A dispositional approach to employability: Development of a measure and test of implications for employee reactions to organizational change

TLDR

Dispositional employability is defined as a constellation of individual differences that predispose individuals to proactive adaptability in work and careers, offering an alternative conceptualization to prior models. The study develops and validates a dispositional measure of employability (DME) and discusses its implications for future organizational research and practice. The authors develop and validate the DME through three independent studies that establish its construct validity. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses confirmed a 25‑item DME with a second‑order latent multidimensional structure, and longitudinal data showed the DME predicts employees’ positive emotions and affective commitment to organizational change beyond tolerance for ambiguity, work locus of control, self‑esteem, and optimism.

Abstract

This study develops and validates a dispositional measure of employability (DME). Dispositional employability was defined as a constellation of individual differences that predispose individuals to (pro)active adaptability specific to work and careers. A dispositional approach to employability represents an alternative conceptualization to those previously found in the literature. Three independent studies were conducted to establish construct validity. Using exploratory factor analysis (Study 1) and confirmatory factor analysis (Study 2), a 25‐item DME instrument was confirmed. Study 2 supported the hypothesized second‐order latent multidimensional factor structure of the DME. Study 3 confirmed the stability of the DME and provided support for its construct validity by longitudinally showing that dispositional employability was significantly related to employees' positive emotions and affective commitment related to organizational changes. It was shown that these effects were above and beyond those found for tolerance for ambiguity, work locus of control, self‐esteem, and optimism. Implications for future organizational research and practice are discussed.