Dorien Kooij

Tilburg University | UVT · Department of Human Resource Studies

Research findings indicate an age-related decline in worker’s growth and learning. In this paper, we investigate to what extent these results may be affected by measures (e.g., growth need strength scale) that are influenced by educational approaches to workplace learning, framing learning as intentional processes of knowledge acquisition guided by...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize job immobility concepts, e.g. staying in an unsatisfying job and perceiving limited opportunities to move and apply for another job. The existing literature on this situation of job immobility in which the employee is experiencing stuckness in the job is scattered across research domains, limite...

As populations in the US and around the world continue to age, it has become increasingly important to understand how organizations can create working conditions that attract, support, and retain workers across the lifespan. In this paper, we provide a primer on current theory and research on age in the workplace. We briefly describe lifespan theor...

Background: Although the new model of sustainable employability (SE), which builds on the capability approach, has received growing attention, research on how to enhance workers’ SE is scarce. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether (1) inclusive leadership and high-involvement HR practices are positively associated with SE and whether (2) s...

To facilitate new knowledge development about temporal perspectives on the topic of sustainable employability from an organizational perspective, in this Special Issue, we present new meaningful results of eight different empirical papers. Of these accepted papers, three studies were based on longitudinal survey data (2-wave panel data, whereas one...

Work motivation is defined as a set of energetic forces, internal or external to individuals, that help to initiate work-related behavior, and determine its form, direction, intensity, and duration. It is one of the most studied and discussed topics in industrial and organizational psychology and extensively documented in meta-analyses and literatu...

Background The capability set for work questionnaire (CSWQ) is being used to measure the new model of sustainable employability building on the capability approach. However, previous studies on the psychometric properties of the instrument are limited and cross-sectional. This two-way study aimed to (1) evaluate the convergent validity of the CSWQ...

Although previous research on work ability extensively examined the role of job demands in predicting work ability, this research largely overlooked the influence of home demands such as disruptive private life events as a potential predictor of work ability even though home demands are assumed to influence work outcomes in a similar way to job dem...

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate if a supportive psychological climate specifically aimed at older workers (i.e. employee perceptions that the organization supports and activates older workers) will result in higher levels of older workers' vitality and dedication mediated through increased levels of older workers' perceived orga...

Contemporary labor markets are characterized by rapidly growing numbers of solo self-employed workers who have their own businesses without employing employees. However, research on solo self-employment has almost exclusively focused on the decision to move into self-employment, thereby failing to consider the long-term career consequences of being...

Since workers are increasingly suffering from burnout, there is a need for insights into how burnout can be decreased to improve subjective well-being. The broaden-and-build theory proposes that gratitude increases well-being through an upward spiral. Few studies have examined whether gratitude decreases burnout and what mediating behaviors explain...

Since job crafting behaviour is of profound importance for the retention of older workers, we examined how organizations can stimulate job crafting behaviour among older workers with opportunity-enhancing Human Resource (HR) practices. We introduced three job crafting behaviours: accommodative, utilization, and developmental job crafting. We hypoth...

Purpose Employees need a sustainable career to prolong their working lives. The ability, motivation and opportunity to work form an important basis for sustainable careers across the lifespan. However, over the lifespan of their careers employees are likely to experience several career shocks (e.g. becoming chronically ill or being fired) which mig...

We live in an unusual time, which effects all of us in different ways. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, some people are working harder than ever, some people have lost their job, some people can only work from home, and some people have to reinvent how they work (Kniffin et al., 2020). Older 50+ workers might even be more affected by the pandemic comp...

Due to demographic change, age diversity is increasing in many organizations. We aimed to understand how organizations can use age diversity training to overcome the challenges and realize the benefits of an age-diverse workforce. We built on the two predominant theoretical perspectives in the diversity literature–social identity theory and the inf...

Work plays a crucial role in rising social inequalities, which refer to unequal opportunities and rewards for different social groups. Whereas the conventional view of workplaces as meritocracies suggests that work is a conduit for social equality, we unveil the ways in which workplaces contribute to the accumulation of social inequality. In our cu...

