Plateau and transition : career dynamics in a changing world of work : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University

This research investigated a number of hypotheses relevant to employee attitudes towards career plateau and career transition. The impact of job satisfaction, education, and the life balance orientation of individuals on career plateau and career transition, and the relationship between the two, was explored. As well as demographics, data pertaining to occupation, education, career status, career intentions, job satisfaction and life interests were examined. A self-administered questionnaire was completed by 234 managerial and supervisory employees from four major organisations. Within the study a subjectively based measure of career plateau was found to have greater explanatory power than an objectively based measure in many of the hypotheses investigated. Multiple regression analysis was utilised to explore the relationship between career plateau and career transition. Subjective career plateau contributed significantly to variability in career transition with 18% of the variance being explained. Subjective career plateau and years since last promotion, an objective measure of career plateau, were found to contribute significantly to variability in overall job satisfaction. Altogether 25% of the variance in overall job satisfaction was explained by knowing scores on these variables. Subjective career plateau contributed significantly to variability in satisfaction with promotion opportunities explaining 51% of that variance. Whilst overall job satisfaction was significant in its relationship with career transition, satisfaction with promotion opportunities was not significant due to a suppression effect. In this relationship 58% of the variance in career transition was explained by overall job satisfaction. Overall job satisfaction was found to not moderate on the relationship between career plateau and career transition or on the relationship between life balance orientation and career transition. A significant moderating effect of satisfaction with promotion opportunities was found on the relationship between career plateau and career transition with 27% of the variance being explained A t test analysis indicated that career plateaued individuals were not more likely to be involved in current education nor were they more likely to state an intention to pursue further education. Univariate analysis indicated that whilst lower levels of education were associated with longer job tenures this association was not strong. Multivariate analysis revealed a significant moderating effect of education attained on the relationship between career plateau and career transition with 31% of the variance being explained. The limitations of the study are discussed. Primary amongst these are the difficulties imposed by the cross-sectional design

A methodological approach to developing a measure of the psychological contract for managers

With a focus on a specific employment group this research attempted to add to the knowledge on the content of the psychological contract. Structured interviews with 35 managers generated 651 responses relating to the content of their psychological contracts. Analysis of those responses resulted in the development of an initial two-component measure of the contract. One component (23 items) included the managers' expectations relating to the organisation's obligations. The other component (16 items) included the managers' obligations relating to the perceived organisation's expectations. Validation of the measure was based on a questionnaire completed by 124 managers. Participants considered all items to be important aspects of the contract. Participants also rated as high the obligation of each party to meet the expectations of the other. Factor analysis of the measure revealed two factors in each component which, in line with previous research, were termed relational obligations and transactional obligations. A robust methodology is proposed for continuing research into the content of the psychological work contract

The career experiences of industrial and organisational psychology graduates

A survey of 53 graduates of industrial and organizational psychology masters programs, from the four universities in New Zealand offering such programs (Auckland, Canterbury, Massey, Waikato), was conducted to explore their early career experiences. The survey confirms that industrial and organizational psychology graduates are reasonably successful in establishing careers within the discipline with most graduates working in related fields. Recommendations for students pursuing careers and universities offering such programs are suggested. The information derived from this study is potentially of benefit to future graduates and others who may be considering a career in the field of industrial and organizational psychology, and to the convenors of the respective university programs

The Content of the Psychological Work Contract for Frontline Police Officers

Adding to the field of knowledge on the content of the psychological work contract, structured interviews with 35 frontline police officers generated 662 responses relating to the content of the psychological work contract for this employment sector. Analysis of these responses resulted in the development of an initial two-component measure of the contract. One component (17 items) reflected the obligations arising from the promises officers believed the organisation had made to them. The other component (19 items) reflected the obligations arising from the promises officers believed they had made to the organisation. The measure was included in a survey completed by 84 frontline police officers. Factor analysis revealed two factors in each component. For the organisation's obligations component, one factor reflected obligations related more to the organisational environment, whereas the other factor reflected obligations related more to the job environment. For the employee's obligations component, one factor reflected obligations related more to behaviours on the job, whereas the other factor reflected obligations related more to the pursuit of development opportunities. The nature of the relationships that emerged between the psychological contract and the nomological network variables included in the study provide strong support for the validity of this measure of the psychological contract

