ANTECEDENTS AND CONSEQUENCES OF MEANINGFUL WORK

ABSTRACT Purpose: This study assesses the influence of the importance of work and of creative self-concept on meaningful work and the influence of meaningful work on the employability of unemployed people living in the Southeast region of the State of Pará, in Brazil, aiming at a new job. Originality/value: This study also contributes to the literature, offering three new valid and reliable measuring instruments for the following constructs: Creative self-concept, Importance of work and Meaningful work. Design/methodology/approach: The survey counts on the participation of 206 interviewees, and data were analyzed through confirmatory factorial analysis and structural equation modeling. Findings: The ten constructs used in the model showed convergent validity, discriminant validity, and adequate reliability. In structural modeling, all three possibilities were confirmed, so the creative self-concept and the importance of work explain 68% of the variance in meaningful work and, on its turn, meaningful work explains 67% of the variance in employability, in both cases, the explanatory power is great for the standards of behavioral sciences. This study makes a special contribution to address the importance of meaningful work in career counseling programs for unemployed people. It seems useful to point out a career orientation focused on meaningful work, aiming at increasing employability, as individuals with positive self-assessments are more likely to achieve a successful carrier based on personal effort. Nationally, such knowledge may foster public policy programs directed to unemployed people, focusing on their career.