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Filtering by Tag: older workers
Hirschi, A., & Pang, D. (2021). Career development of older workers and retirees. In S. D. Brown and R. W. Lent (Eds.), Career Development and Counseling: Putting Theory and Research to Work (3rd Edition). New York, NY: Wiley.
Burmeister, A., Hirschi, A., & Zacher, H. (in press). Explaining age differences in the motivating potential of intergenerational contact at work. Work, Aging and Retirement.
Understanding the effects of intergenerational contact at work is important given aging and increasingly age-diverse workforces. The aim of this research was to better understand who derives motivational benefits from intergenerational contact, and the processes by which this occurs. To do so, we adopted a motivational lens grounded in need-based theories of work motivation and lifespan development theory. We argue that the motivating effect of intergenerational contact on work engagement via sense of belonging is more pronounced for older compared to younger employees due to changes in goal priorities across the lifespan. Specifically, we posit the generativity motive and perceived remaining time at work as lifespan-related mechanisms that explain the moderating effects of age on the links between intergenerational contact and work engagement. In Study 1, a laboratory experiment with 45 younger and 45 older participants in Switzerland, we found support for a causal effect of intergenerational contact on sense of belonging. In Study 2, a three-wave field study with 560 employees in Germany, we found that sense of belonging mediated the relation between intergenerational contact and work engagement. Further, perceived remaining time at work explained the moderating effect of age on the link between sense of belonging and work engagement. By highlighting age differences in the motivating potential of intergenerational contact, we advance research on intergroup contact, employee motivation, and workforce aging.
Keywords: workforce aging; intergenerational potential; life span development theory; intergroup contact theory; need-based theories of work motivation
Burmeister, A., Gerpott, F. H., Hirschi, A., Scheibe, S., Pak, K., & Kooij, D. (2020). Reaching the heart or the mind? Test of two theory-based training programs to improve interactions between age-diverse coworkers. Academy of Management Learning & Education. https://doi.org/10.5465/amle.2019.0348
Due to demographic change, age diversity is increasing in many organizations. We aimed to understand how organizations can use age diversity training to overcome the challenges and realize the benefits of an age-diverse workforce. We built on the two predominant theoretical perspectives in the diversity literature–social identity theory and the information/decision-making perspective–to advance a dual pathway model and to develop two age diversity training programs: An identity- oriented training that helps organizations to overcome the challenges of age diversity by “speaking to the heart” of age-diverse coworkers and a knowledge-oriented training that helps organizations to realize the benefits of age diversity by “speaking to the mind” of age-diverse coworkers. We tested both training programs in a randomized controlled field experiment with age-diverse coworker dyads. We found that the identity-oriented training facilitated contact quality as a socioemotional outcome through increased levels of coworker’s perceived similarity and also reduced stereotype threat. The knowledge-oriented training increased knowledge transfer as a sociocognitive outcome through increased levels of coworker’s perceived knowledge utility and transactive memory. In a pilot training integration study, we made a first attempt to develop and test an integrated training program. Our findings advance research on the evidence-based management of age diversity.
Burmeister A., Wang, M., & Hirschi, A. (2020). Understanding the motivational benefits of knowledge transfer for older and younger workers in age-diverse coworker dyads: An actor-partner interdependence model. Journal of Applied Psychology, 105(7), 748-759. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000466
The growing age diversity in organizations in most industrialized economies provides opportunities to motivate both older and younger workers by enabling them to benefit from each other through knowledge transfer. In this study, we integrate self-determination theory with socio-emotional selectivity theory to argue that the alignment between workers’ age and their roles in knowledge transfer can generate motivational benefits for them. More specifically, we argue that receiving knowledge from coworkers (i.e., actor knowledge receiving) is more closely aligned with younger workers’ goal priorities, while having coworkers receive one’s knowledge (i.e., partner knowledge receiving) is more closely aligned with older workers’ goal priorities. We expect that these motivational benefits manifest in younger and older workers’ need fulfillment at work, which can shape their subsequent intention to remain with the organization. We used an actor-partner interdependence model to test our hypotheses with time-lagged data from a sample of 173 age-diverse coworker dyads, and found support for most of our hypotheses. The age-specific motivational perspective that we adopt has implications for self-determination theory and research on knowledge transfer and mentoring.
