Social media platforms are increasingly used to screen job applicants for talent, with LinkedIn being the most widely used professional social media site. However, despite the aging workforce and labor market shortages, research on age discrimination during LinkedIn screening remains limited. Based on impression formation theories and the stereotype content model, this study examined age discrimination among female applicants during LinkedIn screening, as well as the role of recommendations and age-related stereotypes among recruiters. Through an experimental within-subjects study with 239 recruiters, we found that older applicants received lower job suitability ratings than equally qualified younger applicants. Having a recommendation that emphasizes warmth or competence benefits both older and younger applicants, but younger applicants benefit more when both warmth and competence are highlighted in recommendations than older applicants. Positive age-related stereotypes regarding warmth and competence do not affect age discrimination. These findings provide valuable insights into the use of LinkedIn screening for both organizations and job seekers.

Emerging technologies, such as virtual reality (VR), are increasingly used in personnel selection processes, for example, to present scenarios in situational judgment tests (SJTs). Despite growing concerns about workforce aging and labor market shortages, limited research has explored how test characteristics interact with applicants’ age. Drawing on the modular approach to personnel selection procedures, two experimental studies among 122 (Study 1: video- vs. text-based stimulus) and 121 participants (Study 2: VR- vs. text-based stimulus) investigated the interaction between stimulus format and test-takers’ age in relation to perceptions of presence and organizational attractiveness. Results of Study 1 showed that a video-based format increased presence but did not significantly affect organizational attractiveness compared to a text-based format. Further, presence did not mediate the relationship between stimulus format and organizational attractiveness, and age did not moderate the effects. In contrast, a VR-based stimulus significantly enhanced both presence and organizational attractiveness compared to a text-based format, with stronger effects among younger and middle-aged test-takers than older ones. Moreover, presence mediated the relationship between stimulus format and organizational attractiveness. These findings emphasize the importance of applying a human-centric approach when considering test characteristics and age-related differences in the development of fair selection procedures.

An implicit trait policy (ITP) on intercultural competence reflects a worker’s self-beliefs regarding effectiveness of behavior in intercultural work situations. An ITP thus integrates the worker’s competence on selection of effective behavior like intensifying intercultural contacts and rejection of ineffective behavior like discrimination. The present study researches to which extent selection and rejection relate to different origins by mapping worker data from a public employment service (N = 3,310) onto the present study’s ITP framework of intercultural competence. Results show that a worker’s competence to avoid ineffective behavior is unrelated to the worker’s ability to endorse effective behavior, with both competences showing relations to (partly) different origins. These results also trend further towards two actual behavioral outcomes. Both processes of effective selection and rejection of behavior are relevant for the worker’s intensity of intercultural contacts. However, only rejection remains relevant for avoiding the display of discriminatory behavior in the future. Indeed, an organizational development intervention to promote intercultural contacts needs a different approach than preventing discrimination, as both outcomes are related to different origins. The key to a successful intervention therefore resides in addressing the appropriate ITP origins in order to evoke selection or rejection of the targeted behavior.

The aging workforce demands evidence-based human resource practices that lengthen working lives. Building on the Conservation of Resources theory (Hobfoll 1989), we investigate which organizational practices are indispensable for expanding older workers' occupational future time perspective (OFTP)-people's perceived opportunities and remaining time at work (Zacher and Frese 2009). A necessary condition analysis of survey data from 3077 workers aged 50+ in nine countries tests nine domains of the Later Life Workplace Index (LLWI) as potential minimal viable practices. All domains exhibited statistically significant necessity effects; however, using the conventional threshold (Dul et al. 2023), only later life supportive leadership and adaptive work design reached the level considered meaningfully necessary. The remaining domains showed smaller, near necessity effects, suggesting a pattern of partial necessity across HRM practices. Exploratory analyses along the Tightness-Looseness cultural continuum suggested that necessity thresholds tended to be higher in culturally Tight than Loose societies, highlighting the importance of context-sensitive HRM. This study refines theorizing on career sustainability, introduces necessity logic to the work and aging literature, and offers managers evidence-based tools to prevent insurmountable shortcomings. Failure to meet the identified LLWI thresholds will typically result in suboptimal OFTP.