Organisations are challenged to extend working lives of older workers. However, there is little empirical evidence available on how organisations should do this. This study aims to fill this gap by testing the effect of Human Resource (HR) practices on perceived work ability and the preferred retirement age. Based on the Conversation of Resources t...

Since workforces are aging rapidly worldwide, older workers need to work longer. Therefore, this study investigated active ways through which older workers shape their job to age successfully at work. We build on the lifespan psychology literature and the activation hypothesis to argue that activating workdays, characterized by high work pressure a...

This article describes a quasi-experiment that evaluates the relationship between a job crafting intervention and work engagement. More particularly, we focused on three different types of job crafting: crafting towards strengths, crafting towards interests, and crafting towards development. Building on the conservation of resources theory, we hypo...

Door achterblijvende geboortecijfers, een hogere levensverwachting en een stijgende pensioenleeftijd is succesvol ouder worden op het werk de afgelopen jaren een belangrijk thema geworden. In dit artikel willen wij stilstaan bij een positief psychologisch perspectief op het thema ouder worden op het werk door na te gaan wat er bekend is over succes...

Although aging workforces result in numerous practical challenges for organizations and societies, little research has focused on successful aging at work. The limited existent research has generated rather diverse conceptualizations of successful aging at work, which are often broad and difficult to operationalize in practice. Therefore, to advanc...

Purpose. The central aim of this paper is to increase our understanding of the different types of solo self-employed workers based upon their start-up motive(s) and to advance knowledge on the effects of entrepreneurial motivations on proactive behaviors related to their career. To achieve this aim, we identified subgroups and investigated whether...

Personal strengths are those characteristics that allow us to be at our best, that is, to deliver high performance while feeling happy and energized. Research has indicated that employees who perceive organizational support for strengths use (POSSU) display higher levels of well-being, and, in turn, performance. However, we do not yet know whether...

Organizations are challenged to retain older workers, however knowledge on how this should be done is scattered. The aim of this paper is to integrate knowledge on the actions organizations can take to facilitate the extension of working lives by identifying and examining the effectiveness of Human Resource Management activities directed at the ext...

The ability to foresee, anticipate, and plan for future desired outcomes is crucial for well-being, motivation, and behavior. However, theories in organizational psychology do not incorporate time-related constructs such as Future Time Perspective (FTP), and research on FTP remains disjointed and scattered, with different domains focusing on differ...

The workforce is aging in most developed countries, and there is a need to further extend and improve older employees’ working lives. Organizational scientists and practitioners, therefore, have become more and more interested in the topic of successful aging at work. Over the past few years, scholars have introduced theoretical frameworks that hel...

Occupational future time perspective (OFTP) refers to employees’ perceptions of their future in the employment context. Based on lifespan and organizational psychology theories, we review research on OFTP and offer a meta-analysis of antecedents and outcomes of OFTP (K = 40 independent samples, N = 19,112 workers). Results show that OFTP is associa...

Occupational future time perspective (OFTP) refers to employees’ perceptions of their future in the employment context. Based on lifespan and organizational psychology theories, we review research on OFTP and offer a meta-analysis of antecedents and outcomes of OFTP (K = 40 independent samples, N = 19,112 workers). Results show that OFTP is associa...

In a three-wave survey study among 487 Dutch university employees, we examined how and when employees' perceptions of high-performance work practices (HPWP) affect employee affective commitment. We proposed that perceived person–organisation (PO) fit mediates this relationship and that the relationships among perceptions of HPWP, perceived PO fit,...

We introduce 2 novel types of job crafting—crafting toward strengths and crafting toward interests—that aim to improve the fit between one’s job and personal strengths and interests. Based on Berg, Dutton, and Wrzesniewski (2013), we hypothesized that participating in a job crafting intervention aimed at adjusting the job to personal strengths and...

