Career-Specific Parenting Practices and Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy Among Chinese Adolescents: The Interactive Effects of Parenting Practices and the Mediating Role of Autonomy

Abstract

This study examined the unique and interactive effects of various career-specific parenting practices (i.e., parental career support, interference, and lack of engagement) on Chinese high school students’ career decision-making self-efficacy (CDSE) as well as the mediating role of autonomy in such associations. Based on data from 641 Chinese high school students (47.6% male; mean age = 15.28 years old, SD = 0.49) in 2016, two moderated mediating effects were identified. Higher level of parental career engagement strengthened the positive association between parental career support and adolescents’ autonomy, which in turn, was associated positively with adolescents’ CDSE. Parental career interference related negatively with adolescents’ CDSE via autonomy when lack of parental career engagement was low, but related positively with adolescents’ CDSE via autonomy when lack of parental career engagement was high. These findings advance our understanding of the underlying processes between career-specific parenting practices and adolescents’ CDSE. Implications for practices were discussed.

An Application of the Social Cognitive Career Theory Model of Career Self-Management to College Athletes’ Career Planning for Life After Sport

“…To clarify the factors facilitating and impeding career planning, our study's theoretical basis was derived from the recently developed Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) model of Career Self-Management (CSM) (Lent and Brown, 2013). SCCT has been a valuable theoretical framework to address career concerns, examining career planning and transition of professional athletes (Demulier et al, 2013), career decisionmaking and planning processes of middle school and high school students (Patton et al, 2004;Rogers et al, 2008;Rogers and Creed, 2011;Zhang et al, 2019), career development of college students (Olson, 2014;Park et al, 2018), and predictions of career choices from various academic majors (Cunningham et al, 2005;Lent et al, 2008).…”

Potential Factors to Enhance Students' STEM College Learning and Career Orientation

“…To follow up on other studies emanating from the social cognitive career theory framework (e.g., Lent et al, 2008;Nugent et al, 2015;Gottfried et al, 2016;Zhang et al, 2019), we operationalized relevant variables focusing on high school students as our target population. The results of our study helped us to better understand that the interplay of socio-contextual, motivational, and instructional factors operating within learning environments can impact high school students' future STEM college learning and career orientation.…”

“…When parents get involved in their children's learning activities, they should be supportive and provide positive feedback to their children. When parents give encouragement, share expectation, and present positive attitudes, their children's academic and vocational interests can be enhanced (Urdan et al, 2007;Zhang et al, 2019). When communicating with their children about academic and career decisions, parents are suggested to maintain a reciprocal conversation with their children, to help the children understand their strengths, and to work with the children to help them analyze potential pros and cons of their decisions about their future.…”

“…When children make their educational and career decisions, they respect their parents' feedback as well as rely on emotional and financial support from their parents. Research indicates that parents' positive support such as encouragement and guidance would enhance children's self-determination on achieving educational goals (Urdan et al, 2007;Ramsdal et al, 2015;Zhang et al, 2019) and career goals (Urdan et al, 2007;Zhang et al, 2019). In addition, research indicates that if parents maintain positive attitudes about their children's educational and career endeavors, then children are more likely to actively continue their educational and career paths (Zhang et al, 2019).…”

“Preparing Them for the Road”: African Migrant Parents’ Perceptions of Their Role in Their Children’s Career Decision-Making

“…This underscores the importance of understanding the sociocultural contexts of migrant groups while determining their parenting style and its role in their children's academic performance as well as career decision-making processes [24]. Nevertheless, research on this discourse tends to focus mainly on Asian migrant groups [32][33][34], whilst limited research has been carried out among SSA migrant families. Our recent study emphasises the significance of family dynamics among SSA families in their adaptation processes into the Australian society.…”