Antecedents of Underemployment: Job Search of Skilled Immigrants in Canada

• Published in: Applied psychology Vol. 61; no. 2; pp. 323 - 346
• Main Authors: Guerrero, Laura, Rothstein, Mitchell G.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.04.2012; Blackwell
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Canada; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Immigrants; Immigration; Internet; Job hunting; Miscellaneous; Noncitizens; Occupational psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Selfefficacy; Social support; Studies; Underemployment; Canada; North America; America; Human; Job search; Immigrant; Professional competence; Antecedent
• ISSN: 0269-994X; 1464-0597
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1464-0597.2011.00470.x

We investigate factors that skilled immigrants can improve in order to have better job search outcomes, in particular to avoid underemployment. We test an unfolding model which considers barriers faced by skilled immigrants during their job search (language and cultural barriers, and the lack of social support in the receiving country), job search constructs and job search outcomes (including underemployment). We collected data through an online questionnaire and obtained 357 usable responses from skilled immigrants in Canada. The hypotheses were tested with partial least squares (PLS). Language fluency and cultural knowledge were positively related to both job search clarity and job search self‐efficacy. Social support was only related to job search self‐efficacy. Job search clarity was related to job search intensity. Job search intensity was related to the number of interviews, which in turn, was related to the number of job offers. Finally, the number of job offers was negatively related to underemployment. Our paper contributes to the understanding of the job search of skilled immigrants by examining factors that can help them overcome obstacles and obtain better job search outcomes.