Options
Multidimensional Networking Behavior in Germany and China: Measurement Invariance and Associations With Objective Career Success
Volmer, Judith; Orth, Maximilian; Wolff, Hans-Georg (2017): Multidimensional Networking Behavior in Germany and China: Measurement Invariance and Associations With Objective Career Success, in: Journal of Career Assessment, Thousand Oaks, Calif. [u.a.]: Sage, doi: 10.1177/1069072717723302.
Faculty/Chair:
Author:
Title of the Journal:
Journal of Career Assessment
ISSN:
1552-4590
Publisher Information:
Year of publication:
2017
Pages:
Language:
English
Abstract:
Prior research has so far established the multidimensional nature of networking behavior in Western but not Asian working populations. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to assess the cross-cultural measurement equivalence and predictive validity of an established multi- dimensional networking scale across a German and a Chinese sample of individuals employed by the same multinational company (total N ¼ 248). Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated configural and metric, but not scalar measurement invariance, indicating that cross-cultural com- parisons of associations between the six theoretically anticipated networking dimensions and other constructs but not of mean scores of networking are meaningful. Path analytic findings showed that some but not all networking dimensions significantly predicted objective career success (i.e., salary and promotions, assessed 2 months later). Relative weight analyses indicated that all intraorgani- zational (i.e., building, maintaining, and using contacts), but no extraorganizational networking behaviors explained nontrivial variance in Chinese employees’ salary and promotions. In the German group, a largely opposite pattern was found. Interestingly, the relative importance of building and of using internal contacts was significantly greater in China than in Germany. We conclude that the functional but not necessarily the structural facet of a multidimensional conceptualization of net- working behavior exhibits meaningful cross-cultural equivalence.
Keywords:
networking, career success, longitudinal study, cross-cultural, measurement invariance, relative weight analysis
Peer Reviewed:
Yes:
International Distribution:
Yes:
Type:
Article
Activation date:
October 10, 2017
Project(s):
Permalink
https://fis.uni-bamberg.de/handle/uniba/42605