By immersing participants in consistent virtual environments, VR enhances study realism, reduces confounding variables, and improves procedural control, offering a promising solution for scientists interested in studying behavior "in the wild." The availability and documentation of data enabled by VR also help address replicability challenges. Despite vast potential, VR research is hindered by fragmentation, proprietary tools, and a lack of standardized practices, which limit its overall impact. This collaborative study presents an interactive checklist to support VR research from across disciplines to meet three essential protocols-interoperability, procedural standardization, and data sharing-that address these challenges by promoting open science and providing a common, easy-to-evaluate format for researchers to present projects to ethics boards, reviewers, and beyond. Together, these protocols can help VR research overcome replication barriers, democratize access to advanced tools, and establish VR as a robust method for rigorous, replicable scientific inquiry.

Arabs constitute one of the fastest-growing minority groups in Western societies and face challenges that are unique to their ethnic group. Yet, Arabs' work experiences remain critically underexamined and no integrative review has been conducted till today. Drawing on 46 studies reported in 40 peer-reviewed articles published between 2002 and 2025, this scoping review addresses this gap by exploring and synthesizing evidence on Arab individuals' work experiences across both the pre-employment stage (i.e., when looking and applying for jobs) and employment stage (i.e., when working in an organization). Findings reveal work-related disadvantages linked to societal factors (such as geo-political events), organizational factors (such as lack of career-related support), and individual factors (such as ethnic background), that affect Arabs' objective work experiences (such as job status) and subjective work experiences (such as job satisfaction). Building on these literature findings, an integrative framework of Arabs' work experiences is presented. The scoping review also identifies gaps, including limited research on intersectionality, cumulative effects of discrimination experiences, and well-being outcomes, which set an agenda for further research, and, hence, may help to advance scholarly understanding of the career development of Arab workers in Western societies.

This study investigates the effect of the stimulus format (text- vs. VR-based) of a situational judgment test (SJT) on test performance, while also investigating the mediating role of test motivation and the moderating role of test-takers' age. Results of a two-condition (SJT stimulus format: text- vs. VR-based) within-subjects design among 121 participants showed no differences in test motivation between a VR- and a text-based format. Further, results showed slightly higher SJT scores for the text-based stimulus format than the VR-based format, particularly for middle-aged and older test-takers. Finally, test motivation did not mediate the relationship between stimulus format and test performance. While existing knowledge is limited, this study provides little reason for concern regarding the differential effects of VR- versus text-based stimuli on motivation and performance across age groups, paving the way for further research on technological innovations in SJTs.

This is the editorial for the first part of the special issue 'Age at work'. Four articles are featured in this first part. The first two articles address the differences in work performance across age groups, the myths surrounding this, and the facts. The third article in this issue focuses on the actual differences in mental health within one age group: younger workers. The first two articles of this special issue also discuss how to combat prejudices and stereotypes about olderworkers. The fourth article focuses on the causes of sustainable employability and interventions to enhance sustainable employability. Older workers who are sustainably employable demonstrate that the prejudices against older workers are unfounded. Together, the articles in this special issue show that the aging workforce compels us to reconsider our perspectives on age, employability, and careers.

This case study analyses the impact of intermediate mock exams in a first-year statistics course on the social inequalities observed in tertiary education. Through descriptive analysis and regression models of a sample of 478 students, we examine how these exams influence subsequent educational decisions. Our hypothesis states that students without a university-educated parent are more likely to attribute failure to innate ability, impacting their participation in subsequent exams. Findings reveal a decline in participation rates over the semester, with disparities between students with and without university-educated parents, the latter demonstrating higher participation and pass rates. Students without a university-educated parent are more influenced by negative results in subsequent participation decisions compared to their peers with a university-educated parent.

Back on track after burnout with the Burnout Reintegration Monitor: A measurement ofwork resumption quality and its determinants Psychological literature has long acknowledged the elements that contribute to burnout, yet many workers still drop out due to burnout. Therefore, this paper focuses on reintegration following an extended leave due to severe burnout. Extending on the findings of the dissertation of Rooman (2023), it describes the valorization and practical application of the 'Burnout Reintegration Monitor': an evidence-based and accessible tool with which workers who resumed their jobs after burnout can monitor their reintegration process and thus gain insight into concrete action points in terms of obstructing and promoting factors for the quality of their reintegration. Following completion, each participant is given a personalized feedback report. This raises awareness, which might be the first step toward improving the reintegration process. The tool is included in the website www. re-integratiebalans.be, which provides resources for workers, employers, and job coaches to improve the success rate of reintegration processes burnout.

