This literature review chapter concludes with the presentation of the framework of this study. The framework is built on the issues covered in the literature review and provides understanding on how the different sections of this literature review chapter relate to the research questions of this study. The main research question of this study is to find out what experiences highly educated foreigners have regarding finding initial employment in Finland. This is further divided into two sub-questions. The first sub-question serves the purpose of discovering why and how they initially engage in searching for employ- ment in Finland. The second sub-question, in its turn, aims to find out what the out- comes of the search are, and why.
The graphical representation of the framework of this study can be seen in Figure 2. The framework consists of five components: 1. the actual process of employment acquisi- tion, 2. the context in which the acquisition of employment is investigated, 3. the indi- vidual factors that influence the process, 4. the situational factors that influence the process, and 5. the external factors that influence the process. The factors influencing the process of employment acquisition were divided into the above three groups follow- ing the example of McQuaid & Lindsay (2005). Although, the different approaches to employability provided a number of different issues to be considered in the examination of gaining employment, and different ways in grouping these issues, grouping the issues or factors under the main headings of individual factors, situational factors and external factors is most appropriate for the purpose of this thesis. This is because the aim is to take as broad a view as possible in the investigation of the different issues that influence the job acquisition process of highly educated foreigners in Finland. Next the compo- nents of the framework will be discussed individually.
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Figure 2. Framework of the study
2.4.1 The Process of Employment Acquisition
This study focuses on the acquirement of employment. Thus, the process of employ- ment acquisition is at the heart of this study and can logically be broken down into three phases. The first phase concerns the decision to take part in acquiring employment or job search and can temporally be seen as the phase preceding the actual job search. The second involves the way in which employment is searched for and thus concerns the actual search. The third is concerned with the outcomes of the search and the reasons behind the outcomes, so this logically follows the actual search phase. Overall, the idea is to first find out the motives behind the decisions to either partake in job search or not. Then, it is of interest to discover how those who participate in job search actually do so in terms of scope and intensity. Of course, the outcomes of the search and reasons for these outcomes are of interest, as well. In relation to the research questions of this study, the first two phases of the process of employment acquisition relate to the first sub- question of why and how highly educated foreigners initially engage in searching for
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employment in Finland. The third phase, in its turn, relates to the second sub-question of what the outcomes of the search are, and why.
As the framework suggests, the answers to the research questions lie in the factors in- fluencing the process of employment acquisition and the context which, in its turn, has an effect on which of the possible different factors prove to be most relevant.
2.4.2 International Context
As already touched upon earlier, the context in which the process of job acquisition is investigated in this study arguably has an effect on the emphasis different factors have in influencing the process. This context is characterised by an international setting, meaning individuals searching for employment in a country other than their own. In addition, the focus is on individuals who are highly educated. Further, the evidence concerning the Finnish context in particular also suggests that certain factors may have more weight in influencing the process of employment acquisition in the case of this study. Thus, although the employability section of this thesis provided quite a compre- hensive view of the different, potentially relevant factors influencing job search, the viewpoint to the investigation of job search was, however, quite general in nature and could mostly be seen to relate to situations concerning a national or domestic setting. Therefore, due to the specific context in which the process of employment acquisition is investigated in this study, the findings within the areas of diversity management, talent management, career studies, and the Finnish context were combined with those of the employability section to understand which factors might prove most relevant in the case of this study. Next, the different factors found to be relevant in the context of this study will be presented.
2.4.3 Individual Factors
As can be seen in Figure 2, the factors related to the individual that can be considered most relevant in terms of this study are: Finnish language skills, self- direction/motivation, competences, and work experience. The Finnish language was especially stressed as a factor influencing the ability to find work in Finland. It can thus
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be seen as an explaining factor relating to the outcomes of the process of employment acquisition. Self-direction or motivation, covered in the section of career studies, on the other hand can be seen as explaining factors to why job search is initially taken up and also to the way in which this is done. Then, in terms of competences and work experi- ence, Shumilova, Cai and Pekkola (2012) discovered that in the case of highly educated Foreigners in Finland certain competences and work experience positively influenced the likelihood of finding employment. These can therefore be seen as factors influenc- ing the outcome of the process of employment acquisition.
2.4.4 Situational Factors
When it comes to situational factors, social networks or the lack of right contacts were found as a barrier to finding employment. Thus, it is a factor explaining the outcome of the process. Then, in terms of financial situation and study commitments, these can be seen to explain why job search is taken up and the kinds of jobs that are applied for. These were included as they specifically relate to the situation of the individuals this study focuses on (being students).
2.4.5 External Factors
The external factors include the recruitment methods of employers (covered specifically in the sections of diversity management and talent management), discrimination, the types of available employment opportunities, and the availability of services supporting job search. The recruitment methods of employers could be seen as an explaining factor in the actual search phase of employment in the sense that employers who target a di- verse pool of candidates in recruitment activities might be more attractive in the eyes of diverse applicants. Discrimination on the other hand was found as a factor that nega- tively affects the outcome of job search. Then, the types of available employment op- portunities can be seen to explain why job search is taken up, and the availability of services supporting job search can be seen to influence the outcome of the job search.
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