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A relational model of career adaptability and career prospects: The roles of leader–member exchange and agreeableness

Xuhua Yang,Yanjun Guan,Y. Zhang,Zhuolin She,Emma E. Buchtel,M. Mak,Hanlin Hu

Published 2020 in Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology

ABSTRACT

Drawing on career construction theory and leader-member exchange (LMX) theory, this research examined the mediating role of LMX in explaining the effect of employee career adaptability on career prospects, as well as the moderating role of agreeableness in this process. Two field studies were conducted among Chinese employees and their supervisors to test this model. In study 1, time-lagged multi-source data were collected from 252 employees and 69 supervisors. The results showed that supervisor-rated LMX (Time 2) mediated the relationship between employee-rated career adaptability (Time 1) and supervisor-rated career prospects (Time 2). In study 2, a cross-lagged panel study among 149 employees and 47 supervisors across 4 months replicated the mediating effect of LMX for the relationship between career adaptability and career prospects. Results of study 2 also showed that LMX (Time 1, supervisor-rated) did not significantly predict career adaptability (Time 2, employee-rated), providing support for the unidirectional relationship from career adaptability to LMX in this context. The moderating role of agreeableness was supported such that the effect of career adaptability on LMX, as well as the indirect effect of career adaptability on career prospects via LMX, were stronger among employees with a higher level of agreeableness. We discussed the theoretical and practical implications of these findings and offered directions for future research.

PUBLICATION RECORD

  • Publication year

    2020

  • Venue

    Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology

  • Publication date

    2020-06-01

  • Fields of study

    Business, Psychology

  • Identifiers
    DOI 10.1111/joop.12301
  • External record

    Open on Semantic Scholar

  • Source metadata

    Semantic Scholar

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