Search

In the past, the shift in career patterns and the unprecedented disruptions caused by events such as COVID-19 have posed notable challenges for job seekers. This holds particularly true for college students who are preparing to enter the workforce. In this context, enhancing career adaptability plays a vital role in shaping their career development. The primary objective of this research was to investigate the relationship between career education skills and career adaptability among 273 undergraduate students in China. Additionally, the study aimed to explore the mediating effect of career decision-making self-efficacy in shaping this relationship. The findings of the correlation analysis indicate a significant positive correlation between career education skills and career adaptability. Moreover, the results of the mediation model revealed that career education skills significantly contribute to improving career adaptability along with the mediating effect of college students' self-efficacy in making career decisions. This study suggests that universities should prioritize the development and expansion of career education initiatives. They should not only help establish clear career goals for college students but also cultivate a positive and flexible career outlook to assist them in better adapting to various changes that may arise throughout their career journeys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated visual arts college students' perceptions of the gender stereotyping of creativity and the influence of this stereotyping on creative self‐efficacy. The sample consisted of 1198 Chinese visual arts college students. The results showed that (a) both male and female students identified stereotypically masculine traits as more important to creativity than stereotypically feminine traits are, (b) male students demonstrated higher creative self‐efficacy than their female counterparts did, and (c) students' gender significantly moderated the effect of the gender stereotyping of creativity on creative self‐efficacy. Specifically, the gender stereotyping of creativity had a positive effect on male students and a negative effect on female students. These findings revealed that gender stereotypes dominate concepts of creativity in Chinese art education and may hinder female students' development of creative self‐efficacy, resulting in gendered inequality in the visual arts field. The implications of these findings for visual arts education in China are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study reported here examined college students’ academic self-efficacy, ‘academic press’ and learning achievement, as well as the association between these three variables within learning contexts using interactive whiteboard-based instruction. A quasi-experimental study was conducted using a sample (n = 103) of first-year college students in China. Participants were taught English by either an interactive whiteboard-based or traditional lecture-based instructional approach for three months. The results showed that the interactive whiteboard-based instructional intervention cultivated higher levels of academic press and academic self-efficacy among students and a significant, positive correlation was identified between these two variables. Students’ learning achievement was not affected by the instructional intervention. These results indicate that interactive whiteboard-based instruction offers some distinct benefits. In future work, additional research is needed to clarify how the instructional model relates to understanding learning achievement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is the first to examine the mechanism of the relationship between emotional intelligence (EI) and career decision-making self-efficacy (CDMSE) and the moderating role of gender in relevant mechanisms. Analyses of 185 Chinese university students showed that EI could influence CDMSE through goal commitment (GC) and professional commitment, and male students exhibited a stronger relationship between EI and GC compared with female students. This study introduces a new perspective for career development research by establishing a mediation-based emotion-career framework and provides deeper insights for career counselors to assist clients in career decision processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined the influence of college students' coping styles on perceived self-efficacy, through the mediating effect of general self-efficacy, in managing inferiority. A sample of 206 college students completed a Coping Style Questionnaire, the Regulatory Emotional Self-Efficacy Scale of Chinese college students, and a general self-efficacy scale. The results showed the following: (a) there were significant correlations among the problem solving, self-blame, and fantasy coping styles, and general self-efficacy and perceived self-efficacy in managing inferiority; (b) the problem solving and self-blame coping styles indirectly predicted perceived self-efficacy in managing inferiority by general self-efficacy, and general self-efficacy played a partial mediating role between the problem solving and self-blame coping styles and perceived self-efficacy in managing inferiority; and (c) gender played a moderating role between coping style and perceived self-efficacy in managing inferiority. The results are important for counseling to enhance regulatory emotional self-efficacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study provided preliminary evidences for the validity of the Questionnaire of English Self-Efficacy scale in a sample of college students in China. Results showed that the scale had adequate reliability and validity. Examination of the rating scale structure showed that participants reliably distinguished response categories. The item hierarchy was consistent with the expected item order, supporting the construct validity