Self-goal setting as a way to career sustainability: exploring the roles of career crafting and perceived organizational goal clarity

Abstract

PurposeAs an increasingly important variable in the career field, career sustainability has received particular attention, yet few empirical studies have been conducted to examine its antecedents. The authors propose a moderated mediation model based on the goal-setting theory and the wise proactivity perspective for exploring when and how self-goal setting can influence career sustainability.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use a time-lagged design and collect three waves of data from 1,260 teachers in basic education schools in China. The authors test the proposed hypotheses with SPSS 26.0 and Mplus 8.3.FindingsThe results show that self-goal setting positively relates to career sustainability and that career crafting plays a mediating role in this relationship. This relationship is strengthened when perceived organizational goal clarity is high.Originality/valueThe authors extend the application scenarios of the goal-setting theory to the field of career research and find out that self-goal setting is also a self-initiated and wise antecedent of career sustainability. From a wise proactivity perspective, the authors examine the mediating mechanism of career crafting to make positive career outcomes. Furthermore, the authors consider the impact of perceived organizational goal clarity as a boundary condition and broaden the understanding of “when to wise proactivity” from the goal-setting theory.

Analysis of Current Research in the Field of Sustainable Employment Based on Latent Dirichlet Allocation

“…Recent research by many scholars has focused on understanding and promoting the continuous development of individuals in their careers [11,[29][30][31][32]. By synthesizing different studies, they reveal the main research trends and theoretical advancements in sustainable employment.…”

“…Their research indicated the importance of leadership styles in digital transformation for employee adaptability and career development. Ge et al [29] revealed how individual career development practices and organizational support can collectively promote sustained career development by exploring the impact of self-goal se ing on career sustainability, the role of career shaping, and organizational goal clarity in addressing the sustainability of specific groups. Luo et al [30] provided insights into how female workers in the e-commerce industry can enhance their self-efficacy and career sustainability through supportive supervisor behavior that accommodates family needs.…”

“…We recommend that organizations regularly assess and update their leadership styles and employee development strategies to meet the challenges of the current labor market [11,30]. Organizations should enhance employee adaptability and job satisfaction in a rapidly evolving technological environment by offering customized career development programs and skill training [29]. Additionally, policymakers should encourage cross-industry cooperation to formulate inclusive employment policies that cover marginalized groups and low-income families, thereby improving the quality and prevalence of sustainable employment [35].…”

Advancing Research on Career Sustainability

“…The third cluster assessed career sustainability in a variety of other ways that do not correspond to the first two categories. Three of these studies (Fang et al, 2021;Ge et al, 2023;Nakra & Kashyap, 2023) used a composite measure of career sustainability developed by Chin et al (2021) that assessed the extent to which a career is flexible, renewable, integrative, and resourceful. A number of studies measured other positive characteristics or qualities to assess career sustainability, such as reflexivity, self-awareness, and a clear vision for the future (Argyropoulou et al, 2020), career growth (Lu et al, 2019), career attainment or advancement (Bhaskar et al, 2022;Dlouhy & Froidevaux, 2024;Herman & Lewis, 2012), work ability (Stuer et al, 2019), and career control (Xu et al, 2020).…”

Contextual and Individual Determinants of Sustainable Careers: A Serial Indirect Effect Model through Career Crafting and Person-Career Fit

“…Given that careers are affected by different life domains, adopting a perspective incorporating work and family contextual determinants and the harmony between these contexts can have the potential to broaden our understanding of sustainable careers [9]. Moreover, along with the contextual determinants, the recent literature has provided evidence for the individual determinants of sustainable careers, such as personality traits, career competencies, or individual strategies [11][12][13][14]. Although these studies have provided valuable insights into sustainable careers, there remains a notable lack of evidence on the role of individual career proactivity.…”