{"id":{"repo_id":"houston","oai_identifier":"oai:uh-ir.tdl.org:10657/18239"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/houston/oai:uh-ir.tdl.org:10657/18239","repository":{"repo_id":"houston","name":"University of Houston","base_url":"https://uh-ir.tdl.org/server/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Persevering Through Stress: An Examination of Professional Rejection During the Job Search","abstract":"Experiences of and reactions to work-related rejection (referred to as “professional rejection”) have not been thoroughly explored in the I-O psychology literature, yet the outcomes may have important implications for how individuals progress in their careers. Job seekers are uniquely faced with repeated professional rejections, which may exacerbate the already difficult circumstances of unemployment and lead to increased stress. Professional rejection sensitivity (an individual’s propensity to react negatively to work-related rejection experiences) was expected to influence how job seekers handle rejection by amplifying this stress response. Work centrality was also expected to play a role in whether job seekers choose to persevere or pivot career paths following professional rejection, with the expectation that the importance of one’s work identity to their self-view would make them more likely to persevere. Drawing from affective events theory, the current study surveyed unemployed job seekers at three time points to gain a better understanding of their reactions to professional rejection, dispositional and identity-related traits that may influence these reactions, and how these experiences may impact their career trajectories. While none of the hypotheses were supported, initial results provide insight into how future research may better explore these phenomena and contribute to an emerging stream of research related to professional rejection.","abstract_html":"Experiences of and reactions to work-related rejection (referred to as “professional rejection”) have not been thoroughly explored in the I-O psychology literature, yet the outcomes may have important implications for how individuals progress in their careers. Job seekers are uniquely faced with repeated professional rejections, which may exacerbate the already difficult circumstances of unemployment and lead to increased stress. Professional rejection sensitivity (an individual’s propensity to react negatively to work-related rejection experiences) was expected to influence how job seekers handle rejection by amplifying this stress response. Work centrality was also expected to play a role in whether job seekers choose to persevere or pivot career paths following professional rejection, with the expectation that the importance of one’s work identity to their self-view would make them more likely to persevere. Drawing from affective events theory, the current study surveyed unemployed job seekers at three time points to gain a better understanding of their reactions to professional rejection, dispositional and identity-related traits that may influence these reactions, and how these experiences may impact their career trajectories. While none of the hypotheses were supported, initial results provide insight into how future research may better explore these phenomena and contribute to an emerging stream of research related to professional rejection.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Mehta, Nandini Mukesh"],"institution":"University of Houston","degree_name":"Master of Arts","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Psychology, Industrial and Organizational","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":["Reyes, Denise L"],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":["Sabat, Isaac E","Fetterman, Adam K"],"year":2024,"date_issued":"2024-12","date_published":"2024-12","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:32:34Z","subjects":["Psychology, Industrial"],"languages":["en"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/10657/18239","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Reyes, Denise L"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["Sabat, Isaac E","Fetterman, Adam K"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Mehta, Nandini Mukesh"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2025-01-15T19:18:53Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2025-01-15T19:18:53Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2024-12"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Psychology, Industrial and Organizational"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Houston"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Psychology, Industrial"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language.iso","label":"Language (ISO)","values":["en"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/10657/18239"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Experiences of and reactions to work-related rejection (referred to as “professional rejection”) have not been thoroughly explored in the I-O psychology literature, yet the outcomes may have important implications for how individuals progress in their careers. Job seekers are uniquely faced with repeated professional rejections, which may exacerbate the already difficult circumstances of unemployment and lead to increased stress. Professional rejection sensitivity (an individual’s propensity to react negatively to work-related rejection experiences) was expected to influence how job seekers handle rejection by amplifying this stress response. Work centrality was also expected to play a role in whether job seekers choose to persevere or pivot career paths following professional rejection, with the expectation that the importance of one’s work identity to their self-view would make them more likely to persevere. Drawing from affective events theory, the current study surveyed unemployed job seekers at three time points to gain a better understanding of their reactions to professional rejection, dispositional and identity-related traits that may influence these reactions, and how these experiences may impact their career trajectories. While none of the hypotheses were supported, initial results provide insight into how future research may better explore these phenomena and contribute to an emerging stream of research related to professional rejection."]},{"key":"dc:format.mimetype","label":"Dc Format Mimetype","values":["application/pdf"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Persevering Through Stress: An Examination of Professional Rejection During the Job Search"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.advisor":["Reyes, Denise L"],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["Sabat, Isaac E","Fetterman, Adam K"],"dc:creator":["Mehta, Nandini Mukesh"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2025-01-15T19:18:53Z"],"dc:date.available":["2025-01-15T19:18:53Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2024-12"],"dc:description.abstract":["Experiences of and reactions to work-related rejection (referred to as “professional rejection”) have not been thoroughly explored in the I-O psychology literature, yet the outcomes may have important implications for how individuals progress in their careers. Job seekers are uniquely faced with repeated professional rejections, which may exacerbate the already difficult circumstances of unemployment and lead to increased stress. Professional rejection sensitivity (an individual’s propensity to react negatively to work-related rejection experiences) was expected to influence how job seekers handle rejection by amplifying this stress response. Work centrality was also expected to play a role in whether job seekers choose to persevere or pivot career paths following professional rejection, with the expectation that the importance of one’s work identity to their self-view would make them more likely to persevere. Drawing from affective events theory, the current study surveyed unemployed job seekers at three time points to gain a better understanding of their reactions to professional rejection, dispositional and identity-related traits that may influence these reactions, and how these experiences may impact their career trajectories. 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