We draw from the competence-based view of boundaryless career theories to clarify how, why, and when employees who feel overqualified can achieve favorable career outcomes. To be specific, we predict that employees having a perception of overqualification tend to emphasize the value of their personal brand (i.e. they have greater personal brand equity), which contributes to their career prospects. Across one experiment (N = 371) and one multiwave field study (N = 220), we found evidence that perceived overqualification is positively related to personal brand equity and has a positive indirect effect on key indicators of career prospects through the mediating role of personal brand equity. In addition, our results reveal that the self-promotion motive plays a critical moderating role in strengthening the positive relationship between perceived overqualification and personal brand equity. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.JEL Classification: M12
This study examines the relationship, potential mechanism, and boundary conditions between political tension, international students’ identity conflict based on home- and host-country identities, their career optimism for the host country, and global identity. We choose the political tensions between China and Australia as the research context and 377 Chinese international students studying in Australia as the sample. Our research shows that political tension is positively related to identity conflict and negatively associated with career optimism, moderated by global identity. Furthermore, the relationship between political tension and career optimism is mediated positively by identity conflict. Our research expands the perspective of marginalization in the psychology of working theory as a predictive factor to explain a novel connection between political tension as a time-specific event and international students’ career optimism as being part of the global workforce. The study further extends the mechanism of identity conflict and its influence on the vocational psychology of individuals in the context of political tensions. Using self-categorization theory, we further show that global identity buffers the effects of political tension on identity conflict. The research has practical implications for the global workforce’s career development, managerial application, and policymaking. JEL Classification: M14, M12, J24
Although change implementation requires attitudinal support from both individuals and collectives (i.e. groups), scholars have primarily focused on explaining readiness for change (RFC) from an individual perspective. In this article, we address this gap by explaining collective RFC. We focus on manager-official and supervisor-unofficial change communication as antecedents of collective RFC. Building on signaling theory, we propose that relationships between change communication and collective RFC are mediated by the strength of the change communication process (CP). Using hierarchical linear modeling, we tested our model with a field sample of 402 employees in 48 groups in organizations undergoing organizational changes. Contrary to our expectations, manager-official communication was not associated with collective RFC. Instead, supervisor-unofficial communication (SUC) was positively associated with collective RFC. The perceived strength of the change CP mediated the positive relationship between SUC and collective RFC. We identify implications for theory and practice regarding change communication and collective RFC.JEL Classification: JEL M50
Augmented reality-based branded applications enable consumers to interact with brands in innovative, immersive ways. Drawing on spatial presence theory, social presence theory, and the means-end theory of lifestyle, this research uncovers the underlying mechanism by which augmented reality-based branded applications influence consumers' impulsive consumption of luxury brands. Data was collected from millennials who frequently used augmented reality-based branded apps for luxury purchases and analyzed using structural equation modeling. The findings reveal that augmented reality-based branded app usage significantly and positively impacts the motivational factors underlying luxury consumption (i.e. social comparison, hedonic shopping motivation, and materialism) and ultimately influences the impulsive buying of luxury brands. Furthermore, materialistic dispositions were found to mediate the relationship between augmented reality-based branded app usage and impulsive buying of luxury brands.JEL Code: L1, D4, M310, M370
This article analyses Bitcoin’s suitability as a central bank reserve asset. The article presents a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the security, safety and liquidity of Bitcoin compared to the established reserve assets gold and US Treasury bonds. Bitcoin’s role as a risk diversifier in central bank reserve portfolios is assessed for US and Australian reserve portfolios. The analysis reveals that Bitcoin meets some of the required criteria for a central bank reserve asset but not all. Bitcoin is clearly less stable and less liquid than gold and US government bonds. However, a portfolio analysis further shows that small allocations of Bitcoin reduce the risk of reserve portfolios both in normal times and in times of stress. JEL code: E58, F31, G11
