Decent Work Among People of Color: The Moderating Role of Critical Consciousness

The present study examined critical consciousness in a sample of 476 adults of color from a Psychology of Working perspective. Using structural equation modeling, we tested three components of critical consciousness—perceived inequality, egalitarian beliefs, and sociopolitical participation—as moderators of relations between marginalization, economic constraints, work volition, career adaptability, and decent work. As hypothesized, perceived inequality and sociopolitical participation moderated paths from marginalization to career adaptability, work volition, and decent work. Perceived inequality moderated paths from economic constraints to career adaptability and decent work, but in inconsistent directions. We discuss practical implications and future research directions. Our results contribute to the growing support for the Psychology of Working Theory.

Stress and career adaptability during COVID-19: A serial multiple mediation model

To understand how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected students about to enter the job market, we surveyed 754 university seniors to investigate the perceived stress–career adaptability relationship. We also assessed if positive psychological capital (PsyCap) and work volition mediated this relationship. The results show that the seniors' perceived stress during the COVID-19 pandemic negatively predicted career adaptability. Moreover, the sequential mediation effect (perceived stress reduces positive PsyCap and work volition, which predicts career adaptability) was supported. Thus, lower positive PsyCap can reduce work volition and adaptability. We are among the first researchers to explore how the COVID-19 pandemic has disadvantaged recent university graduates in the labor market, and we have provided new perspectives on how to improve their career adaptability.

Testing Psychology of Working Theory Among Spanish-Speaking Latinx Workers in the U.S.

Psychology of Working Theory (PWT) has recently gained empirical support; however, its assumptions have yet to be tested for cultural responsiveness in Latinx communities, one of the fastest-growing worker populations in the U.S. The current study had two major aims: (a) to translate and validate instruments measuring PWT constructs from English into Spanish, and (b) to test theorized PWT predictors of decent work in a sample of Latinx workers ( N = 287). First, we translated and validated instruments measuring economic constraints, lifetime marginalization, work volition, and decent work using confirmatory factor analyses (CFA). We then tested a structural model predicting decent work. Results partially supported PWT hypotheses, suggesting its utility and cultural responsiveness in studying the work patterns and conditions in Latinx communities. Practical implications are discussed.

Assessing Perceived Future Decent Work Securement Among Chinese Impoverished College Students

Drawing from Psychology of Working Theory (PWT), the current study sampled 254 college students from impoverished families in China and examined their perceptions of access to future decent work as predicted by subjective social status and marginalization and mediated by work volition and career adaptability. As impoverished college students are socioeconomically disadvantaged and thus cannot afford college expenses, understanding their perception regarding future careers echoes the call for renewing the focus on equity and diversity within vocational psychology. Findings supported subjective social status as an indirect predictor of perceptions of future decent work via work volition. Work volition and career adaptability directly predicted perceptions of future decent work. Additionally, there is a significant conditional indirect effect between subjective social status, work volition, and perceptions of future decent work. Specifically, the effect was only significant for first-year students. Overall, this study adds new evidence on the applicability of the PWT among student populations. Implications for career researchers, vocational counselors, and student affairs professionals are provided.

Examining Classism and Critical Consciousness Within Psychology of Working Theory

Building from psychology of working theory, this study tested how critical consciousness, composed of perceived inequality, egalitarianism, and critical action, moderate the relations between contextual barriers (i.e., economic constraints and classism) and psychological variables (i.e., work volition and career adaptability) with a sample of 403 employees in the United States. Findings suggested that people who had high egalitarianism had a stronger negative relation between economic constraints and work volition. Results also revealed that people who had low egalitarianism had a negative relation between classism and career adaptability. Regarding critical action, people who had low or moderate levels of critical action had a stronger negative relation between economic constraints and work volition. Moreover, people who had low or moderate levels of critical action had a stronger negative relation between classism and career adaptability. Findings encourage practitioners and employers to consider egalitarianism and critical action as potential targets in vocational interventions.