Relationship between educational mismatches and job satisfaction: evidence from Korean young employees’ lifelong learning

Purpose This study aims to demonstrate whether the educational mismatch prevalent in society can be overcome by various types of lifelong learning and whether lifelong learning can contribute to job satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach The participants were 2,559 young Korean employees who graduated from general or specialized vocational high school. This study applied structural equation modeling to verify the mediating effects of lifelong learning on the relationship between educational mismatch and job satisfaction. In addition, this study compared whether the conceptual model results were applied to those who graduated from general school and specialized vocational school through multigroup analysis. Findings Regarding the horizontal mismatch, the mediating effect of lifelong learning correlated with job satisfaction was significantly measured in all multigroup models, including the conceptual model. Nevertheless, regarding the vertical mismatch, this study confirmed that informal learning influences job satisfaction differently according to the type of high school from which employees graduated. Furthermore, for those who graduated from specialized vocational school, the relationship between vertical mismatch and job satisfaction was significantly indicated. However, there was no influence of informal learning at the workplace. Originality/value This study empirically demonstrated the alternative value of lifelong learning in overcoming the preceding educational mismatch. Moreover, the evidence that such lifelong learning effects may vary depending on the vocational education experiences before entering the labor market is valuable.