o:29365 Careers in context An international study of career goals as mesostructure between societies' career-related human potential and proactive career behaviour en Abstract: Careers exist in a societal context that offers both constraints and opportunities for career actors. Whereas most studies focus on proximal individual and/or organisationallevel variables, we provide insights into how career goals and behaviours are understood and embedded in the more distal societal context. More specifically, we operationalise societal context using the career-related human potential composite and aim to understand if and why career goals and behaviours vary between countries. Drawing on a model of career structuration and using multilevel mediation modelling, we draw on a survey of 17,986 employees from 27 countries, covering nine of GLOBE's 10 cultural clusters, and national statistical data to examine the relationship between societal context (macrostructure building the career-opportunity structure) and actors' career goals (career mesostructure) and career behaviour (actions). We show that societal context in terms of societies' careerrelated human potential composite is negatively associated with the importance given to financial achievements as a specific career mesostructure in a society that is positively related to individuals' proactive career behaviour. Our career mesostructure fully mediates the relationship between societal context and individuals' proactive career behaviour. In this way, we expand career theory's scope beyond occupation- and organisation-related factors. KEYWORDS: career mesostructure, career-related human potential, careers, importance of financial achievements, model of career structuration, proactive career behaviour, societal context 1552099 10.1111/1748-8583.12247 1552101 0090-4848 2023-05-12T08:02:31.712Z 44 no 46 Maike Andresen person Ana D. Nikodijević Univerzitet u Beogradu Fakultet organizacionih nauka person Biljana Bogićević Milikić et al. Univerzitet u Beogradu Ekonomski fakultet 12797543 0000-0003-3084-8021 application/pdf 2411785 https://phaidrabg.bg.ac.rs/o:29365 no yes 18 70 92000001 11A03 Human Resource Management Journal 20 30 365 391 2020