In the modern workplace, employees are expected to engage in professional networking in order to secure employment and advance in their careers. Besides in the workplace, networking is encouraged from early on also in educational institutions, including in universities. However, the requirement of networking not only involves moral dilemmas, but is also something that creates inequalities, according to a new study examining networking as part of the broader ideal of employability in universities.
In public debate and previous studies alike, networking has largely been perceived as a skill of the individual, something that anyone can choose to develop and from which only good outcomes will follow.
“We wanted to examine this phenomenon from a critical perspective. For the study, we interviewed Finnish business students and examined how university students and recent graduates adopt or resist the requirement of networking,” University Lecturer, Docent Maija Korhonen says.
Although the study was conducted among business students, Korhonen notes that the same ideals of networking apply to many other academic fields as well, and they also permeate nearly all modern workplaces.
“Networking needs to be based on honesty, suiting an extroverted mindset”
The study found, firstly, that students and recent graduates do not perceive networking as something neutral or inherently positive, although this is the prevalent narrative in education and in the workplace. Furthermore, networking also seems to be associated with inequalities.
Secondly, networking is idealised and presented in a positive light, but it involves many moral dilemmas that young people entering the workforce need to resolve, which is why there is some reluctance towards it.
“Moral dilemmas arise, e.g., from whether networking is driven by one’s own initiative and desire to forge genuine relationships, or whether networking at school or in the workplace is an expectation imposed by others. The respondents also pondered on what kind of characteristics are required from a good networker, and who is able to meet these criteria.”
The respondents’ interpretations revealed a certain ethical framework of networking, that is, an idea of what constitutes “the right kind” and “the wrong kind” of networking. This ethical framework entails that the significance of networking must be recognised, but relationships should not be forged involuntarily, artificially, or by exploiting other people.
“Networking needs to be voluntary, honest and based on genuine, preferably professional, relationships, as well as on an extroverted and ‘outgoing’ mindset.”
The respondents also criticised the excessive boasting expected of job-seekers in the modern labour market, and they were well aware of the growing demands placed on people with an academic education to “toot their own horn” on social media, for example.
“Privileged family background and existing professional relationships foster the right kind of networking”
The requirement of networking creates inequalities, as not everyone has access to networks stemming from family background or previous work experience, nor is everyone’s personality ideal for networking. For example, those who do not have a privileged family background or relationships forged in previous jobs, or those who are shy and tend to withdraw from social interaction, do not meet the criteria of a “good” networker.
“Previous studies have also found that university students from working-class backgrounds, and women, find the ideals associated with networking foreign and more challenging. This tends to create resistance towards the entire requirement of networking,” Korhonen says.
Korhonen points out that in this study, too, the respondents’ interpretations hinted at the ideals of networking becoming a gendered and class-based phenomenon. Further research is therefore needed into how people of different genders, ages, backgrounds or minorities perceive these ideals.
“Networking is by no means neutral or unproblematic, but rather a thoroughly value-laden phenomenon that fosters inequalities. The requirement of networking boils down to so much more than just an individual’s networking skills and their associations with employment. It raises ethical questions about the significance and value of human relationships, solidarity and loyalty, an individual’s independence and dependence in the workplace, and the value of one’s personality in the labour market.”
According to Korhonen, this is why the phenomenon should be critically examined further, paying closer attention to for whom and under what conditions the idealised networking actually is possible.
Research article: Korhonen, M., Siivonen, P., Henttu, R., & Mutanen, H. (2024). "Oikea" ja "väärä" sosiaalinen verkostoituminen nuorten kauppatieteilijöiden tulkitsemana. Sosiologia, 61(2). Noudettu osoitteesta https://journal.fi/sosiologia/article/view/146557
