and moderating models. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 85(1), 136-145.
• Haibo, Y., Xiaoyu, G., Xiaoming, Z., & Zhijin, H. (2018). Career adaptability with or without career identity: how career adaptability leads to organizational success and individual career success? Journal of Career Assessment, 26(4), 717-731.
• Hayes, A. F. (2022). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. Guilford publications.
• Hirschi, A. (2009). Career adaptability development in adolescence: Multiple predictors and effect on sense of power and life satisfaction. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 74, 145–155.
• Hou, C., Wu, L., & Liu, Z. (2014). Effect of proactive personality and decision-making self-efficacy on career adaptability among Chinese graduates. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 42(6), 903-912.
• Hu, X., Zhao, R., Gao, J., Li, J., Yan, X., Shao, S., & Li, X. (2021). Relationship between proactive personality and job performance of chinese nurses: The mediating role of competency and work engagement. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 1430.
• Hui, L., Jin, H., & Chen, T. (2018). Linking proactive personality to creative performance: The role of job crafting and high‐involvement work systems. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 54(1), 196-210.
• International Labour Organization. (2021). World employment and social outlook: Trends 2022 (1th ed.). International Labour Organization. https://www.ilo.org/global/research/globalreports/weso/trends2022/WCMS_834081/lang--en/index.htm
• Johnston, C. S. (2018). A systematic review of the career adaptability literature and future outlook. Journal of Career Assessment, 26(1), 3-30.
• Kanfer, R., Wanberg, C. R., & Kantrowitz, T. M. (2001). Job search and reemployment: A personality–motivational analysis and meta-analytic review. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86(5), 837–855.
• Kim, N. R., & Lee, K. H. (2018). The effect of internal locus of control on career adaptability: The mediating role of career decision‐making self‐efficacy and occupational engagement. Journal of Employment Counseling, 55(1), 2-15.
• Kim, W., & Park, J. (2017). Examining structural relationships between work engagement, organizational procedural justice, knowledge sharing, and innovative work behavior for sustainable organizations. Sustainability, 9(2), 205.
• KirazcıI, F., Yazan, Z. Ö., & Büyükgöze-Kavas, A. (2023). Üniversite bitiyor, ya sonra... okuldan işe geçiş sürecinde çalışma psikolojisi kuramına dayalı bir model testi. Journal of Management & Labor/Yönetim ve Çalışma Dergisi, 7(1).87-104.
• Koen, J., Klehe, U. C., Van Vianen, A. E., Zikic, J., & Nauta, A. (2010). Job-search strategies and reemployment quality: The impact of career adaptability. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 77(1), 126-139.
• Kristof, A. L. (1996). Person–organization fit: An integrative review of its conceptualizations, measurement, and implications. Personnel Psychology, 49(1), 1−49.
• Kuang, L., Zheng, W.-W., Lin, C.-D., Yang, M., & Liu, L. (2011). The relationship between economic confidence and career decision making self-efficacy of college students: The moderator effects of attribution and proactive personality. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 43(9), 1063–1074.
• Le, S. T., & Lin, S. P. (2023). Proactive personality and the job search outcomes: the mediating role of networking behaviour. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 51(1), 29-45.
• Leana, C. R., & Feldman, D. C. (1995). Finding new jobs after a plant closing: antecedents and outcomes of the occurrence and quality of reemployment. Human Relations, 48, 1381–1401.
• Lent, R. W., Brown, S. D., & Hackett, G. (2002). Social cognitive career theory. Career Choice and Development, 4(1), 255-311.
• Levenson, H. (1981). Differentiating between internality, powerful others, and chance. In H. M. Lefcourt (Ed.), Research with the locus of control construct: Vol. 1. Assessment methods (pp. 15–63). New York, NY: Academic Press.
• Lim, D. H., Kim, W., & Shin, H. Y. (2019). Career adaptability and active job search behavior of Korean older workers: The mediating roles of attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help. International Journal of Manpower, 40(7), 1239-1253.
• Liu, S., Huang, J. L., & Wang, M. (2014). Effectiveness of job search interventions: a meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 140(4), 1009-1041.
• Luo, Y., Huang, J., & Gao, S. (2022). Relationship between proactive personality and entrepreneurial intentions in college students: mediation effects of social capital and human capital. Frontiers in Psychology, 13: 861447.
