IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v11y2019i3p764-d202659.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Self-Perceived Employability and Meaningful Work: The Mediating Role of Courage on Quality of Life

Author

Listed:
  • Paola Magnano

    (Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, Kore University, Cittadella Universitaria, 94100 Enna, Italy)

  • Giuseppe Santisi

    (Department of Science of Education, University of Catania, Via Biblioteca 4, 95124 Catania, Italy)

  • Andrea Zammitti

    (Department of Science of Education, University of Catania, Via Biblioteca 4, 95124 Catania, Italy)

  • Rita Zarbo

    (Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, Kore University, Cittadella Universitaria, 94100 Enna, Italy)

  • Santo Di Nuovo

    (Department of Science of Education, University of Catania, Via Biblioteca 4, 95124 Catania, Italy)

Abstract

The concept of sustainability, from a psychological point of view, can be related to the promotion of personal resources that help people to find decent and meaningful work and live quality lives. In the psychological concept of sustainability and sustainable development, the sustainability of careers is related not only to individual career management, but also to the possibility for individuals to obtain a good quality of life despite the frequent changes and the unpredictability of the work context. The present study focuses on the constructs of self-perceived employability and meaningful work, analyzing their relationships with workers’ quality of life. An empirical study was conducted on 660 Italian workers using the following measures: Self-perceived employability scale, work and meaning inventory, courage measure, satisfaction with life scale, and the flourishing scale. The results showed direct effects of employability and meaningful work on the indicators of quality of life (life satisfaction and flourishing); moreover, indirect effects of employability and meaningful work on the quality of life were found to be caused by the mediation of courage.

