Development of Vocational Identity of Skilled Chinese Migrants in Japan with and without Previous Educational Experience in the Host Country

Abstract

This study compared the vocational identity statuses of skilled migrants who had prior educational experience in Japan to those who did not by using the Vocational Identity Status Assessment. A total of 417 former international students and 97 skilled migrant workers who had entered the Japanese labor market directly from China completed a self-report online survey. Results revealed six vocational identity statuses among the former international student group: achieved, searching moratorium, foreclosed, moratorium, diffused, and carefree diffused. Meanwhile, among the migrant worker population, only four vocational identity statuses were discernible: achieved, foreclosed, moratorium, and diffused. The findings also showed variations in the relationships between the vocational identity development and career outcomes, such as job performance, career satisfaction, and intention to leave the organization, between the two samples. Therefore, this is the first study to assess how prior educational experience in the host country could influence the skilled migrants’ vocational identity development.

Keywords

Vocational identity / skilled migrants / educational experience / career development / Japan

References

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