• Madsen, J. K., Mikkelsen, K. S., & Moynihan, D. P. (2022). Burdens, sludge, ordeals, red tape, oh my!: a user's guide to the study of frictions. Public Administration, 100(2), 375-393.
• Major, D. A., Turner, J. E., & Fletcher, T. D. (2006). Linking proactive personality and the Big Five to motivation to learn and development activity. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(4), 927.
• McArdle, S., Waters, L., Briscoe, J. P., & Hall, D. T. T. (2007). Employability during unemployment: Adaptability, career identity and human and social capital. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 71(2), 247-264.
• McGee, A. D. (2015). How the perception of control influences unemployed job search. IIL Review, 68(1), 184-211. McGee, A. D., & McGee, P. (2016). Search, effort, and locus of control. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 126(1), 89–101.
• McKee-Ryan, F. M., Virick, M., Prussia, G. E., Harvey, J., & Lilly, J. D. (2009). Life after the layoff: getting a job worth keeping. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 30(4), 561-580.
• Mubarak, N., Khan, J., Yasmin, R., & Osmadi, A. (2021). The impact of a proactive personality on innovative work behavior: The role of work engagement and transformational leadership. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 42(7), 989-1003.
• Mueller, S. L., & Thomas, A. S. (2001). Culture and entrepreneurial potential: A nine country study of locus of control and innovativeness. Journal of Business Venturing, 16(1), 51-75.
• Ng, T. W. H., Sorensen, K. L., & Eby, L. T. (2006). Locus of control at work: A meta-analysis. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 27(8), 1057-1087.
• Ningsih, M. R., & Musoli, M. (2023). Pengaruh internal locus of control dan dukungan sosial terhadap career adaptability mahasiswa tingkat akhir di universitas ‘Aisyiyah Yogyakarta. Journal of Society Bridge, 1(2), 14-22.
• Pan, J., Guan, Y., Wu, J., Han, L., Zhu, F., Fu, X., & Yu, J. (2018). The interplay of proactive personality and internship quality in Chinese university graduates' job search success: The role of career adaptability. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 109, 14-26.
• Presbitero, A. (2015). Proactivity in career development of employees: The roles of proactive personality and cognitive complexity. Career Development International, 20(5), 525-538.
• Rahmawati, A., Wahyuningsih, S. H., & Garad, A. (2023). The effect of financial literacy, training and locus of control on creative economic business performance. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 8(1), 100721.
• Reay, D., Ball, S.J. & David, M. (2006). Degree of choice: Class, gender and race in higher education, Stoke: Trentham Books.
• Rotter, J. B. (1954). Social learning and clinical psychology. Englewoods Cliff, NJ: Prentice Hall.
• Rotter, J. B. (1966). Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. Psychological Monographs: General and Applied, 80(1), 1-28.
• Rottinghaus, P. J., Buelow, K. L., Matyja, A., & Schneider, M. R. (2012). The career futures inventory–revised: Measuring dimensions of career adaptability. Journal of Career Assessment, 20(2), 123-139.
• Rottinghaus, P. J., Day, S. X., & Borgen, F. H. (2005). The Career Futures Inventory: A measure of career-related adaptability and optimism. Journal of Career Assessment, 13(1), 3-24.
• Safitri, I., & Wibowo, M. E. (2021). The correlation between locus of control and social support on student’s career adaptability. Jurnal Bimbingan Konseling, 10(3), 184-192.
• Savickas, M. L. (1997). Adaptability: An integrative construct for life-span, life-space theory. Career Development Quarterly, 45, 247–259.
• Savickas, M. L. (2002). Career construction: A developmental theory of vocational behavior. In D. Brown (Ed.), Career choice and development (pp. 149−205)., 4th ed San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
• Savickas, M. L. (2005). The theory and practice of career construction. In R. W. Lent, & S. D. Brown (Eds.), Career development and counseling: Putting theory and research to work (pp. 42–70). Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.
• Savickas, M. L. (2005). The theory and practice of career construction. In S. D. Brown & R. W. Lent (Eds.), Career development and counseling (pp. 42−70). Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
• Savickas, M. L., & Porfeli, E. J. (2012). Career adapt-abilities scale: Construction, reliability, and measurement equivalence across 13 countries. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 80(3), 661-673.
• Seibert, S. E., Kraimer, M. L., & Crant, J. M. (2001). What do proactive people do? A longitudinal model linking proactive personality and career success. Personnel Psychology, 54(4), 845–874.
