Is it all about perception? A sustainability viewpoint on psychological capital and life well-being of management graduates

Abstract

Purpose

Well-being and employability are considered important indicators of a sustainable career that must be incorporated into the system at the beginning of a job. Hence, it is essential to explore the role of positive personal resources to improve young managers' well-being. The unending ambivalence in the academic environment and the job market is detrimental to management graduates' well-being. The study aims to look into the possible intervening methods to enhance the well-being of management students during difficult times.

Design/methodology/approach

A cross-sectional study was conducted among 212 management students from Kerala, India. Multi-stage random sampling was used to collect data. Structural equation modelling using IBM-AMOS was done to gain insights into the proposed relationships.

Findings

The results indicated that psychological capital had a significant impact on the well-being of management students. Both perceived employability and psychological capital are positively related to life well-being. And, perceived employability mediated the relationship between psychological capital and life well-being.

Research limitations/implications

The theoretical contribution comes from the application of the broaden-and-build theory and resource caravans from the conservation of resource theory as a theoretical framework to understand the positive impact of developing psychological capital among university students. The practical contribution comes from identifying a need for universities to make their campus climate more supportive of the non-academic needs of students by supporting them to become more self-reliant and enhance their positive psychological resources. Developing psychological resources of perceived employability and psychological capital is quintessential to enhance life well-being and career sustainability of early careers talent.

Originality/value

This study is one of the first attempts to discern how psychological capital leads to an accumulation of psychological resources and life well-being in university students and graduates offering opportunities for career sustainability.

Citation

M, N.P., Joseph, G. and Donald, W.E. (2022), "Is it all about perception? A sustainability viewpoint on psychological capital and life well-being of management graduates", Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, Vol. 12 No. 2, pp. 384-398. https://doi.org/10.1108/HESWBL-01-2021-0004