socio-emotional selectivity theory, self-determination theory, work motivation, employee retention, mentoring, actor-partner interdependence model
Hirschi, A., Steiner, R., Burmeister, A., & Johnston, C. S. (2019). A whole-life perspective of sustainable careers: The nature and consequences of nonwork orientations. Journal of Vocational Behavior. doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2019.103319
Developing a sustainable career necessitates actively considering nonwork roles relative to one’s career. However, little is known about who is more or less likely to consider nonwork roles, and what consequences this entails for a sustainable career development. To address this issue, we investigated the nomological net of nonwork orientations (NWO) in two studies, with five samples (total N= 2,679). Study 1 explored the nomological net of NWO and found that among students and employees, people high in agreeableness more strongly considered the family and community role, whereas those high in extraversion and openness showed higher NWO for private life and community. Moreover, students and employees who endorsed self-transcendence work values scored higher on NWO. Study 2 examined how different combinations of NWO and work role commitment relate to work–nonwork conflict and enrichment with latent profile analysis. Across three samples including younger, age-heterogenous, and older workers, we identified five distinct profiles: average levels, work focused, personal life focused, family and personal life focused, and whole-life focused (i.e., high in NWO and work role commitment). Notably, people with a whole-life profile (between 6% and 29% of the samples) reported more work–nonwork enrichment, and a tendency for less work–nonwork conflict compared to individuals predominately focused on either work or personal life. Moreover, we found some meaningful age group differences which call for more research into lifespan dynamics in sustainable careers. Overall, the results of the studies help to better understand the meaning of NWO and how they relate to a sustainable approach to career development.
Keywords: nonwork orientations; personality; work values; work commitment; work–nonwork interface
Spurk, D., & Hirschi, A. (2018). The Dark Triad and competitive psychological climate at work: A model of reciprocal relationships in dependence of age and organization change. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology 27(6), 736-751.doi:10.1080/1359432X.2018.1515200
Integrating an interactionist model of personality development, the cumulative continuity model of personality development, and selection-evocation-manipulation theory, the present study analysed reciprocal relations of the Dark Triad common core and its sub-traits of narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism with competitive psychological climate. Moreover, within a large (N = 1,185) and longitudinal sample of employees from Germany, latent cross-lagged panel analyses were applied to analyse the moderating roles of age and organization change (i.e., organizational turnover). Overall, results revealed positive reciprocal relations between the Dark Triad common core, its sub-traits, and competitive psychological climate. The Dark Triad common core and Machiavellianism were more stable within the older (50 to 59 years) compared to the younger (25 to 34 years) age group. However, we found no age differences for the relation between competitive psychological climate and change in the Dark Triad common core or its sub-traits. Among employees who changed organizations, the Dark Triad common core, narcissism, and psychopathy were more strongly positively related to the change in competitive psychological climate than in the non-change group. This suggests stronger selection compared to evocation- manipulation effects for individuals with high values in the Dark Triad common core, narcissism, and psychopathy, but not for Machiavellianism.
