Abstract
This investigation applied, as the theoretical base, a model of student persistence and departure (Tinto, 1987) to explore the nature of the relationship between career decision-making self-efficacy and integration. Career decision-making self-efficacy identifies students' perceived confidence (self-efficacy) in their ability to plan and execute vocationally relevant tasks in the educational environment. The sample comprised 418 underprepared students. Data were analyzed using correlation, analysis of variance, and multiple regression. There is an interrelationship between perceived career decision-making self-efficacy and integration (overall, social, and academic) for underprepared college students. The variance in students' integration can be explained by their career decision-making self-efficacy and by their initial goals and commitments. Career decision-making self-efficacy surpassed all other variables in explaining the variance in overall and academic integration. Based on these research results, career decision-making self-efficacy should be considered as a variable in future studies of integration, a longitudinal study should be conducted to determine the direct relationship of career decision-making self-efficacy to persistence and attrition, and if a relationship to persistence is found, then the rationale exists for the design and experimental testing of interventions aimed at increasing career decision-making self-efficacy.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Astin, A. W. (1975).Preventing Students from Dropping Out. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change.Psychology Review 84: 191–215.
Bandura, A. (1986).Social Foundations of Thought and Action: A Social Cognitive Theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, pp. 390–453.
Beal, P. E., and Noel, L. (1980).What Works in Student Retention. Iowa City: American College Testing Program.
Betz, N., and Hackett, G. (1981). The relationship of career-related self-efficacy expectations to perceived career options in college women and men.Journal of Counseling Psychology 28: 399–410.
Betz, N., and Hackett, G. (1986). Applications of self-efficacy theory to understanding career choice behavior.Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology 4(3): 279–289.
Brown, S., Lent, R., and Larkin, K. (1989). Self-efficacy as a moderator of scholastic aptitude—academic performance relationships.Journal of Vocational Behavior 35: 64–75.
Cope, R., and Hannah, W. (1975).Revolving College Doors. New York: Wiley and Sons.
Elton, C., and Rose, H. (1971). A longitudinal study of the vocationally undecided male student.Journal of Vocational Behavior 1: 85–92.
Foote, B. (1980). Determined—and undetermined—major students: How different are they?Journal of College Student Personnel 21: 29–34.
Fox, R. (1986). Application of a conceptual model of college withdrawal to disadvantaged students.American Education Research Journal 23(3): 415–424.
Frank, A., and Kirk, B. (1975). Differences in outcomes for users and nonusers of university counseling and psychiatric services.Journal of Counseling Psychology 22: 252–258.
Garfield, J., delMas, R., and Dunham, T. (1987, April). Using first-term college experiences of nontraditional students to predict persistence and academic success. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Washington, DC.
Getzlaf, S., Sedlacek, G., Kearney, K., and Blackwell, J. (1984). Two types of voluntary undergraduate attrition: Application of Tinto's model.Research in Higher Education 20: 257–268.
Hackett, G., and Betz, N. E. (1981). A self-efficacy approach to the career development of women.Journal of Vocational Behavior 18: 326–339.
Hanson, G., and Taylor, R. (1970). Interaction of ability and personality: Another look at the drop-out problem in an institute of technology.Journal of Counseling Psychology 17: 540–545.
Hillary, M. C. (1978). Maintaining enrollments through career planning. In L. Noel (ed.), Reducing the dropout rate.New Directions for Student Services, 3. San Francisco: Jossey Bass.
Lent, R., Brown, S., and Larkin, K. (1984). Relation of self-efficacy expectations to academic achievement and persistence.Journal of Counseling Psychology 31(3): 356–362.
Lent, R., Brown, S., and Larkin, K. (1986). Self-efficacy in the prediction of academic performance and perceived career options.Journal of Counseling Psychology 33(3): 265–269.
Lent, R., Brown, S., and Larkin, K. (1987). Comparison of three theoretically derived variables in predicting career and academic behavior: Self-efficacy, interest congruence, and consequence thinking.Journal of Counseling Psychology 34(3): 293–298.
Lent, R., Larkin, K., and Brown, S. (1989). Relation of self-efficacy to inventoried vocational interests.Journal of Vocational Behavior 34: 279–288.