Building on impression formation theories and the stereotype content model, this study examined age bias in LinkedIn screening, which is an understudied topic despite the aging workforce. An experimental study among 366 HR professionals considered the effects of LinkedIn recommendations (warmth/competence) and recruiters’ age stereotypes on older applicants’ job suitability ratings. First, we investigated and found that LinkedIn screening is prone to bias against older applicants. Furthermore, although having a recommendation on LinkedIn stressing competence or warmth is beneficial for both younger and older applicants, younger applicants benefited more from a recommendation reflecting their competence compared to older applicants. Second, recruiters’ positive stereotypes regarding older workers’ competence positively influenced job suitability ratings of older job applicants. This positive effect of recruiters’ stereotypes was not affected by counter-stereotypical information emphasized through a recommendation. Understanding how applicants’ LinkedIn profile affect recruiters’ hiring outcomes might help organizations to develop policies for fair selection procedures.

This article summarizes a dissertation that investigated the impact of a history ofburnout on career prospects. Using five vignette experiments (N = 199-582), we examined the role ofburnout in various personnel decisions: (1) job preferences, (2) hiring at the applicant's previous level of employment, (3) promotion, (4) dismissal, and (5) hiring for a position of underemployment. We find that a history of clinical burnout is associated with distinct patterns in job preferences. Furthermore, burnout as a reason for absenteeism appears to be a source of stigmata among employers, potentially reducing individuals' opportunities in the labor market. Employers have various negative perceptions of individuals with a history ofburnout, including the expectation that they are not sufficiently stress-tolerant, will be absent in the future, and have less leadership skills. Finally, we also discuss recommendations for future research and practice.

Background: Compressed schedules, where workers perform longer daily hours to enjoy additional days off, are increasingly promoted as a workplace well-being intervention. Nevertheless, their implications for work-related well-being outcomes, such as recovery from work and burnout risk, are understudied. This gap leaves employers with little evidence on whether and how the arrangement contributes to workplace well-being. Methods: IKEA Belgium offered its employees the option to enter compressed schedules in the aftermath of a national labour reform aimed at improving well-being and reducing burnout. We collected data on psychological detachment from work, work-related exhaustion, and burnout risk in four waves before and after implementation. We used mixed-effects growth models to estimate the within-subjects changes in these three domains, and two-way fixed effects models to compare changes with those from a non-treated comparison group. Results: Workers experienced increased psychological detachment from work in compressed schedules, yet we saw no decrease in work-related exhaustion or burnout risk. While between-subjects analyses confirm that the increase in psychological detachment is related to treatment, they also hint that this association may fade out during summer when all workers take more extended breaks from work. Conclusions: While workers in compressed schedules may mentally switch off from work more effectively, this does not translate into decreased burnout risk scores. Consistent with theoretical expectations, policymakers and employers should be cautious in assuming that the arrangements significantly reduce burnout.

Introduction:Ethnic minority medical students often receive lower grades than their majority counterparts, especially in workplace-based assessments. To unravel this phenomenon of "differential attainment", we explore assessor bias focusing on how first impressions of students from ethnic minority groups may be adjusted differently compared to majority students when their performance changes. Methods:In an online experiment with an incomplete block design we created near-identical videos showcasing varying performances of medical students during history-taking. Eighty-one physicians were randomly assigned to watch four different videos each, two with ascending performances (poor start, good ending) and two with descending performances (good start, poor ending), featuring one ethnic minority actress (Turkish or Moroccan origin) and one ethnic majority actress (Dutch origin) as students. We evaluated ethnicity-related differences in first impression ratings (after 60 seconds), final ratings (after 5 minutes), and rating changes. Results:No significant differences in first impression ratings were found between ethnic groups. Ethnic minority students received higher final ratings than ethnic majority students for ascending performances, but only when rated by residents and not specialists. Finally, rating changes between first impressions and final ratings were larger for ethnic minority than ethnic majority students, for both ascending and descending performances. Discussion:Our results do not show evidence of assessor bias in first impressions being an explanation for ethnicity-related differential attainment. However, our finding that rating changes were larger for minority than majority students could indicate that they are generally more scrutinized by assessors, which may affect them positively, but also negatively.

