Career plateau response as a function of personal coping strategies.

摘要

Career plateauing is fast becoming an issue in organizations due to the influx of the baby boom generation into middle-management ranks, combined with the widespread downsizing and restructuring of organizations. Previous literature on career plateaus has not examined which employees respond positively or negatively to a plateau. Instead the focus has been on managing an employee in a plateau or on differences between plateaued and nonplateaued managers.; This research is based on the premise that a response to a career plateau is a coping response initiated by the employee to manage career development stress. A model which details career plateau response was developed and tested in this research.; Results of an analysis of plateaued employees showed the model to be a reasonable representation of the process by which employees respond to a plateau. Several coping strategies demonstrated predicted effects with 3 response outcome variables: current career development stress, commitment, and performance. Other strategies demonstrated effects opposite those which were predicted. The perception of positive alternatives to promotion offered by the organization did not demonstrate the predicted effect of positively influencing the plateau process. A negative coping style was associated with a negative career plateau response.; Negative affectivity, a personality moderator included in the model, was found to increase the stress associated with a career plateau. Need for advancement, another moderator, did not demonstrate a significant relationship. Practical implications and conclusions are given.