Sub-theme 01: (SWG) Beyond the Mainstream: Careers of Special Groups
Call for Papers
Careers are multi-level phenomena. They take place at the 'intersection of societal history and individual biography' (Grandjean, 1981: 1057) linking micro- and macro-frames of references (Schein, 1978) and are central to understanding how individuals, institutions and society interact (Hughes, 1937; Mills, 2000 (Orig. 1959); Barley, 1989). Yet, skepticism is widespread about the field of career studies’ achievements in this respect (e.g. Arthur, 2008; Jones & Dunn, 2007). The reasons for this are manifold and include insufficient interdisciplinary work (e.g. Khapova & Arthur, 2011; Lawrence, 2011), the partial neglect of context (Mayrhofer et al., 2007), or a lack of a joint theoretical language allowing communication between various discourses (Gunz & Mayrhofer, 2011). However, one common denominator derives from the theoretical, methodological, and empirical demands resulting from the multi-level quality of careers.
Theoretically, a comprehensive understanding
of careers requires theoretical frameworks spanning different levels of social complexity. From its early stages on, the field
of career studies has been rooted in a broad view embedding individuals in a dynamic interaction with their environment. Early
descriptive works from the Chicago school looking at hobos (Anderson, 1923), taxi hall dancers (Cressey, 1932) or jack rollers
(Shaw, 1930) are just harbingers for later conceptual and empirical work capturing various levels of social complexity (e.g.
Hughes, 1958). Methodologically, multi-level analyses (Sniders, 2011; Klein & Kozlowski, 2000) provide formidable challenges.
They not only require an in-depth knowledge of the available methods, but also depend on the availability of adequate data.
Empirically, multi-level designs pose problems, too. At the least they entail the use of different sources of data, e.g. individual
survey data tailored to the study and nation-wide data such as unemployment rates or culture variables collected for different
purposes. In any case, they require substantial efforts and use of resources to gather a data set which covers various levels
(e.g. van Veldhoven & Dorenbosch, 2008, Sveningsson & Alvesson, 2003).
Against this backdrop, the SWG/sub-theme
01 invites papers which address one or several multi-level issues. They can have a theoretical, methodological or empirical
focus or combine them. Examples include, but certainly are not limited to conceptual papers presenting multi-level frameworks;
methodological papers showing how multi-level analysis can be made fruitful in career studies; and empirical papers using
a multi-level design to answer a career-related question. In terms of content, papers from all areas of career studies are
welcome.