Professor Hannes Zacher

Hannes Zacher is a Professor of Work and Organizational Psychology at the University of Leipzig.

In his research program, he investigates aging at work, career development, and occupational well-being; proactivity, innovation, and entrepreneurship; as well as employee pro-environmental behavior.

Showcase project

Age and Occupational Wellbeing: This study explores factors linked to decreased job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion in employees in a specific age range.

Ongoing research projects

1. Action regulation across the adult lifespan (ARAL): Developing and testing a metatheory of work and aging.
2. Organisational climate for successful aging: Which organizational policies, practices and procedures benefit young and older workers?
3. Age and innovation: How can organisations enable and motivate workers of different ages to become and remain creative and innovative?

Publications pertaining to work and ageing

• Zacher, H., Hacker, W., & Frese, M. (2016). Action regulation across the adult lifespan (ARAL): A meta-theory of work and aging. Work, Aging and Retirement. doi:10.1093/workar/waw015
• Rietzschel, E. F., Zacher, H., & Stroebe, W. (2016). A lifespan perspective on creativity and innovation at work. Work, Aging and Retirement. doi:10.1093/worker/waw005
• Hertel, G. & Zacher, H. (2016). Managing the aging workforce. In N. Anderson, D. S. Ones, C. Viswesvaran, & H. K. Sinangil (Eds.), Handbook of Industrial, Work, & Organizational Psychology (2nd ed.). London: Sage.
• Kooij, D. T. A. M. & Zacher, H. (2016). Why and when do learning goal orientation and attitude decrease with aging? The role of perceived remaining time and work centrality. Journal of Social Issues, 72(1), 146-168. doi:10.1111/josi.12160
• Zacher, H. (2015). The importance of a precise definition, comprehensive model, and critical discussion of successful aging at work. Work, Aging and Retirement, 1(4), 320-333. doi:10.1093/workar/wav020
• Zacher, H. & Griffin, B. (2015). Work, aging, and retirement in Australia: Introduction to the special issue. Work, Aging and Retirement, 1(2), 129-132. doi:10.1093/workar/wau011
• Rudolph, C. W. & Zacher, H. (2015). Intergenerational perceptions and conflicts in multi-age and multigenerational work environments. In L. M. Finkelstein, D. M. Truxillo, F. Fraccaroli, & R. Kanfer (Eds.), Facing the challenges of a multi-age workforce: A use-inspired approach (pp. 253-282). New York: Routledge.
• Zacher, H. (2015). Successful aging at work. Work, Aging and Retirement, 1(1), 4-25. doi:10.1093/workar/wau006
• Zacher, H., Clark, M., Anderson, E. C., & Ayoko, O. B. (2015). A lifespan perspective on leadership. In P. M. Bal, D. T. A. M. Kooij, & D. M. Rousseau (Eds.), Aging workers and the employee-employer relationship (pp. 87-104). New York: Springer. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-08007-9_6 
• Zacher, H. & Bock, A. (2014). Mature age job seekers: The role of proactivity. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 29(8), 1082-1097. doi:10.1108/JMP-05-2012-0158
• Zacher, H., Jimmieson, N. L., & Bordia, P. (2014). Time pressure and coworker support mediate the curvilinear relationship between age and occupational well-being. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 19(4), 462-475. doi:10.1037/a0036995
• Zacher, H., Feldman, D. C., & Schulz, H. (2014). Age, occupational strain, and well-being: A person-environment fit perspective. In P. L. Perrewé, J. Halbesleben, & C. C. Rosen (Eds.), Research in occupational stress and well-being (Vol. 12, pp. 83-111). Bingley, UK: Emerald. doi:10.1108/S1479-355520140000012002
• Zacher, H. & Gielnik, M. M. (2014). Organizational age cultures: The interplay of chief executive officers' age and attitudes toward younger and older employees. International Small Business Journal, 32(3), 327-349. doi:10.1177/0266242612463025
• Scheibe, S. & Zacher, H. (2013). A lifespan perspective on emotion regulation, stress, and well-being in the workplace. In P. L. Perrewé, J. Halbesleben, & C. C. Rosen (Eds.), Research in occupational stress and well-being (Vol. 11, pp. 163-193). Bingley, UK: Emerald. doi:10.1108/S1479-3555(2013)0000011010
• Zacher, H. (2013). Older job seekers' job search intensity: The interplay of proactive personality, age, and occupational future time perspective. Ageing & Society, 33(7), 1139-1166. doi:10.1017/S0144686X12000451
• Weigl, M., Müller, A., Hornung, S., Zacher, H., & Angerer, P. (2013). The moderating effects of job control and selection, optimization, and compensation strategies on the age-work ability relationship. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 34(5), 607-628. doi:10.1002/job.1810
• Bal, P. M., de Lange, A. H., Zacher, H., van der Heijden, B. I. J. M. (2013). A lifespan perspective on psychological contracts and their relations with organizational commitment. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 22(3), 279-292. doi:10.1080/1359432X.2012.741595
• Zacher, H., Rosing, K., Henning, T., & Frese, M. (2011). Establishing the next generation at work: Leader generativity as a moderator of the relationships between leader age, leader-member exchange, and leadership success. Psychology and Aging, 26(1), 241-252. doi:10.1037/a0021429
• Zacher, H., Rosing, K., & Frese, M. (2011). Age and leadership: The moderating role of legacy beliefs. Leadership Quarterly, 22(1), 43-50. doi:10.1016/j.leaqua.2010.12.006 
• Zacher, H. & Frese, M. (2011). Maintaining a focus on opportunities at work: The interplay between age, job complexity, and the use of selection, optimization, andcompensation strategies. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 32(2), 291-318. doi:10.1002/job.683
• Zacher, H., Heusner, S., Schmitz, M., Zwierzanska, M. M. & Frese, M. (2010). Focus on opportunities as a mediator of the relationships between age, job complexity, and work performance. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 76(3), 374-386. doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2009.09.001
• Zacher, H. & Frese, M. (2009). Remaining time and opportunities at work: Relationships between age, work characteristics, and occupational future time perspective. Psychology and Aging, 24(2), 487-493. doi:10.1037/a0015425