How does career development support transform personal, social, and organizational resources into STEM researchers’ passions?

This study investigates how organizational culture, work-life balance (WLB), and psychological capital (PsyCap) are associated with the job engagement (JE) of researchers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields through perceived organizational career development support (PCS) modelled as an intervening variable, while emphasizing differences across technology readiness levels. Based on a nationally representative survey of 1,000 Korean STEM researchers, this study identifies PsyCap as a necessary condition for JE; without adequate psychological resources, high engagement is unlikely despite other support. Furthermore, PCS emerged as a salient intervening mechanism linking organizational culture and PsyCap to JE. This study synthesizes the Job Demands–Resources model and Social Exchange Theory through a Conservation of Resources-centric lens to explain STEM researchers’ JE. These findings have clear managerial implications for effectively managing STEM talent by prioritizing targeted organizational support, enhancing psychological capital, and fostering innovative organizational cultures, particularly for researchers in early-stage research environments.