Research Projects
Current research projects and research themes
A short introduction video on my research and work
Together with my team at the University of Bern and in cooperation with international colleagues we are currently working on these topics:
Integration of professional and private life in career development
Career development of older employees
Self-directed career management and employability
Career choice, career orientations and work motivation among adolescents
Causes and consequences of career success
Our research has direct implications for career guidance, career counselling, coaching, leadership, personnel management, and occupational health management. Through our research we also aim to contribute to the main global challenges for sustainable development, in particular promoting lifelong learning, healthy living, gender equality, and sustainable economic growth and decent work.
Integration of professional and private life in career development
The modern working world poses many challenges to the compatibility of work and private life. We research how people can successfully combine work and family/private life in their career development and how work and private life influence each other.
The increase in flexible forms of work, the growing number of women in the labour force and changing attitudes towards work and family/private life have led to a stronger link between work and private life. Many career decisions, such as which profession to pursue or whether to take on a leadership role, are influenced by family factors. The integration of work and privat live also has important consequences for work motivation, work performance, and health. In various studies with working women and men at different stages of their careers, we investigate how individuals incorporate family and private factors into their career development and career planning. We also investigate which personal behaviours and private and company influences can promote the reconciliation of work and private life roles.
Publications related to this Project
Career development of older workers
Demographic change leads to an aging workforce in many countries. We explore how individuals can achieve a positive career development in old age and how organizations can promote older employees in their professional development.
Older employees are equipped with a wealth of experience and expertise. But they are also in a career phase that poses new demands and challenges. The late career phase and the transition to retirement are not only a continuous withdrawal from the labor market but a new, active career phase. We explore what factors are particularly important for a positive work experience of older employees. We are also investigating how individuals and organizations can successfully manage careers before, during, and after the transition to retirement.
PUBLICATIONS RELATED TO THIS PROJECT
Career choice, career orientations and work motivation among Adolescents
For most young people in Switzerland, the first choice of a profession and vocational training are the most important basis for later career development. Through various studies among Swiss adolescents in school and vocational training, we are investigating which factors influence career choice, how to increase career preparedness, and how attitudes towards work are formed and develop over time.
The transition from compulsory schooling to vocational education and training (VET) and the successful completion of vocational training are some of the most important phases of professional development for the majority of young people in Switzerland. In several large-scale studies, we are investigating adolescents in school and VET regarding their development of different attitudes towards work. The projects provide impulses for career guidance, career choice education and vocational training. These studies also provide insights into how best to promote positive entry into working life for young people.
PUBLICATIONS RELATED TO THIS PROJECT
Self-directed career management
The modern world of work demands increasing personal responsibility for one's own career development and for maintaining one's employability. We investigate how people can successfully and actively shape their careers and which competencies, attitudes and environmental factors play a central role in this process. We also investigate which factors are central to maintaining and developing employability.
Self-directed career management is important for career success, quality of work and the general quality of life. Our research investigates the active management of one's own career as a dynamic self-regulation process, taking into account career orientations, career engagement, and the personal and organizational environment. The aim of this research is to gain a better understanding of how individuals shape their career as a central area of their lives in a self-regulated manner and how this is related to career success, work motivation, work performance and the maintenance and development of employability.
PUBLICATIONS RELATED TO THIS PROJECT
CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF Career SUCCESS
Career success is an important goal in life for many people. We investigate which behaviours and attitudes as well as environmental factors can promote or inhibit career success. We also investigate the consequences of career success on personality, well-being, and health.
Career success is influenced by various factors. In several projects, we use various groups and representative data to investigate which behaviours, personality traits, and attitudes of individuals can promote or hinder career success. We are also investigating how organizational and private environments affect professional success. In a new research area, we are also investigating the positive - but also negative - consequences of career success on personality development and health.