Keywords: Dark Triad, Competitive Climate, Age, Organizational Turnover, Reciprocity
Froidevaux, A., Hirschi, A., & Wang, M. (2018). Identity incongruence and negotiation in the transition from work to retirement: A theoretical model. Organizational Psychology Review, 8(4), 228-255. doi:10.1177/2041386619830754
In an aging society, dealing with the disengagement from the work-related identity and the quality of retirement adjustment become major concerns for individuals and organizations. However, the processes through which retirement adjustment can be achieved and upon which conditions this depends are only partially understood, especially regarding identity transition processes. To address this issue, we suggest that identity incongruence, identity transition negotiation, and the variety of high-quality exchange relationships represent key factors that explain the different experiences in retirement adjustment quality. Integrating social identity, self-categorization, identity negotiation, and interpersonal perspectives, we develop a theoretical model with 12 propositions highlighting the dynamic changes in identity incongruence across time and the possible co-existence of the work-related identity and the retiree-identity. We also discuss the potential boundary conditions of the model, outline directions for future research, and suggest practical implications at the individual and organizational levels.
Nagy, N., Johnston, C. S., & Hirschi, A. (2019). Do we act as old as we feel? An examination of subjective age and job crafting behaviour of late career employees. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 28(3), 373-383. doi:10.1080/1359432x.2019.1584183
Ageing research calls for a focus on the mechanisms that can explain effects of ageing beyond the purely chronologic marker of age. To address this issue, the present study focuses on subjective age as a holistic construct that is related to various developmental and motivational processes and allows deeper insights into the interindividual variability of the ageing experience in older workers. Specifically, the current study examines on a sample of N = 485 late career employees (mean age 54 years),if subjective age is related to job crafting behaviours of older workers and whether job crafting is related to higher levels of work meaningfulness in late career. Results indicate that subjective age is significantly negatively related to job crafting behaviour over and above the effect of chronological age, self-rated health and workplace autonomy. Job crafting, in turn, significantly predicted work meaningfulness, above the effect of workplace autonomy. In sum, our study provides evidence for the utility of psychological representations of ageing to understand job crafting at work for an increasingly important segment of the working population.
Hirschi, A., Keller, A. C., & Spurk, D. (2019). Calling as a double-edged sword for work-nonwork enrichment and conflict among older workers. Journal of Vocational Behavior. doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2019.02.004
Having a calling has been linked to various positive outcomes, but the potential negative effects of having a calling have not yet received comparable attention. Moreover, research thus far has neglected to examine how callings affect the work–nonwork interface. Based on the work–home resources model, and work–family enrichment theory, we presumed that having a calling can increase as well as deplete personal resources at work, which, in turn, promote work–nonwork enrichment and conflict among older workers. We investigated these assumptions among 599 employees, aged between 50 and 60 years, by examining within-individual changes in presence of calling, positive affect at work, workaholism, work–nonwork enrichment, and work–nonwork conflict over a period of one year, with two measurement points. Results indicated that an increase in the presence of a calling was positively related to increased levels of positive affect at work, which, in turn, was positively related to increased work–nonwork enrichment. However, an increase in the presence of a calling was also positively related to increased workaholism, which was positively related to increased work–nonwork conflict. The findings suggest that having a calling is meaningfully related to the work–nonwork interface among older workers in both positive and negative ways.
Nagy, N., Froidevaux, A., & Hirschi, A. (2018). Lifespan perspectives on careers and career development In B. B. Baltes, C. W. Rudolph, & H. Zacher (Eds.), Work Across the Lifespan (Vol. 1, pp. 235-260). London: Elsevier.
This chapter intends to contribute to a better understanding of career development over the lifespan by examining individual and contextual factors contributing to life-long career development. Considering manifold changes in the work environment as well as throughout an individual’s career, we review classic theories of career development in the beginning of this chapter. We then describe changes in today’s careers, and depict modern career theories, such as the protean or the boundaryless career. Subsequently, we elaborate on sources of change over the lifespan from an individual perspective: We explain how changes in personality, work values, or goal setting influence career development. From an organizational perspective, we describe how changes in the psychological contract or various age norms may influence the career development of employees. In the last part of this chapter, we outline central career developmental issues for individuals over the lifespan and point out recommendations for organizations in order to help promote meaningful, fulfilling, and sustainable career development over the lifespan.