Multon, K., Brown, S., and Lent, R. (1991). Relation of self-efficacy beliefs to academic outcomes: A meta-analytic investigation.Journal of Counseling Psychology 38(1): 30–38.
Munro, B. H. (1981). Dropouts from higher education: Path analysis of a national sample.American Education Research Journal 18: 133–141.
Newlon, L., and Gaither, G. (1980). Factors contributing to attrition: An analysis of program impact on persistence patterns.College and University 55: 237–251.
Osipow, S. H., Carney, C. G., and Barak, A. (1976). A scale of educational-vocational undecidedness: A typological approach.Journal of Vocational Behavior 9: 233–243.
Osipow, S. H., Carney, C. G., Winer, J. L., Yanico, B., and Koschier, M. (1980).The Career Decision Scale (3rd rev.). Columbus: Marathon Consulting Press.
Pantages, T., and Creedon, C. (1978). Studies of college attrition: 1950–1975.Review of Educational Research 48(1): 49–101.
Pascarella, E., and Chapman, D. (1983). A multiinstitutional, path analytic validation of Tinto's model of college withdrawal.American Educational Research Journal 20(1): 87–102.
Pascarella, E., Duby, P., and Iverson, B. (1983). A test and reconceptualization of a theoretical model of college withdrawal in a commuter institution setting.Sociology of Education 56: 88–100.
Pascarella, E., and Terenzini, P. (1980). Predicting freshman persistence and voluntary dropout decisions from a theoretical model.Journal of Higher Education 51 (1): 60–75.
Pascarella, E., and Terezini, P. (1983). Predicting voluntary freshman year persistence/withdrawal behavior in a residential university: A path analytic validation of Tinto's model.Journal of Educational Psychology 75(2): 215–226.
Pascarella, E., and Terenzini, P. (1991). Career Choice and Development. In E. Pascarella and P. Terenzini (eds.),How College Affects Students (pp. 424–499). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Peterson, S. (In press). Career decision-making self-efficacy and social and academic integration of underprepared college students: Variations Based on Background Characteristics.Journal of Vocational Education Research, 18.
Schwartz, S. A. (1990a).A Study on Student Persistence-Attrition in Minnesota Technical Institutes. St. Paul, Minnesota: State Board of Technical Colleges.
Schwartz, S. A. (1990b). Application of a conceptual model of college withdrawal to technical college students. Paper presented to the American Education Research Association, Boston.
Spady, W. (1971). Dropouts from higher education: Toward an empirical model.Interchange 2(3): 38–62.
Sprandel, H. (1986). Career planning and counseling. In L. Noel and R. Levitz (eds.),Increasing Student Retention (pp. 302–318). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Taylor, K. M., and Betz, N. E. (1983). Applications of self-efficacy theory to the understanding and treatment of career indecision.Journal of Vocational Behavior 22: 63–81.
Taylor, K., and Popma, J. (1990). An examination of the relationship among career decision-making self-efficacy, career salience, locus of control, and vocational indecision.Journal of Vocational Behavior 32: 17–31.
Terenzini, P., Lorang, W., and Pascarella, E. (1981). Predicting freshman persistence and voluntary dropout decisions: A replication.Research in Higher Education 15(2): 109–127.
Tinto, V. (1975). Dropout from higher education: A theoretical synthesis of recent research.Review of Educational Research 45(1): 89–125.
Tinto, V. (1986). Theories of student departure revisited. In D. Smart (ed.),Higher Eduation: Handbook of Theory and Research (vol. 2). New York: Agathon Press.
Tinto, V. (1987).Leaving College. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Tinto, V. (1989, October). Unpublished and untitled speech. University of Minnesota.
United States Department of Labor (1987).Workforce 2000. Washington, DC: Workforce 2000 Project Office.
Voorhees, R. (1987). Toward building models of community college persistence: A logit analysis.Research in Higher Education 26(2): 115–129.
Weidman, J. (1984). Impacts of campus experiences and parental socialization on undergraduates' career choices.Research in Higher Education 20(4): 445–477.
Weidman, J. (1985). Retention of nontraditional students in postsecondary education. (Paper presented at the American Education Research Association, Chicago.) University of Pittsburgh (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 261 195).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Peterson, S.L. Career decision-making self-efficacy and institutional integration of underprepared college students. Res High Educ 34, 659–685 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00992155
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00992155