PurposePublic sector employers often struggle to meet diversity targets, even with standardized processes designed to ensure fairness in recruitment. This raises a critical question: Is hiring discrimination a key driver of the continued underrepresentation of ethno-national minorities and individuals with different health statuses in the public sector? This study examines this question within the context of the Flemish regional government.Design/methodology/approachThe study centres on a duo- and trio-correspondence field experiment, submitting 437 fictitious applications to 207 job vacancies within the Flemish government. Matched applications were identical in qualifications but differed on signals of ethno-national origin (Moroccan or Polish vs Belgian), gender and health status (signalling an impairment vs none). Hiring discrimination is then measured by comparing the callback rates for invitations to the next selection round between these different profiles.FindingsNo statistically significant discrimination based on ethno-national origin or health status was found in the CV-screening phase. However, the study uncovered a significant gender bias: male recruiters were significantly more likely to invite male applicants than female applicants (62.9% vs. 39.0%), suggesting the presence of in-group favouritism, or homophily, among male recruiters.Research limitations/implicationsThis research has two main limitations. First, the study's focus on the initial CV screening phase is a limitation inherent to the method, as discrimination can occur at other recruitment stages. Second, the sample size was insufficiently large to conduct detailed intersectional analyses such as testing whether the observed gender bias varies by job type (e.g. in traditionally male- or female-dominated occupations) or interacts with ethno-national origin across different job levels.Practical implicationsThe findings, particularly the absence of hiring discrimination against ethno-national minorities and individuals with different health statuses, provide several implications. First, for Flemish public administrators, this study offers a data-driven directive: resources should be strategically redirected from combating hiring discrimination towards initiatives that attract more candidates from these specific communities and ensure their retention after hiring. Additionally, this study offers a crucial lesson for the private sector by demonstrating that the public sector's standardized processes provide a successful model for mitigating ethnic- and health-based discrimination. Finally, in a context of declining public trust in government, the findings offer a crucial counter-narrative. They provide empirical evidence that the public sector's initial hiring phase is procedurally fair for candidates, regardless of ethno-national origin or health status.Originality/valueThis study provides a rare empirical test of hiring discrimination in the under-tested public sector, contrasting with the extensive focus on the private sector labour markets. It advances correspondence testing methodology by employing a job-category-agnostic approach, enhancing external validity beyond studies that typically target a limited set of occupations. The study also explores the less-studied ground of health-status discrimination.

Vocational interests and person-environment (PE) interest fit are key predictors of academic and career outcomes, yet little is known about their role in early adolescence. The present study addresses this gap by exploring the role of PE interest fit in early adolescence. We introduce SIMON-jr, a freely accessible questionnaire for assessing vocational interests in early adolescents. Using SIMON-jr, we examined how students' vocational interests in the first year of secondary education fit with their study program choices by the third year, and how this fit relates to academic achievement. Additionally, we explored potential differences in interest fit between boys and girls. Our results confirmed the reliability and validity of SIMON-jr, establishing the tool as a robust and equitable resource for guiding students in their educational choices. Furthermore, our findings indicated that secondary students tend to select education programs that fit their interests, with girls showing a stronger fit than boys. At the same time, interest fit did not relate to academic achievement at this young age. We address several reasons for this lack of association, and highlight the potential of career education tools that assess PE interest fit to support early adolescents in making informed academic decisions.

Compressed work schedules, like full-time 4-day weeks, are widely advocated as promising work-life flexibility policies and attractive alternatives to female part-time work. Yet, individual characteristics and implementation factors associated with policy use are understudied. Drawing from the literature on work-life flexibility policies and nonstandard work schedules, this study investigates which individual characteristics and implementation factors are associated with policy use. Our quantitative results reveal that employees with longer daily working hours are significantly more inclined to use the policy and view it as a source of increased autonomy. Our qualitative findings elucidate that overworking employees often use the policy to regulate their chronic overtime via additional days off. Moreover, our findings indicate limited policy use as an alternative to part-time work and reveal that women transitioning from part-time roles may face increased work-life conflict when using the policy. These findings highlight that the policy should not be advocated as a one-size-fits-all solution and provide several implications for research and practice.

Women are still underrepresented at the top levels of organizations across Europe and the United States. Scholars have identified obstacles that hinder women’s climb to the top but have overlooked women’s perceptions of job advertisements for top-level positions as a potential barrier to top-level positions. The present study investigated the effects of meta-stereotyped person requirements (positive vs. negative) and their wording (dispositional vs. behavioral) in job ads for top-level executive positions on female candidates’ application intention, as well as the mediating effect of job attractiveness. An experimental field study in a large, Western European governmental organization (Nmain study = 432 female officers), preceded by a pilot study (verbal protocol analysis; Npilot = 19 female executives) showed that compared to positively meta-stereotyped person requirements, negatively meta-stereotyped person requirements reduced female candidates’ attraction to a job and, in turn, their intention to apply for top-level executive positions. The way person requirements were worded in job ads (i.e., in a behavioral versus dispositional way) also affected women’s perceived job attractiveness, yet this depended on the type of requirement. Implications are considered for drafting job ads to encourage more qualified female candidates to apply.