Sanaz Matinkoosha

Topic

From Surviving to Thriving: The Dynamics of Regaining Work Meaningfulness in Career Transition of International Skilled Migrants

Gustavson School of Business

Date & location

• Friday, March 7, 2025
• 8:00 A.M.
• Virtual Defence

Examining Committee

Supervisory Committee

• Dr. A.R. Elangovan, Gustavson School of Business, University of Victoria (Supervisor)
• Dr. Rick Cotton, Gustavson School of Business, UVic (Member)
• Dr. Roy Suddaby, Gustavson School of Business, UVic (Member)
• Dr. Soo Min Toh, Department of Management, University of Toronto Mississauga (Outside Member)

External Examiner

• Dr. Grace Chun Guo, Jack Welch College of Business and Technology, Sacred Heart University

Chair of Oral Examination

• Dr. Tao Wang, Department of Economics, UVic

Abstract

Work meaningfulness—the sense that one's work holds significance, serves a purpose and aligns with deeper values—is a cornerstone of personal and professional fulfillment (e.g., Pratt & Ashforth, 2003). However, this sense of meaningfulness has become increasingly fragile in an era characterized by economic shifts, rapid technological advancements, globalization, and evolving job roles. External challenges and unforeseen transitions often disrupt the alignment between individuals and their work. For International Skilled Migrants (ISMs), these disruptions are particularly acute as they navigate professional downgrading, cultural transitions, and systemic barriers in their new countries. This dissertation explores how ISMs navigate these disruptions and regain work meaningfulness, offering insights into global challenges, such as epidemic work disengagement and skilled labour shortages.

I used an exploratory research design and employed ideal-type analysis to examine 31 narrative interviews with ISMs in Canada. The findings reveal the dynamic and evolving journey of ISMs through three interconnected phases. In the survival jobs phase, driven by the immediate need for survival, participants adopted reactive strategies, including embracing a transitional purpose, affirming self-worth, and diluting misalignments to cope with the misalignment between their pre-migration expectations and the harsh realities of underemployment. As tensions escalated, the need to alleviate mounting pressures catalyzed the reorientation phase, where participants began recognizing their volition through trial and reflection cycles. Small, exploratory actions—such as seeking credentials, pursuing alternative career paths, or leveraging professional networks—demonstrated their capacity to influence their circumstances, enabling a gradual reclamation of agency and reinforcing their confidence to act. Finally, in the regaining work meaningfulness phase, the driving force became the need for coherence and purpose.

Participants integrated past experiences with present realities, aligning evolving identities with aspirations through five integrating strategies: broadening, expanding, evolving, narrowing and rechanneling. This process extended beyond personal fulfillment to contributions reflecting growth and resilience. These findings highlight that regaining work meaningfulness is not about returning to what was lost but embracing a fluid, context-sensitive process of transformation and realignment, challenging the literature's static conceptualizations of work meaningfulness.

This research contributes to the emerging dynamic view of work meaningfulness within organizational behaviour, which addresses its tensional and temporal dimensions and examines how it arises, persists, is challenged, and regained (e.g., Bailey & Madden, 2019; Jiang, 2021; Mercurio, 2019; Mitra & Buzzanell, 2017). By highlighting adaptive approaches, this study provides empirical insights into navigating disruptions and regaining a sense of meaning in work. It advances the theoretical understanding of work meaningfulness and offers practical implications for fostering resilience and adaptability in an uncertain global labour market.