Suggested Citation

  • Paola Magnano & Giuseppe Santisi & Andrea Zammitti & Rita Zarbo & Santo Di Nuovo, 2019. "Self-Perceived Employability and Meaningful Work: The Mediating Role of Courage on Quality of Life," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-14, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:3:p:764-:d:202659
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/3/764/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/3/764/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ruth Yeoman, 2014. "Conceptualising Meaningful Work as a Fundamental Human Need," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Meaningful Work and Workplace Democracy, chapter 1, pages 8-38, Palgrave Macmillan.
    2. Katsunori Sumi, 2014. "Reliability and Validity of Japanese Versions of the Flourishing Scale and the Scale of Positive and Negative Experience," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 118(2), pages 601-615, September.
    3. Laura Giuntoli & Francesco Ceccarini & Claudio Sica & Corrado Caudek, 2017. "Validation of the Italian Versions of the Flourishing Scale and of the Scale of Positive and Negative Experience," SAGE Open, , vol. 7(1), pages 21582440166, January.
    4. Ed Diener & Eunkook Suh, 1997. "Measuring Quality Of Life: Economic, Social, And Subjective Indicators," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 40(1), pages 189-216, January.
    5. Guadalupe Vila-Vázquez & Carmen Castro-Casal & Dolores Álvarez-Pérez & Luisa Del Río-Araújo, 2018. "Promoting the Sustainability of Organizations: Contribution of Transformational Leadership to Job Engagement," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-17, November.
    6. Ruth Yeoman, 2014. "Conceptualising Meaningful Work as a Fundamental Human Need," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 125(2), pages 235-251, December.
    7. Veronika Huta & Richard Ryan, 2010. "Pursuing Pleasure or Virtue: The Differential and Overlapping Well-Being Benefits of Hedonic and Eudaimonic Motives," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 11(6), pages 735-762, December.
    8. Ed Diener & Derrick Wirtz & William Tov & Chu Kim-Prieto & Dong-won Choi & Shigehiro Oishi & Robert Biswas-Diener, 2010. "New Well-being Measures: Short Scales to Assess Flourishing and Positive and Negative Feelings," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 97(2), pages 143-156, June.
    9. Rita Chiesa & Luca Fazi & Dina Guglielmi & Marco Giovanni Mariani, 2018. "Enhancing Substainability: Psychological Capital, Perceived Employability, and Job Insecurity in Different Work Contract Conditions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-10, July.
    10. Inmaculada Silla & Nele Cuyper & Francisco Gracia & José Peiró & Hans Witte, 2009. "Job Insecurity and Well-Being: Moderation by Employability," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 10(6), pages 739-751, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Howard, Matt C. & Reiley, Peter J., 2020. "Physical courage predicts relevant outcomes in associated contexts: The creation of a measure and empirical analysis into the construct," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 80-94.
    2. Subas Neupane & Saila Kyrönlahti & Prakash K.C. & Anna Siukola & Hanna Kosonen & Kirsi Lumme-Sandt & Pirjo Nikander & Clas-Håkan Nygård, 2022. "Indicators of Sustainable Employability among Older Finnish Postal Service Employees: A Longitudinal Study of Age and Time Effects," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-13, May.
    3. Gerardo Petruzziello & Rita Chiesa & Marco Giovanni Mariani, 2022. "The Storm Doesn’t Touch me!—The Role of Perceived Employability of Students and Graduates in the Pandemic Era," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-13, April.
    4. Wenxia Zhou & Zhen Pan & Qiuping Jin & Yue Feng, 2022. "Impact of Self-Perceived Employability on Sustainable Career Development in Times of COVID-19: Two Mediating Paths," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-16, March.
    5. Sylwia Wiśniewska & Kamil Wiśniewski & Robert Szydło, 2021. "The Relationship between Organizational Learning at the Individual Level and Perceived Employability: A Model-Based Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-17, July.
    6. Basheer M. Al-Ghazali & M. Sadiq Sohail & Ibrahim Ali M. Jumaan, 2021. "CSR Perceptions and Career Satisfaction: The Role of Psychological Capital and Moral Identity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-22, June.
    7. Giuseppe Santisi & Ernesto Lodi & Paola Magnano & Rita Zarbo & Andrea Zammitti, 2020. "Relationship between Psychological Capital and Quality of Life: The Role of Courage," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-14, June.
    8. Jung Eon Kwon, 2019. "Work Volition and Career Adaptability as Predictors of Employability: Examining a Moderated Mediating Process," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(24), pages 1-16, December.
    9. Nazanin Naderiadib Alpler & Huseyin Arasli, 2020. "Can Hindrance Stressors Change the Nature of Perceived Employability? An Empirical Study in the Hotel Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(24), pages 1-13, December.
    10. Pilhyoun Yoon & Juhee Hahn, 2021. "Contradictory Aspects of Job Searching in the COVID-19 Pandemic: Relationships between Perceived Socioeconomic Constraints, Work Volition, and the Meaning of Work," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-15, January.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Marta Martín-Carbonell & Begoña Espejo & Irene Checa & Martha Fernández-Daza, 2021. "Adaptation and Measurement Invariance by Gender of the Flourishing Scale in a Colombian Sample," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-12, March.
