Conceptualizing Individual Agency in the Transition from School to Work: A Social-Ecological Developmental Perspective

This article addresses the ongoing debate on the role of agency and structure in shaping the transition from school to work. Drawing on theories of life-course sociology and life-span psychology an integrated social-ecological developmental approach is presented, conceptualizing individual agency as a relational and intentional process that evolves through interactions with the wider socio-cultural context. Agency is understood as a multi-dimensional construct, influenced by multiple proximal and distal social circumstances that channel the manifestation of agency by offering distinct transition pathways. The article specifies the ways how social structures support and constrain the development of agency, and asks if individual agency can overcome social constraints, and to what extent and in what circumstances can agency be most effective? It is argued that agency is most influential (a) when social structures are flexible, enabling switching between tracks; (b) during critical windows of opportunity, such as during transitions from one educational track to another or from education into paid employment; (c) in situations when individuals leave a pre-structured path; (d) when intentions are closely matched to individual competencies; and (e) when socio-economic disadvantage is not overpowering. The analysis presented in this paper should enable researchers to expand and deepen their understanding of the role of structure and agency in shaping school-to-work transitions and inform empirical research on the topic

Is it adaptive to disengage from demands of social change? Adjustment to developmental barriers in opportunity-deprived regions

This paper investigates how individuals deal with demands of social and economic change in the domains of work and family when opportunities for their mastery are unfavorable. Theoretical considerations and empirical research suggest that with unattainable goals and unmanageable demands motivational disengagement and self-protective cognitions bring about superior outcomes than continued goal striving. Building on research on developmental deadlines, this paper introduces the concept of developmental barriers to address socioeconomic conditions of severely constrained opportunities in certain geographical regions. Mixed-effects methods were used to model cross-level interactions between individual-level compensatory secondary control and regional-level opportunity structures in terms of social indicators for the economic prosperity and family friendliness. Results showed that disengagement was positively associated with general life satisfaction in regions that were economically devastated and has less than average services for families. In regions that were economically well off and family-friendly, the association was negative. Similar results were found for self-protection concerning domain-specific satisfaction with life. These findings suggest that compensatory secondary control can be an adaptive way of mastering a demand when primary control is not possible

Changes in life satisfaction when losing one's spouse: individual differences in anticipation, reaction, adaptation and longevity in the German Socio-economic Panel Study (SOEP)

Dieser Beitrag ist mit Zustimmung des Rechteinhabers aufgrund einer (DFG geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich.This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively.Losing a spouse is among the most devastating events that may occur in people's lives. We use longitudinal data from 1,224 participants in the German Socio-economic Panel Study (SOEP) to examine (a) how life satisfaction changes with the experience of spousal loss; (b) whether socio-demographic factors and social and health resources moderate spousal loss-related changes in life satisfaction; and (c) whether extent of anticipation, reaction and adaptation to spousal loss are associated with mortality. Results reveal that life satisfaction shows anticipatory declines about two and a half years prior to (anticipation), steep declines in the months surrounding (reaction) and lower levels after spousal loss (adaptation). Older age was associated with steeper anticipatory declines, but less steep reactive declines. Additionally, younger age, better health, social participation and poorer partner health were associated with better adaptation. Higher pre-loss life satisfaction, less steep reactive declines and better adaptation were associated with longevity. The discussion focuses on the utility of examining the interrelatedness among anticipation, reaction and adaptation to further our understanding of change in life satisfaction in the context of major life events

Persönliche Anliegen in Alltagssituationen

Brunstein JC, Ganserer J, Maier GW, Heckhausen H. Persönliche Anliegen in Alltagssituationen. Memorandum. Vol 82. Erlangen: Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg; Draft.In einer Feldstudie, an der 42 Hausfrauen teilnahmen, wurden charakteristische Merkmale von persönlichen Anliegen untersucht, und es wurde überprüft, welchen Einfluß persönliche Anliegen auf die Erfahrung und Beurteilung von Alltagssituationen ausüben. In einem Interview beschrieben die Teilnehmerinnen zunächst ihre Anliegen und schätzten sie anschießend nach einer Reihe von Anliegenparametern ein (z.B. nach der Höhe ihrer Bereitschaft, sich für die Verwirklichung eines Anliegens einzusetzen; oder nach der Verfügbarkeit von günstigen Gelegenheiten, bei denen ein Anliegen verfolgt werden kann). Außerdem zeichneten sie eine Woche lang ihre täglichen Aktivitäten, Stimmungen und Bedürfnisse auf. Die Ergebnisse zeigten, (a) daß persönliche Anliegen nach dem Ausmaß an Entschlossenheit, ein anliegenrelevantes Ziel zu realisieren, sowie nach der Qualität vorteilhafter versus nachteiliger Realisierungsbedingungen beurteilt wurden; (b) daß die Intensität, mit der sich die Teilnehmerinnen mit ihre persönlichen Anliegen beschäftigten, eng mit dem Ausmaß ihrer Entschlossenheit zusammenhing, während ihre diesbezügliche Erfolgserwartung von der Beurteilung der vorliegenden Realisierungsbedingungen bestimmt wurde; (c) daß sich Fortschritte bei der Realisierung von Anliegen ebenso wie positive und negative Stimmungslagen im Alltag in bedeutsamem Umfang auf Unterschiede in der persönlichen Einsatzbereitschaft und in der Verfügbarkeit von günstigen Gelegenheiten zurückführen ließen; sowie (d) daß die Teilnehmerinnen anliegenrelevante Situationen im Alltag als Herausforderung erlebten, bei der sie ihre Fähigkeiten demonstrieren und ihr Selbstwertgefühl stärken konnten.42 housewives participated in a field study in which characteristic dimensions of current concerns were explored, and influences current concerns exerted upon subjects' experience of and judgements about everyday situations were examined. A preceding interview required participants to describe their current concerns and to assess them through a series of concern attributes (e.g., subjects' readiness to invest effort in order to attain a concern-related goal; or availability of favorable opportunities to pursue current concerns). Subjects also recorded their daily activities, moods, and needs over a one-week period. Results demonstrated (a) that current concerns were construed along two dimensions indicating subjects' commitment to attain a concern-related goal and reflecting their judgement of facilitating versus debilitating environmental conditions; (b) that intensity of concern-related preoccupations was closely linked to commitment-related variables, whereas judgements about environmental conditions determined the subjective pro- bability of success; (c) that readiness to invest effort and availability of favorable opportunities accounted both for significant variations in progress toward goal attainment and for individual differences in positive versus negative mood in daily life situations; and (d) that participants perceived concern-related everyday situations as challenges, allowing them to demonstrate their abilities and to increase their sense of self-esteem

