Abstract:

Psychological richness emphasizes perspective-changing experiences beyond happiness and meaning (Oishi & Westgate, 2021). While theorized largely at the life level, its implications for careers, especially under uncertainty, remain underexplored. In an exploratory qualitative study of eight diverse entrepreneurs, we examine how participants narrate episodes that altered their understanding of themselves, others, and the world of work. Using semi-structured interviews informed by elements of the critical incident technique and reflexive thematic analysis, we surface three interrelated mechanisms through which perspective shifts were constructed: identity reconfiguration, emotional volatility, and crisis-driven recalibration. Participants often framed destabilizing periods as formative turning points that reshaped assumptions about value creation, leadership, and responsibility. We discuss how these emergent mechanisms extend careers and identity research by highlighting perspective transformation as a distinct experiential pathway in entrepreneurial work.

Please choose your submission type: Developmental Paper

Primary Track: Organisational Psychology

Keywords: Employee Attitudes and Motivations   ;Emotional Intelligence and Its Implications for the Workplace    ;Individual differences in organisations    ;Cognition in organisations   

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Dr. Elaf Bari