Coping with Occupational Transitions

1 This volume is one of four book publications of the project “Social Convoy and S- tainable Employability: Innovative Strategies for Outplacement/Replacement Couns- ling“ (SOCOSE). It is supported by the European Commission, DG Research, under the fifth Framework Programme, Key Action “Improving the Socio-Economic Knowledge 2 3 Base“ and coordinated by Thomas Kieselbach at the University of Bremen . Starting point of our research is the increase in occupational transitions (Rodgers & Rodgers, 1989). This is caused by the ongoing globalisation of markets and eco- mies as a whole, but might also be considered the central aspect of globalisation: changes and flexibility which – on the part of the individual employee – means tran- tions in his or her occupational biography. These phases might include episodes of - employment as well as training or re-orientation. While transitions increase, employees experience insecurity with regard to their individual employment situation to a much larger degree than in the past. The formal 1 Kieselbach, T. (Ed.) (2004). Social Convoy in Occupational Transitions: Recommendations for a European Framework in the Context of Enterprise Restructuring. Bremen: University of Bremen, Ins- tute for Psychology of Work, Unemployment and Health (IPG). Kieselbach, T., Beelmann, G., Mader, S. & Wagner, O. (2005). Sozialer Konvoi in beruflichen Tran- tionen: Individuelle und organisationale Bewältigung der Prekarisierung von Beschäftigung in Deutschland [Social convoy in occupational transitions: Individual and organisational coping with precarisation of jobs]. München: Rainer Hampp.