The Psychological Contract: The Development and Validation of a Managerial Measure

The research objective was to develop, through two phases involving development and validation, a measure of the psychological work contract for managerial level employees. The psychological contract is the unwritten implicit contract that forms in the minds of employees and contains the obligations and expectations that they believe exists between themselves and the organization. In the first and qualitative phase of the study, a structured interview procedure resulted in the collection of 651 responses from a convenience sample of 35 managers from seven New Zealand organizations. Responses related to what these managers believed they were obligated to provide the organization (perceived organizational expectations), and what they believed the organization was obligated to provide them (their expectations). Content analysis of these 651 statements resulted in the development of two initial measures of the psychological contract (employee obligations, organization obligations). The employee obligations measure (perceived organizational expectations of the employee) contained 16 items, and the organization obligations measure (employee expectations of the organization) contained 23 items. In the second and quantitative phase of the study, and using the same criteria for participation as for phase one, a convenience sample of 124 managers from 13 New Zealand organizations completed questionnaires. The questionnaires included the measures of psychological contract content developed in phase one of the study, and 8 organizational psychology variables to be included in a nomological network. The nomological network included intention to quit, perceived organizational support, work and job involvement, job satisfaction, career plateau, organizational commitment, person-organization fit, and 2 performance measures. A separate questionnaire covering job performance and organizational citizenship behaviour was completed by 94 of the participants' managers. Of the 54 relationships predicted in the nomological network, 41 were significant. Of the 13 non-significant relationships, 10 involved relationships with the two performance measures. The measures of the psychological contract were subjected to a construct validation process involving two steps. The first step involved item and factor analysis. Factor analysis of the two measures of the psychological contract revealed two factors in each. One factor, termed relational obligations and reflecting a collective interest between the employee and the organization, included the items that were believed to influence more directly the relationship between managers and the organization. This factor included items such as be committed to the job (an employee obligation) and provide a physically and socially safe environment (an organizational obligation). The other factor, termed transactional obligations and reflecting a self/other interest on the part of the employee, included the items that were believed to be of a more direct employment transactions nature. This factor included items such as stay true to your own values and beliefs (an employee obligation) and provide professional and personal support (an organizational obligation). In the second step of the validation process, the measures of the psychological contract were embedded into the nomological network and their relationships with the ten variables in that network were tested. Of the ten hypothesised relationships, only one emerged as significant, that being the relationship between the organization obligations component of the psychological contract and person-organization fit. Minimal support for construct validity of the measures of the psychological contract was provided confirming that further effort will be required before complete construct validity may be claimed for the measured. Although the contribution the research makes to the field of knowledge may be limited, it does provide some validation of existing measures of the psychological contract, developed in other studies using different samples. The present findings increase our knowledge of the content of the psychological contract for managers. Additionally, a methodological framework has been established for continuing research into the content of psychological contracts, including an exploration of the relationship between content and fulfilment, along with a structure for comparing the psychological contract of disparate occupational groups. The most likely explanation for the hypotheses not being fully supported is that it is fulfilment (or conversely breach or violation) of the psychological contract, rather than the content of the contract per se, that is related to the variables in the nomological network. Whilst the hypotheses were based on research that considered fulfilment of the contract, this study focussed on the content of psychological contracts. The reasons for basing the hypotheses on research that considered fulfilment, the influence of this decision on hypothesis testing, and other possible explanations for the hypotheses not finding greater support, are explored. The limitations of the study, and possible directions for future research, are discussed