Author : Dawn C. Sherman
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781267331427
Total Pages : 506 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (314 download)
Book Synopsis Traditional-aged College Juniors' Career Planning Self-efficacy by : Dawn C. Sherman
Download or read book Traditional-aged College Juniors' Career Planning Self-efficacy written by Dawn C. Sherman and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 506 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The purpose of this single-site case study was to explore and describe traditional-age college juniors' reports of self-efficacy (Bandura, 1997) regarding Career Planning (Barker & Kellen, 1998). More specifically, the career planning confidence levels of college juniors enrolled in a required career development course at a private business school in the Northeast were examined. Bandura's (1997) theory of self-efficacy provided the theoretical basis for this study and Barker and Kellen's (1998) career planning model supplied the conceptual frame. The research questions were developed from the four stages of Barker and Kellen's model: Career Guidance and Decision-Making, Developing Employability and Job Readiness, the Job Search Process, and Successful Employment. Two data collection methods were employed in this study. First, the 41-item Career Planning Confidence Scale (Pickering, Calliotte, & McAuliffe, 2003) collected the students' reports of confidence regarding an array of career planning tasks. Second, a focus group guide containing six questions with related prompts was used to elicit responses regarding how the participants developed confidence in the tasks associated with career planning. The survey served as the primary source of information as it was administered first and had a larger sample size, while the subsequent focus groups provided additional data to expand and complement the survey data. Fourteen of the 169 survey respondents participated in the focus groups. Analysis of the survey results and focus group data, as they aligned with the four stages of Barker and Kellen's (1998) model, yielded 27 findings. Overall, students reported moderate levels of confidence in tasks related to searching for occupational information, making career decisions, and achieving successful employment. Higher levels of confidence were reported for developing employability and job readiness skills and conducting a job search. Finally, the students overwhelmingly gained their confidence through mastery experiences (Bandura, 1997). Conclusions and recommendations for practice and subsequent research are presented.