Title:
Career Calling in Older Adults: A Socioemotional Selectivity Perspective
Career Calling in Older Adults: A Socioemotional Selectivity Perspective
Author(s)
Kidwell, Kate E.
Advisor(s)
French, Kimberly A.
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Abstract
Over the past several decades, the meaning of work for employees has evolved beyond solely a means of financial support and toward a source of fulfillment and personal identity. Work that is purposeful, meaningful, and internally motivated can be considered a career calling. As the American workforce ages, fulfilling a career calling may be especially important for the longevity and well-being of older adult workers. Drawing on tenets of Socioemotional Selectivity Theory, the present study tested a model in which socioemotional motives and goal selection predict the attainment of calling, and occupational future time perspective was examined as a meaningful individual difference that may affect these relationships. I analyzed survey data collected from 267 working older adults over a two-week period using structural equation modeling. Support was found for the relationships between motives for meaning and positive emotions and calling. Emotional regulation goals were not found to mediate the relationships between motives and calling, and occupational future time perspective did not alter these relationships. By uniting Socioemotional Selectivity Theory with the calling literature, I further our understanding of antecedents of career calling in a priority working population. Theoretical implications for socioemotional selectivity theory and the calling literature, as well as practical implications for workers and organizations, are discussed.
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Date Issued
2023-07-25
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Text
Resource Subtype
Dissertation