This two-wave study aimed to examine future time perspective (FTP) as an antecedent of job crafting, and in turn job crafting as a mediator in associations between FTP and work outcomes. Based on the lifespan socio-emotional selectivity theory, we expected that open-ended and limited FTP would evoke different forms of job crafting, which in turn wo...

Purpose The aging workforce is becoming an increasingly important topic in today’s labor market. However, most scientific research and organizational policies focus on chronological age as the main determinant of successful aging. Based on life span developmental theories – primarily socioemotional selectivity theory and motivational theory of life...

We conducted two studies to improve our understanding of why and when older workers are focused on learning. Based on socioemotional selectivity theory, which proposes that goal focus changes with age and the perception of time, we hypothesized and found that older workers perceive their remaining time at work as more limited than younger workers w...

Job crafting is het op eigen initiatief doen van kleine aanpassingen aan de baan zodat deze beter past bij de capaciteiten en interesses van de werknemer. Een voorbeeld is een werknemer met veel ervaring met lastige klanten die daarom deze klanten voor zijn of haar rekening neemt. Job crafting is dus een manier waarop ouder wordende werknemers hun...

We review the literature on aging and proactivity and develop a theoretical framework to guide future research and practice. Evidence suggests that older employees show less proactive career behavior than young employees, but are as proactive (and possibly more so) with regard to other forms of work behavior. Our framework proposes that age-related...

In this article, I clarify and further discuss 4 issues raised by Zacher in critically analyzing my perspective on successful aging at work and the active role of employees. First, I argue that the sustainability concept is a valuable and useful concept to better understand successful aging at work, and I aimed to integrate sustainability by taking...

Research on how to manage and retain older workers is expanding. In this literature, older workers are often viewed as passive recipients or products of their work environment. However, findings in the lifespan literature indicate that people are not passive responders to the aging process, but rather frequently exercise agency in dealing with the...

Aging workers challenge existing conventions regarding the employee-employer relationship. The demographic changes many countries face, particularly in the developed world, are translating into changes for both employees and their employers. These new circumstances demand a fresh perspective on appropriate leadership and behaviors to manage employe...

Since workforces are aging, governments, organizations, and researchers are increasingly interested in the topic of successful aging at work. In this article, I viewed successful aging at work from a sustainability perspective, and argued that a continuous person–job fit between the changing person and changing work is required for employees to be...

Purpose – The aim of this survey study among N =180 Dutch teachers was to examine the moderating role of calendar age and proactive personality in the relationships between developmental opportunities, on the one hand, and work engagement and self-perceived employability, on the other. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/app...

Since workers are aging across the world, organizations face the challenge of how to manage and motivate their older workers. This article addresses three issues related to employing older workers. First, what is an older worker? Second, how do work motivation and performance change with age? Third, what are the implications of changes in work moti...

Organizations face the challenge of how to make sure that their aging workers remain motivated, productive and healthy contributors to organizational performance. Building on Strategic HRM, we offer two insights. First, following the Resource Based View and conservation model, older workers can be a source of sustained competitive advantage provide...

This chapter highlights key insights into the dynamics of older workers and the opportunities available to redesign both their work experiences and the practices of contemporary organizations to the benefit of both. It identifies key evidence-based principles to optimize the employee-employer relationship of aging workers to maintain their health,...

Since workforces are aging worldwide, scientists and practitioners aim at understanding how organizations can manage older workers in order to extend their working lives. The five empirical papers of this symposium examine how organizations can deal with age-related issues, such as health limitations and related job accommodations, low job mobility...

This book focuses on the aging workforce from the employment relationship perspective. This innovative book specifically focuses on how organizations can ensure their aging workers remain motivated, productive, and healthy. In 15 chapters, several experts on this topic describe how organizations through effective human resource management can ensur...

Since abilities and motives change with age and common human resource (HR) practices might be less suitable for aging employees, scholars and practitioners are currently challenged to find new ways of managing aging workers and motivating them to continue working. Therefore, this mixed methods study builds on literature on lifespan development and...