The significance of motivation in student-centred learning : a reflective case study

The theoretical underpinnings of student-centred learning suggest motivation to be an integral component. However, lack of clarification of what is involved in motivation in education often results in unchallenged assumptions that fail to recognise that what motivates some students may alienate others. This case study, using socio-cognitive motivational theory to analyse previously collected data, derives three fuzzy propositions which, collectively, suggest that motivation interacts with the whole cycle of episodes in the teachinglearning process. It argues that the development of the higherlevel cognitive competencies that are implied by the term, student-centred learning, must integrate motivational constructs such as goal orientation, volition, interest and attributions into pedagogical practices

The intention-behaviour gap: An empirical examination of an integrative perspective to explain exercise behaviour

This study tested the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) in conjunction with two sets of variables from the Health Action Process Approach (HAPA) and the Subjective Exercise Experience Scale (SEE) to predict exercise behavior. This study included 454 participants who exercised in a fitness center. We collected measures of the TPB (attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and intention), HAPA (planning), and SEE (positive well-being, psychological distress, and fatigue) and assessed exercise behavior at a three-month follow-up. Structural equation modeling found partial support for the TPB model (explaining 10% of the variance in exercise behavior) and adequate fit indices for an adjusted model of the TPB that includes a positive well-being dimension (explaining 11% of the variance in exercise behavior). In sum, the original TPB partially predicts exercise behavior; when considered together with other predictors, limited evidence was found for its utility in explaining exercise behavior.This study was conducted at Psychology Research Centre (UID/PSI/01662/2013), University of Minho, and supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology and the Portuguese Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education through national funds and co-financed by FEDER through COMPETE2020 under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007653).info:eu-repo/semantics/submittedVersio

Disentangling Achievement Orientation and Goal Setting: Effects on Self-Regulatory Processes

The Heckhausen and Kuhl (1985) goal typology provided the conceptual foundation for this research, which examined the independent and integrated effects of achievement orientation and goal setting approaches on trainees’ self-regulatory activity. Using a complex computer-based simulation, the authors examined the effects of three training design factors cutting across these two theoretical domains – goal frame, goal content, and goal proximity – on the nature, focus, and quality of the self-regulatory activities of 524 trainees. Results revealed that all three factors had a significant influence on self-regulation, with goal content exhibiting the greatest influence. In line with expectations, congruent learning frame and content relative to congruent performance frame and content was beneficial for trainees’ self-regulatory activity, incongruent combinations of goal frame and content were better than congruent performance frames and content, and effects for the incongruent combinations cutting across the domains were asymmetrical. Theoretical extensions for further disentangling these distinct domains and training design implications are discussed

Showing engagement or not:The influence of social identification and group deadlines on individual control strategies

People often work together in groups that have to reach goals in a given time frame. Nonetheless, the impact of deadlines on group members’ self-control has not been studied so far. Here this topic is addressed by integrating the action-phase model (Heckhausen, 1999), which postulates the use of different self-control strategies during individual-level goal pursuit, with the social identity approach. It was predicted and found in two studies that highly identified group members, in contrast to those who were only weakly identified, responded to a group’s deadline phase (pre vs. post) by showing phase-appropriate patterns of engagement and disengagement. Study 1 measured identification and assessed intentions and behavioral indicators of self-control. Study 2 manipulated identification and assessed self-reports of intended self-control strategies. Overall, the findings corroborate the notion that the social self can serve as a basis for self-regulation

Willing and able: action-state orientation and the relation between procedural justice and employee cooperation

Existing justice theory explains why fair procedures motivate employees to adopt cooperative goals, but it fails to explain how employees strive towards these goals. We study self-regulatory abilities that underlie goal striving; abilities that should thus affect employees’ display of cooperative behavior in response to procedural justice. Building on action control theory, we argue that employees who display effective self-regulatory strategies (action oriented employees) display relatively strong cooperative behavioral responses to fair procedures. A multisource field study and a laboratory experiment support this prediction. A subsequent experiment addresses the process underlying this effect by explicitly showing that action orientation facilitates attainment of the cooperative goals that people adopt in response to fair procedures, thus facilitating the display of actual cooperative behavior. This goal striving approach better integrates research on the relationship between procedural justice and employee cooperation in the self-regulation and the work motivation literature. It also offers organizations a new perspective on making procedural justice effective in stimulating employee cooperation by suggesting factors that help employees reach their adopted goals