An analysis of the association between workplace intergenerational mentoring characteristics and employees’ receptivity to change: the mediating role of contextualized human capital perception

Inroduction With the normalization of organizational change and the “multi-generational coexistence” of the labor market, understanding and mitigating employees’ resistance to change has become increasingly important. Based on a contextualized perceived human capital perspective, this study aimed to explore the associations among intergenerational mentoring characteristics, employees’ subjective appraisal of their career-related human capital, and organizational change receptivity. Methods Utilizing a cross-sectional design with self-report surveys, data were collected from 812 active employees across various industries. The study evaluated intergenerational mentoring interactions, contextualized human capital perception (operationalized through self-perceived employability indicators that capture perceived career competitiveness, skill transferability, and marketability), and organizational change receptivity. Results The empirical results demonstrate that: (1) Intergenerational mentoring interactions (including career support, psychosocial support, and role modeling) are significantly and positively correlated with employees’ receptivity to change; (2) contextualized human capital perception presents a significant partial statistical mediation association in the relationship between intergenerational mentoring and change receptivity (indirect effect B = 0.171, 95% CI [0.135, 0.206], accounting for 25.2% of the total statistical effect); (3) no significant between-group differences in change receptivity were found among employees of different birth generations, rank levels, or industries. However, these non-significant demographic findings should be interpreted cautiously given unequal group sizes, especially the relatively small senior-generation group. Discussion These findings suggest that cross-generational support networks are positively associated with employees’ evaluations of their own employability, which is correlatively linked to a more favorable attitude toward change. Because the study relies on cross-sectional self-report data, the observed mediation should be strictly interpreted as a statistical association rather than a causal mechanism. Future longitudinal and multi-source studies are necessary for further validation.