Development and Validation of the Career and Life Development Hope (CLDH) Scale among Non-Engaged Youth in Hong Kong

Abstract

Increasing career and life development hope (CLDH) is critical for the career and life pursuits of non-engaged youths (NEY) who face various disadvantages in the school-to-work transition, especially considering current challenging labor market conditions and the impacts of the pandemic. Nevertheless, research that explores the assessment of CLDH among NEY is scarce. To address this gap, this study aimed to develop and validate a CLDH measurement instrument. A total of 1998 NEY aged 13–29 years in Hong Kong participated in our study. Exploratory factor analysis of the 20-item CLDH scale suggested a two-factor structure—career and life development pathways (CLDP) and career and life development agency (CLDA)—which accounted for 63.08% of the total variance. The confirmatory factor analysis results show a good model fit (CFI = 0.934, TLI = 0.926, RMSEA = 0.060, 90% CI [0.055, 0.065], SRMR = 0.042) and all the items significantly represented the corresponding sub-constructs. The results also demonstrate a satisfactory internal consistency for all subscales and the full scale (0.89–0.95). Sub-group consistency across subsamples categorized by gender, age, and years of residence in Hong Kong was indicated. Correlations between the CLDH scale and subscales with other career-related and social well-being outcomes (i.e., youth career development competency, career adaptability, civic engagement, social contribution, and social integration) showed good concurrent validity. Our results support that the CLDH scale is a valid and reliable tool for measuring NEY’s hope for career and life development in the Hong Kong context. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are also discussed.

Career and life development intervention for non-engaged youth: Evaluating the Hong Kong Benchmarks (Community) Pilot Program

“…CLDH, encompassing two dimensions—career and life development pathways and career and life development agency—was measured using 20 items developed by Ngai et al (2022) . Items included “Had encounters with the business sector to understand the industry” and “Took initiatives to set career and life development goals and plans” (career and life development pathways), as well as “Was confident to make career choices that suit me” and “Maintained positive work attitudes and life values” (career and life development agency).…”

“…On the one hand, CLDH, which refers to a positive motivational-cognitive-behavioral state toward the actualization of personal goals, has been highlighted as an indispensable resource for young people to get ahead in future careers and life ( Snyder, 2002 ; Hong et al, 2020 ; Ngai et al, 2022 ). The positive motivational-cognitive-behavioral state consists of two components.…”

“…By contrast, the cognitive-behavioral component, career and life development pathways , refers to the perceived cognitive and behavioral ability to generate multiple routes or pathways to achieve desired goals. The two components are thought to reinforce each other during the pursuit of goals and in acquiring positive outcomes in young people’s CLD ( Ngai et al, 2022 ).…”

“…The current research was conducted to evaluate the preliminary outcomes of the HKBM (Community) Pilot Program, particularly whether it, as claimed, could enhance the community-based CLD intervention and thus promote NEY’s school-to-work transition. Researchers have indicated that a sound program evaluation should focus not only on outcomes that can be quantitatively assessed but also on the operational aspects of the program that can be examined using qualitative methods ( Rossi et al, 2019 ; Ngai et al, 2022 ). Accordingly, we performed a mixed-methods evaluation to investigate the effectiveness of the HKBM (Community) Pilot Program, operated as an intervention, on the improvement of NEY’s career-related competencies, as well as to explore the stakeholders’ (e.g., NGO leaders, social workers, parents, employers, and NEY) subjective perceptions and opinions on the implementation of the HKBM (Community).…”

“…Owing to economic globalization and advanced technology, however, the world of work has increasingly been characterized by uncertainty and unpredictability ( Ngai et al, 2021 , 2022 ) that makes the school-to-work transition more tortuous, longer, and less controllable than the direct, well-defined transition presumed to be available to previous generations ( Ryan, 2001 ; Morrison, 2002 ; Allen and Van Der Velden, 2007 ). At present, young people are more likely than adults to encounter job mismatch and suffer from prolonged unemployment ( Pavlova et al, 2018 ).…”