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Career maturity and job attainment: the moderating roles of emotional intelligence and social vocational interest

  • Yan Liu
  • Kelly Peng
  • Chi-Sum Wong
Article
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Abstract

Despite the well-recognized importance of career maturity in job searching, little research has been done on the influence of career maturity on job attainment. Drawing on the extant literature, this study examined the relationship between career maturity and job attainment, and explored the boundary conditions that maximize this relationship. Data were collected from 1,202 young people during two time periods in Hong Kong, China. The results showed that career maturity was positively related to job attainment, and that both emotional intelligence and social vocational interest amplified the positive relationship between career maturity and job attainment.

Keywords

Career maturity Emotional intelligence Social vocational interest 

Résumé. Maturité de carrière et obtention d’un emploi: Le rôle modérateur de l’intelligence emotionnelle et des intérêts vocationnels de type social.

En dépit de l’importance bien reconnue du rôle de la maturité de carrière dans la recherche d’emploi, peu d’études ont été menées sur l’influence de cette maturité sur l’obtention d’un emploi. En s’appuyant sur la littérature existante, cette étude examine la relation entre maturité de carrière et obtention d’un emploi et explore les conditions qui maximisent cette relation. Les données proviennent de 1′202 jeunes adultes et ont été récoltées à deux moments, à Hong Kong, en Chine. Les résultats montrent que la maturité de carrière est positivement liée à l’obtention d’un emploi, et que l’intelligence émotionnelle de même qu’un intérêt vocationnel de type social amplifient cette relation positive entre maturité de carrière et obtention d’un emploi.

Zusammenfassung. Berufswahlreife und Arbeitserfolg: Die moderierende Rolle der emotionalen Intelligenz und sozialen Berufsinteressen.

Trotz der allgemein anerkannten Bedeutung der Berufsreife in der Stellensuche gibt es nur wenige Studien über den Einfluss der Berufsreife auf Arbeitserfolg. Aufbauend auf der vorhandenen Literatur, untersuchte diese Studie die Beziehung zwischen Berufswahlreife und Arbeitserfolg, und erkundete die Rahmenbedingungen, die diese Beziehung maximieren. Die Daten wurden von 1202 jungen Personen während zwei Zeitperioden in Hong Kong, China gesammelt. Die Ergebnisse zeigten, dass Berufswahlreife eine positive Beziehung mit Arbeitserfolg hatte und dass sowohl die emotionale Intelligenz als auch soziale Berufsinteressen die positive Beziehung zwischen Berufswahlreife und Arbeitserfolg verstärkten.

Resumen. Madurez vocacional y obtención de empleo: efectos de la inteligencia emocional y el interés socioprofesional.

La importancia de la madurez vocacional a la hora de buscar empleo es una cuestión ampliamente aceptada. Sin embargo, pocas veces se ha estudiado la influencia de la madurez vocacional sobre el acceso al mercado de trabajo. Partiendo de una extensa revisión bibliográfica, el presente estudio analizó la citada relación, explorando las condiciones de contorno que la maximizan. Se procesaron datos procedentes de 1,202 jóvenes de Hong Kong y China, en dos momentos temporales distintos. Los resultados demostraron una correlación positiva entre la madurez vocacional y la obtención de empleo. Igualmente se constató que tanto la inteligencia emocional como el interés socioprofesional amplificaban dicha relación.

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Notes

Acknowledgments

This study is part of the education science project (BIA120061) entitled “The influence of college students’ career maturity on their job attainment in China: an investigation of individual and group level factors” and supported by National Office for Education Science Planning (China). We gratefully acknowledge the invaluable comments and advice from Editor in Chief (Jerome Rossier) and the anonymous reviewers.

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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Department of Business Administration, School of Economics and ManagementWuhan UniversityWuchangChina
  2. 2.Hong Kong Shue Yan UniversityHong Kong SARChina
  3. 3.The Chinese University of Hong KongHong Kong SARChina

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