Building on diverse influences from critical perspectives in vocational psychology and the relational movement in contemporary psychological discourse, this article introduces the relational theory of working. Attending to the full array of people who work and who want to work, the relational theory conceptualizes working as an inherently…

In their quantitative review of the literature, Healy, Lehman, and McDaniel [Healy, M. C., Lehman, M., & McDaniel, M. A. (1995). Age and voluntary turnover: A quantitative review. "Personnel Psychology, 48", 335-345] concluded that age is only weakly related to voluntary turnover (average r = -0.08). However, with the significant changes in…

Drawing upon role-making theory, this study examines which new job market entrants, following college graduation, find informal mentors and how much mentoring they receive from these mentors using a predictive design. Our results suggest that individuals lower in negative affectivity and higher in cognitive ability as well as women, individuals…

The career paths (ascending, interesting, uninteresting, descending) of 124 White Canadian francophones (62 men, 62 women) who had experienced nonstandard and precarious work for the last three years were examined in relation to the participants' profiles of commitment to three life roles (work, family, and duality, that is, investment in both…

This study examined longitudinal relationships between job resources, personal resources, and work engagement. On the basis of Conservation of Resources theory, we hypothesized that job resources, personal resources, and work engagement are reciprocal over time. The study was conducted among 163 employees, who were followed-up over a period of 18…

Recent years have witnessed a growing diversity of career patterns, resulting from the relative decline of stable employment. In the present study of 1368 employed and self-employed German adults career pattern diversity was assessed using nine pictograms. The goal was to identify psychological and demographic correlates of these patterns and to…

This article discusses the disconnect between industrial-organizational (I-O) and vocational psychology in the context of Donald Paterson's career, an applied psychologist who bridged both disciplines. Paterson's interests in "both" vocational guidance and personnel selection suggest that these fields are interwoven, despite the prevailing gap…

This study tests propositions regarding idiosyncratic deals (i-deals) in a sample of N = 265 hospital employees using structural equation modeling. Timing and content of idiosyncratic employment arrangements are postulated to have differential consequences for the nature of the employment relationship. Results confirm that i-deals made after hire…

Holland's theory provides a means of describing both people and environments. He has developed techniques for assessing and classifying different vocational instruments. His newest measure, the Position Classification Inventory, should stimulate new research in vocational psychology. (49 references) (Author/SK)

Holland pioneered the theory of vocational personality and work environments, revolutionizing delivery of career assistance. His research has been central to development of knowledge about nonacademic accomplishments. He has influenced both researchers and psychologists. (163 references) (SK)

Based on perspectives of counseling psychology and industrial/organizational psychology, this article reviews publications relevant to vocational behavior that appeared during 1986. Of the over 700 articles and 70 books or book chapters located, slightly less than one-half are reviewed. (Author/NB)

Includes comments from Brown, Tinsley, Hesketh, Tenopyr, Morrow, Murphy, and Blau on the articles in this special issue on the Theory of Work Adjustment as well as rejoinders from Dawis and Lofquist, Bizot, and Lawson. (SK)

Emphasizes that environments are a function of the people behaving in them. Reviews a new conceptualization of organizational functioning based on the attraction-selection-attrition framework. Describes the implications of this framework for various areas of study in industrial/organizational psychology and vocational behavior. (Author/KS)