Career adapt-ability: around the world Professor Jenny Bimrose Institute for Employment Research Gill Frigerio Centre for Lifelong Learning University of Warwick

Career support: lifelong perspective Early stage transitions Mid- career changes Third age transitions

Aim: To explore the utility, in practice, of the concept of career adapt-ability

Objectives  EXPLORE:the concept of career adapt-ability  REVIEW:relevant findings from national and international research  REFLECT:on integration of research into practice  CONSIDER:some potential implications

Career adaptability: what is it? ‘The capability of an individual to make a series of successful transitions where the labour market, organisation of work and underlying occupational and organisational knowledge bases may be subject to considerable change’ Ref: Bimrose, J., Barnes, S-A., Brown, A. and Hughes, D. (2011) 'The role of career adaptability in skills supply', Wath-upon-Dearne: UK Commission for Employment & Skills

Career Adapt-ability: evidence base (England) International Life Design Group 15 country study (CAAS) – Special issue of JVB (2012) UK – qualitative indicators Mid-career workers (N=64) Older women (N=36) UK – quantitative CAAI Confirmatory factor analysis 4 Universities (N=753)

Mark Savickas (career construction) Professor of Family and Community Medicine Family & Community Medicine at North East Ohio Medical University Explains the origins and process of developing an international evidence base for a measure of career adapt-ability.

Career-adaptability competencies (2012) ConcernControlCuriosityConfidence

Career adapt-ability: personality characteristics Self- regulation FlexibilityProactivityPlanfulness

Inter-relatedness? CAREER ADAPT- ABILITY RESILIENCEEXPLORATIONDECISIVENESS

Thank you Adaptability dimension Attitudes and beliefs Competence Coping behaviours Career ‘problem’ ConcernPlanfulPlanning Aware Involved Preparing Indifference ControlDecisive Decision making Assertive Disciplined Wilful Indecision CuriosityInquisitiveExploring Experiment Risk taking Inquiring Unrealism ConfidenceEfficaciousProblem solving Persistent Striving Industrious Inhibition

24 item inventory: 4 core constructs Please rate how strongly you feel you have developed each of the following abilities using the 5 point scale below. Strongest Very strong Strong Somewhat strong Not strong (5) (4)(3)(2) (1)  Taking responsibility for my actions  Acting in line with my values and principles  Relying on myself  Observing different ways of doing things CAAI (UK): Sample statements

Contextual adjustment – UK Cognitive interviewing: Involves going through the questions with a facilitator to check that they understand the meaning of each

Career adapt-ability: contextual relevance? Practical exercise In pairs…….

Validation of CAAS in UK context Birmingham University: 301 students Glasgow Caledonian University : 195 Newman University: 175 Warwick University: 175 Confirmatory factor analysis [N = 846, reduced to 753 after removal of outliers/ those with missing values]

To explore how the CAAI-UK might be used in different contexts & settings DMU, Newman, Warwick, HECSU, Birmingham, Glasgow Caledonian Focus on placements, online tools, mature learners, embedding in career education, vehicle for institutional change Relevance to practice? HEA funded pilots project

 Guidance notes for feedback sessions  Text using scores as a basis for signposting  Success and risk factors identified at both institutional and practitioner level Key Outcomes

 Belongs to the individual client: compare ‘employability’ (Duarte, 2004)  Psycho-social competences (career adapt-abilities): enables clients to manage their own resources for life/work challenges & transitions  Identifies needs and related targeted interventions: compare many other psychometric tests Key Findings: Practice

Development tool Value- added measure for interventions Benchmarking Resource allocation/ prioritisation Other? Key findings: Organisational Context

Key findings: Public Policy Raising aspiration Encourages autonomy Relevant across the life-course Potential for greater integration of ICT

Bimrose, J., Barnes, S-A., Brown, A. and Hughes, D. (2011) 'The role of career adaptability in skills supply', Wath-upon-Dearne: UK Commission for Employment & Skills Bimrose, J. and Hearne, L. (2012) 'Resilience and Career Adaptability: Qualitative Studies of Adult Career counselling' Journal Of Vocational Behavior McMahon, M., Watson, M. and Bimrose, J. (2012) 'Career Adaptability: A Qualitative Understanding from the Stories of Older Women' Journal Of Vocational Behavior – 768 Savickas, M.L. (1997) Career Adaptability: An Integrative construct for Life-Span, Life-Space Theory, The Career Development Quarterly, 45, 3, pp Savickas, M.L., Nota, L., Rossier, J., Dauwalder, J.P., Duarte, M.E., Guichard, J., Soresi, S., Van Esbroeck R. & van Vianen, A.E.M., (2009). Life designing: A paradigm for career construction in the 21 st Century. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 75, 3, pp Savickas, M.L. & Porfeli, E.J. (2012) Career Adapt-Abilities Scale: Construction, reliability and measurement equivalence across 13 countries, Journal of Vocational Behaviour, 80, pp References

For more information… To download reports and related publications: jbimrose/

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