    2. Aiste Dirzyte & Živilė Sederevičiūtė-Pačiauskienė & Jolita Šliogerienė & Aivaras Vijaikis & Aidas Perminas & Lukas Kaminskis & Giedrius Žebrauskas & Kęstutis Mačiulaitis, 2021. "Peer-to-Peer Confirmation, Positive Automatic Thoughts, and Flourishing of Computer Programming E-Learners," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-24, October.
    3. Begoña Espejo & Irene Checa & Jaime Perales-Puchalt & Juan Francisco Lisón, 2020. "Validation and Measurement Invariance of the Scale of Positive and Negative Experience (SPANE) in a Spanish General Sample," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(22), pages 1-15, November.
    4. Giuseppe Santisi & Ernesto Lodi & Paola Magnano & Rita Zarbo & Andrea Zammitti, 2020. "Relationship between Psychological Capital and Quality of Life: The Role of Courage," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-14, June.
    5. Laura Giuntoli & Federica Condini & Francesco Ceccarini & Veronika Huta & Giulio Vidotto, 2021. "The Different Roles of Hedonic and Eudaimonic Motives for Activities in Predicting Functioning and Well-Being Experiences," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 1657-1671, April.
    6. Maria Chiara Fastame & Marilena Ruiu & Ilaria Mulas, 2022. "Hedonic and Eudaimonic Well-Being in Late Adulthood: Lessons From Sardinia’s Blue Zone," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 23(2), pages 713-726, February.
    7. Laura Giuntoli & Francesco Ceccarini & Claudio Sica & Corrado Caudek, 2017. "Validation of the Italian Versions of the Flourishing Scale and of the Scale of Positive and Negative Experience," SAGE Open, , vol. 7(1), pages 21582440166, January.
    8. Merrick Powell & Kirk N. Olsen & William Forde Thompson, 2023. "Music, Pleasure, and Meaning: The Hedonic and Eudaimonic Motivations for Music (HEMM) Scale," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(6), pages 1-19, March.
    9. Yixuan Liu & Liumeng Li & Guomei Miao & Xinyan Yang & Yinghui Wu & Yanling Xu & Yonghong Gao & Yongzhi Zhan & Yiwei Zhong & Shujuan Yang, 2021. "Relationship between Children’s Intergenerational Emotional Support and Subjective Well-Being among Middle-Aged and Elderly People in China: The Mediation Role of the Sense of Social Fairness," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(1), pages 1-12, December.
    10. Harry Hummels & Patrick Nullens, 2022. "‘Other-wise’ Organizing. A Levinasian Approach to Agape in Work and Business Organisations," Humanistic Management Journal, Springer, vol. 7(2), pages 211-232, October.
    11. Isabella Romano & Mark A. Ferro & Karen A. Patte & Ed Diener & Scott T. Leatherdale, 2020. "Measurement Invariance of the Flourishing Scale among a Large Sample of Canadian Adolescents," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-15, October.
    12. Lei Qi & Xin Wei & Yuhan Li & Bing Liu & Zikun Xu, 2020. "The Influence of Mistreatment by Patients on Job Satisfaction and Turnover Intention among Chinese Nurses: A Three-Wave Survey," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(4), pages 1-16, February.
    13. Jens Jørund Tyssedal, 2023. "Work is Meaningful if There are Good Reasons to do it: A Revisionary Conceptual Analysis of ‘Meaningful Work’," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 185(3), pages 533-544, July.
    14. Andrew Soren & Carol D. Ryff, 2023. "Meaningful Work, Well-Being, and Health: Enacting a Eudaimonic Vision," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(16), pages 1-21, August.
    15. Hezhi Chen & Zhijia Zeng, 2023. "Seeking Pleasure is Good, but Avoiding Pain is Bad: Distinguishing Hedonic Approach from Hedonic Avoidance Orientations," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 24(7), pages 2377-2393, October.
    16. Marta Martín-Carbonell & Irene Checa & Martha Fernández-Daza & Yadid Paternina & Begoña Espejo, 2021. "Adaptation and Psychometric Properties of the Scale of Positive and Negative Experience (SPANE) in the General Colombian Population," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(12), pages 1-17, June.
    17. Jacky C. K. Ng & Algae K. Y. Au & Helen S. M. Wong & Carmen K. M. Sum & Victor C. Y. Lau, 2021. "Does Dispositional Envy Make You Flourish More (or Less) in Life? An Examination of Its Longitudinal Impact and Mediating Mechanisms Among Adolescents and Young Adults," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 1089-1117, March.
    18. Nicholas Burton & Mai Chi Vu, 2021. "Moral Identity and the Quaker tradition: Moral Dissonance Negotiation in the WorkPlace," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 174(1), pages 127-141, November.
    19. Wenjie Li & Linting Zhang & Chengcheng Li & Ningzhe Zhu & Jingjing Zhao & Feng Kong, 2022. "Pursuing Pleasure or Meaning: A Cross-Lagged Analysis of Happiness Motives and Well-being in Adolescents," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 23(8), pages 3981-3999, December.
    20. Alison Pritchard & Miles Richardson & David Sheffield & Kirsten McEwan, 2020. "The Relationship Between Nature Connectedness and Eudaimonic Well-Being: A Meta-analysis," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 1145-1167, March.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:3:p:764-:d:202659. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.