• Seibert, S., Crant, J., & Kraimer, M. (1999). Proactive personality and career success. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 84(3), 416–427.
• Song, Z., Wanberg, C., Niu, X., & Xie, Y. (2006). Action–state orientation and the theory of planned behavior: A study of job search in China. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 68(3), 490-503.
• Sökmen, A., & Aydıntan, B. (2016). Kariyer geleceği algısının iş tatmini ve işten ayrılma niyetine etkisi: Bir kamu kurumunda araştırma. İşletme Araştırmaları Dergisi, 8(3), 251-263.
• Spector, P. E. (1982). Behavior in organizations as a function of employee’s locus of control. Psychological Bulletin, 91(3), 482– 497.
• Super, D. E., & Knasel, E. G. (1981). Career development in adulthood: Some theoretical problems and a possible solution. British Journal of Guidance and Counselling, 9(2), 194-201.
• Teixeira, M. A. P., Bardagi, M. P., Lassance, M. C. P., de Oliveira Magalhães, M., & Duarte, M. E. (2012). Career adapt-abilities scale—Brazilian form: Psychometric properties and relationships to personality. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 80(3), 680-685.
• Tolentino, L. R., Garcia, P. R. J. M., Lu, V. N., Restubog, S. L. D., Bordia, P., & Plewa, C. (2014). Career adaptation: The relation of adaptability to goal orientation, proactive personality, and career optimism. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 84(1), 39-48.
• Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (2022). İş gücü istatistikleri Ağustos 2022 (Yayın No. 45654). Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK). https://data.tuik.gov.tr/Bulten/Index?p=Isgucu-Istatistikleri-Agustos-2022-45654.
• Ullah, I., Hameed, R. M., & Mahmood, A. (2023). The impact of proactive personality and psychological capital on innovative work behavior: evidence from software houses of Pakistan. European Journal of Innovation Management. ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print).
• Van den Hee, S. M., van Hooft, E. A., & van Vianen, A. E. (2020). A temporal perspective of job search: The relation between personality attributes, motivation, job search behavior, and outcomes. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 122, 103489.
• Van Hooft, E. A., & Crossley, C. D. (2008). The joint role of locus of control and perceived financial need in job search. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 16(3), 258-271.
• Van Hooft, E. A., Kammeyer-Mueller, J. D., Wanberg, C. R., Kanfer, R., & Basbug, G. (2021). Job search and employment success: A quantitative review and future research agenda. Journal of Applied Psychology, 106(5), 674-713.
• Van Ryn, M., & Vinokur, A. D. (1992). How did it work? An examination of the mechanisms through which an intervention for the unemployed promoted job-search behavior. American Journal of Community Psychology, 20, 577-597.
• Van Vianen, A. E. M., Klehe, U.-C., Koen, J., & Dries, N. (2012). Career adapt-abilities scale-Netherlands Form: Psychometric properties and relationships to ability, personality, and regulatory focus. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 80, 716–724.
• Wanberg, C. R., Hough, L. M., & Song, Z. (2002). Predictive validity of a multidisciplinary model of reemployment success. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87, 1100–1120.
• Wanberg, C. R., Zhu, J., & Hooft, E. A. J. V. (2010). The job search grind: perceived progress, self-reactions, and self-regulation of search effort. Academy of Management Journal, 53(53), 788–807.
• Wang, S., Tomlinson, E. C., & Noe, R. A. (2010). The role of mentor trust and protégé internal locus of control in formal mentoring relationships. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(2), 358.
• Yu, H., Dong, Z., Guan, X., Yan, C., Su, X., & Cheng, L. (2023). A multiple mediational meta-analysis of the influence of proactive personality on subjective career success at the career exploration stage. Journal of Career Assessment, 31(2), 236-261.
• Zhou, W., Guan, Y., Xin, L., Mak, M. C. K., & Deng, Y. (2016). Career success criteria and locus of control as indicators of adaptive readiness in the career adaptation model. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 94, 124-130.
• Zhu, H., Zhang, H., Tu, A., & Zhang, S. (2021). The mediating roles of core self-evaluation and career exploration in the association between proactive personality and job search clarity. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 609050.
• Zikic, J., & Hall, D. T. (2009). Toward a more complex view of career exploration. The Career Development Quarterly, 58(2), 181-191.