Proactive, boundaryless, and confident graduates entering the labour market: does need for cognitive closure play a role as a moderator?

The university to work transition is a crucial and delicate stage for graduates, as it involves an essential change of role. Previous studies have shown that proactive personality, boundaryless mind-set and career self-efficacy are critical variables for a successful labour market integration/entry. This study analyzes the involvement of the need for cognitive closure as an individual variable that can both favor and hinder this process. Specifically, this work examines the moderating role of need for cognitive closure in the indirect association between proactive personality and career self-efficacy through boundaryless mind-set in a sample of 762 adults enrolled at the university or recently graduated therein. Results showed that career self-efficacy was positively predicted by proactive personality and boundaryless mind-set. Although a significant indirect effect was present thus confirming our first hypothesis, it did not vary depending on the need for cognitive closure proving that need for cognitive closure did not act as a moderator of this indirect association, hence not supporting our second hypothesis. These findings were discussed concerning the complexity of students’ choices in transition and the nature of the information processing process needed for those choices.