Career Success: An Issue

1
Conceptualizing and Evaluating Career
Success Peter A. Heslin
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Career Success An Issue?
My career success?
Measures
?
Career Success

• Key questions
• What theoretical opportunities exist?
• How can construct validity be improved?
• Proposal Model of criteria selection

3
Theoretical linkages Research Opportunities
Recruitment Rynes,1991
Career success
Career exploration Blustein et al. 1997
Self-management Murphy Ensher, 2001 - Self-set
goals - Positive cognitions
4
Theoretical linkages Research Opportunities
Motivation Locke Latham, 1990
Recruitment Rynes,1991
Career success
Stress Nelson et al. 2001
/ -
Career exploration Blustein et al. 1997
Self-management Murphy Ensher, 2001 - Self-set
goals - Positive cognitions
Turnover Hom Kinicki, 2001
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Empirical relationships
Career success criteria
Predictors
Gender
1,2
1,2
3,4
Pay
Personality
5
4
3,4
Education
Promotions
9,10,11,12
6
7
Mentoring
9,10,11,12
8
Job satisfaction
Career tactics
References 1 Melamed (1995) 2 Cox Harquail
(1991) 3 Judge et al. (1999) 4 Seibert Kraimer
(2001)
5 Judge et al. (1995) 6 Peluchette Jeanquart
(2000) 7 Lyness Thompson (2000) 8 Markiewicz et
al. (2000)
9 Orpen (1996) 10 Judge Bretz (1994) 11 Orpen
(1998) 12 Judiesch Lyness (1999)
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Criteria

• Subjective Perceptions (e.g., achievement)
• Reactions
• Comprehensive
• Meaningful
• Unique (Judge et al, 1999)
• But
• Also contaminated deficient
• e.g., job satisfaction
• Standardized vs. relevant?
• e.g., advancement
• Self- vs. other-referent criteria?

• Objective (e.g., pay, promotions, pubs)
• Accessible
• Verifiable
• Universality
• Source of feelings
• But
• Contaminated deficient
• e.g., work-life balance
• Depressive reactions (Bandura, 1997)
• Alienation (Burke, 1999)
• Regret (e.g., Lee Iaccoca)

Ultimate challenge Validity assess only what
matters
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Model of criteria selection
Careerist
Potential Moderators
Types of Criteria
Individual differences Career stage Cultural
differences Career type
My career success?
Objective/ self-referent eg my financial
goals
Subjective/ self-referent eg sense of
meaningfulness
Objective/ other-referent eg my colleagues
pay
Subjective/ other-referent eg mentoring relative
to peers