In the near future, workforces will increasingly consist of older workers. At the same time, research has demonstrated that work-related growth motives decrease with age. Although this finding is consistent with life span theories, such as the selection optimization and compensation (SOC) model, we know relatively little about the process variables...

In a three-wave longitudinal survey study among 396 Dutch university employees, we examined how and when high performance HR practices affect employees' turnover intentions. Based on signaling and ASA theories, we proposed that PO fit is a mediator in this relationship, and that the relationships among high performance HR practices, PO fit, and tur...

In the context of the changing workforce, this study introduced two perspectives on HRM and distinguished universalistic developmental HRM from contingent accommodative HRM. We predicted two separate pathways for the effects on two employee outcomes: work engagement and affective commitment. We expected that developmental HRM would universally rela...

Job crafting and engagement: differences in teams with a restrictive versus an unrestrictive work context? Job crafting and engagement: differences in teams with a restrictive versus an unrestrictive work context? In this article, we examined whether job crafting results in increased work engagement. In addition, we examined to what extent a restri...

In this article, we examined whether job crafting results in increased work engagement. In addition, we examined to what extent a restrictive versus unrestrictive team context influences the extent to which employees craft their job, and the relationship between job crafting and engagement. Analyses of 503 questionnaires filled in by employees of 6...

Since workforces across the world are aging, researchers and organizations need more insight into how and why occupational well-being, together with work-related attitudes and motivations, change with age. Lifespan theories point to subjective health and future time perspective (i.e. an individual's perceptions of his or her remaining time to live)...

With changing retirement ages and an aging workforce, interest is growing on the potential contribution of relevant bundles of HR practices in eliciting well‐being and performance among aging workers. Drawing on theories on lifespan development and self‐regulation, we distinguished two bundles of HR practices: development HR practices that help ind...

The current study sought to explain a largely overlooked theme in psychological contract literature, that is, how individual factors are related to formation of psychological contract. It investigated the relationship between work centrality, psychological contracts, and job attitudes. It was expected that people with higher work centrality would b...

An updated literature review was conducted and a meta-analysis was performed to investigate the relationship between age and work-related motives. Building on theorizing in life span psychology, we hypothesized the existence of age-related differences in work-related motives. Specifically, we proposed an age-related increase in the strength of secu...

In this study, we used the lifespan theories of selection optimization and compensation (SOC) and the socio-emotional selectivity theory (SST) to integrate the disengagement and activity perspectives on aging and to explain intra-individual changes in work motivation. A two-wave longitudinal survey study was conducted among 600 Dutch university emp...

Research on the association between high commitment Human Resource (HR) practices and work-related outcomes at the individual level rarely focuses on age differences. To fill this knowledge gap, a meta-analysis has been conducted to examine how the relationships between the availability of high commitment HR practices, as perceived by employees, an...

Purpose This paper sets out to examine proactive personality in relation to job demands, job resources and engagement. Design/methodology/approach The current study employed a two‐wave complete panel study among 794 Dutch government employees. Based upon the Job Demands‐Resources (JD‐R) model, previous studies, job crafting theories, and Conservat...

This paper summarizes the state of affairs of European research on ageing and work. After a close inspection of the age construct, an overview is presented of research in four areas: the relationship between age and HR-policies, early retirement, age and performance/employability, age and health/well-being. The overview results in a research agenda...

Few studies have focused on the retention of older workers. Furthermore, no research known to us has examined or proposed hypotheses on the effect of HR practices on older workers. To fill this knowledge gap, this multiple case study among HR managers, line managers, and older workers in the Dutch construction sector aims to extend current lifespan...

Purpose – Little is known about the motivation for older workers to work and to remain active in the labor market. Research on age and motivation is limited and, moreover, conceptually diverse. This paper aims to address age-related factors that influence the work motivation of older workers. More specifically, it seeks to examine how various conce...

Purpose Little is known about the motivation for older workers to work and to remain active in the labor market. Research on age and motivation is limited and, moreover, conceptually diverse. This paper aims to address age‐related factors that influence the work motivation of older workers. More specifically, it seeks to examine how various concept...