Counseling psychologists have noted the importance of examining the intersection of sociocultural identity and vocational psychology. In our study, we considered this intersection in a sample of 202 Latina college and graduate students from a perspective informed by social cognitive career theory. We examined how ethnic identity and experiences of selfreported microagressions were related to career decision self-efficacy and outcome expectations, including relationships to both positive and negative outcome expectations in our model. Findings indicated that higher endorsement of ethnic identity was positively related to career decision self-efficacy and to negative outcome expectations, whereas higher endorsement of experiences of microaggressions was related to lower career-decision self-efficacy, greater negative outcome expectations, and lower positive outcome expectations. Career decision self-efficacy was associated with lower negative outcome expectations and higher positive outcome expectations. Indirect relationships and two alternative models were also explored. We discuss implications for future research and career counseling with Latinas.

Path analysis was used to explore the tenets of social cognitive career theory with a sample of 357 Latina/o college students. A modified path model revealed that career decision self-efficacy (CDSE) mediated the influence of ethnic identity and acculturation level on the perception of career barriers. The findings point to the role of ethnic identity in augmenting Latina/o college students' CDSE and increasing awareness about career barriers. Implications for theory, research, and practice are discussed.

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