of the scale. Overall, the items were fairly well matched to the ability of the sample except that there seems to be a need for more difficult items. The information pertaining to the scale is quite encouraging from measurement perspectives and fills the gap in the literature by providing a valid instrument to measure English language learners' self-efficacy in China. The implications of this study to English as a foreign language and English as a second language educators and researchers in the United States and other countries are also discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background. The study deepened our understanding of how students' self-efficacy beliefs contribute to the context of teaching English as a foreign language in the framework of cognitive mediational paradigm at a fine-tuned task-specific level. Aim. The aim was to examine the relationship among task complexity, self-efficacy beliefs, domain-related prior knowledge, learning strategy use, and task performance as they were applied to English vocabulary learning from reading tasks. Sample. Participants were 120 second-year university students (mean age 21) from a Chinese university. Method. This experiment had two conditions (simple/complex). A vocabulary level test was first conducted to measure participants' prior knowledge of English vocabulary. Participants were then randomly assigned to one of the learning tasks. Participants were administered task booklets together with the self-efficacy scales, measures of learning strategy use, and post-tests. Data obtained were submitted to multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and path analysis. Results. Results from the MANOVA model showed a significant effect of vocabulary level on self-efficacy beliefs, learning strategy use, and task performance. Task complexity showed no significant effect; however, an interaction effect between vocabulary level and task complexity emerged. Results from the path analysis showed self-efficacy beliefs had an indirect effect on performance. Our results highlighted the mediating role of self-efficacy beliefs and learning strategy use. Conclusions. Our findings indicate that students' prior knowledge plays a crucial role on both self-efficacy beliefs and task performance, and the predictive power of self-efficacy on task performance may lie in its association with learning strategy use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study we examined whether or not contingencies of self-worth (CSW) moderated the effect of specific self-esteem on self-liking or self-competence. Chinese university students (N = 210) completed the Chinese version of the Contingencies of Self-worth Scale (Crocker, Luhtanen, Cooper, & Bouvrette, 2003; translated into Chinese by Cheng & Kwan, 2008), the Chinese version of the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965; translated into Chinese by Wang, Wang, & Ma, 1999), and our own adaptation for this study of the Self- attribution Questionnaire (Pelham & Swann, 1989) to assess self-liking, self-competence, global self-esteem, 6 domains of CSW consisting of others' approval, appearance, academic competence, competition, family support, and virtue, and specific self-esteem in these same 6 domains. Results showed that CSW did not have a moderating effect on the relationship between specific self-esteem and global self-esteem in the 6 domains. However, when we classified self-esteem into 2 distinct categories of self-liking and self-competence, we found that there were moderator effects of CSW between specific self-esteem and either self-liking or self-competence in 3 of the 6 domains. The different moderator effects in the 6 domains are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objectives: Stage models are especially helpful when matching treatments to the needs of intervention participants. However, stage-matched treatments can only be effective if stages are assessed adequately. Therefore, the measurement qualities of the stage assessments need to be tested. The objective of the current study is to test two stage assessments, one measuring the stages of the Transtheoretical Model (TTM) and one measuring the stages of the Health Action Process Approach (HAPA). Design: Measurement qualities were tested by means of planned contrasts and higher-order trends (Study Purpose 1). The match of the two stage assessments were analyzed regarding their co-occurrence (Purpose 2). Also a “trimmed stage classification variable” was analyzed regarding its measurement qualities (Purpose 3). Method: A total of 830 Chinese college students received questions assessing social-cognitive variables as well as the HAPA- and TTM-stages. Discontinuity patterns were tested across the stages with planned comparisons and non-linear, higher-order trends. Results: TTM- and HAPA-stages corresponded with each other. However, a strong fit of the two stage assessments was not found and measurement error may be assumed. After trimming the stage assignments, the HAPA-assessment improved, and the TTM decreased in measurement qualities. Conclusions: After trimming the stage assignments and correcting for potential measurement error, a more parsimonious stage approach (i.e., HAPA) may be more appropriate. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This study examined ADHD symptomatology and college adjustment in 420 participants—147 from the United States and 273 from China. It was hypothesized that higher levels of ADHD symptoms in general and the inattentive symptom group in particular would be related to decreased academic and social adjustment, career decision-making self-efficacy, and poorer study skills in both countries. Results generally supported the hypotheses, indicating that the difficulties associated with inattention are cross-cultural and not specific to the United States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]