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Nagy, N., Johnston, C. S., & Hirschi, A. (2017). Career development and aging. In A. N. Pachana (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Geropsychology (1-7). Singapore: Springer Singapore.
Nagy, N., & Hirschi, A. (2017). Laufbahnentwicklung und -förderung von älteren Arbeitnehmern [Career development and promotion of older workers]. In S. Kauffeld & D. Spurk (Hrsg.), Handbuch Karriere und Laufbahnmanagement (pp. 1-21). Heidelberg: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-662-45855-6_32-1
Späte Laufbahnentwicklung ist ein Thema von immer größerer Relevanz, da die Lebenserwartung in den westlichen Ländern steigt und durch die zunehmende Unsicherheit der verfügbaren Altersvorsorge viele Menschen länger arbeiten müssen (Riphahn et al. 2006). Des Weiteren ist es auch unabhängig von der finanziellen Situation aus mannigfaltigen Gründen mit Vorteilen verbunden, auch im höheren Lebensalter aktiv zu bleiben. Eine nachhaltige und zu den Fähigkei- ten und Bedürfnissen des Individuums passende Arbeitsumgebung kann nicht nur die physischen und kognitiven Fertigkeiten und Fähigkeiten instand halten (Salt- house 2006), sondern auch soziale und identitätsbildende Funktionen erfüllen (Bal et al. 2015). Des Weiteren sind auch Unternehmen in Zukunft vermehrt auf motivierte und produktive ältere Mitarbeiter angewiesen, um den Bedarf an erfahrenem und fachlich versiertem Personal zu decken (Van der Heijden et al. 2008). Das vorliegende Buchkapitel bietet einen umfassenden Einblick in die breit gefächerten Themen der Laufbahnentwicklung und Karriereförderung von älteren Arbeitnehmern. Als Erstes werden die späten Laufbahnphasen vorgestellt und typische Entwicklungsaufgaben in diesem Lebensabschnitt aufgezeigt. Danach wird die späte Laufbahn aus zwei unterschiedlichen Perspektiven beleuchtet: aus der Perspektive der Organisation, welche ältere Arbeitnehmer beschäftigt sowie auch aus der Perspektive der Arbeitnehmer selbst, bevor ab- schließend weitere nötige Forschung zu diesem Thema identifiziert wird.
Froidevaux, A., Hirschi, A. & Wang, M. (2016). The role of mattering as an overlooked key challenge in retirement planning and adjustment. Journal of Vocational Behavior 94, 57-69, doi: 10.1016/j.jvb.2016.02.016.50
In an aging society, making a successful transition from work to retirement and achieving good quality of retirement adjustment become major concerns for individuals, organizations, and governments. This paper focuses on the particular role of mattering (i.e., individuals' perceptions that they make a difference in the world) as a critical self-concept dimension that may mediate the impact of social interactions on retirement process at two distinct phases. We conducted two studies using time lagged design (with one-year time interval) among older workers 55 years or older (N = 161; Study 1) and retirees (N = 186; Study 2). Study 1 found that mattering mediated the effects of social support at work on life satisfaction but not retirement planning. Study 2 found that mattering mediated the effects of general social support on positive affect but not life satisfaction. Contrary to our expectation, mattering also did not mediate effects of caregiving activities. Overall, our results suggest that mattering represents a critical mechanism that explains some of the positive associations between social support and retirement adjustment quality.
Rosselet, A. & Hirschi, A. (2012). La fin de la vie professionnelle: une nouvelle étape à accompagner [The end of professional career: A new phase to accompany]. Panorama, 3, 22-23.
Froidevaux, A., & Hirschi, A. (2015). Managing the Transition to Retirement: From Meaningful Work to Meaning in Life at Retirement. In A. De Vos, & B. van der Heijden (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Sustainable Careers (pp. 350-363). Cheltenham, UK and Northampton, MA, USA: Edward Elgar Publishing.
