The impacts of innovation capability and social adaptability on undergraduates’ employability: The role of self-efficacy

Abstract

Introduction: As the world is consistently driven by the infusion of new-generation information technology and the knowledge economy, college students are placed under mounting pressure in developing occupation-related competencies. Their employability has been receiving growing concerns from stakeholders such as higher education institutions, governments, employers, parents, and even student groups themselves as it plays a decisive role in occupational success, social stability, and economic prosperity. Under the theoretical guidance of social cognitive theory, this study set out to investigate the cognitive and psychological mechanisms through which innovation capability, social adaptability, and self-efficacy influence the employability of college students. It also attempts to analyze the mediating role of self-efficacy in the relations between innovation capability, social adaptability, and employability which has been rarely studied in academia.Methods: A quantitative approach was employed in this study. Data was collected from 726 undergraduates from 9 higher education institutions in the mainland of China by questionnaire survey method. The research model showed a good fit (χ2/df=4.46, RMSEA=0.069, SRMR=0.049, GFI=0.934, CFI=0.965, NFI=0.955, TLI=0.955). Structural equation modeling (SEM) was applied to this study for data analysis.Results: The findings showed that innovation capability, social adaptability, and self-efficacy significantly and positively correlates with undergraduates’ employability. University students with stronger innovation capability, social adaptability, and self-efficacy tend to be more employable in the job market. Model 4 of SPSS PROCESS Macro revealed that self-efficacy played a mediating role in the correlation between innovation capability, social adaptability, and employability.Discussion: Undergraduates with higher levels of innovation capability and social adaptability are more confident in their abilities to take specific actions and achieve expected goals, which in turn intensifies their employability. The study suggests the possibility of improving undergraduates’ employability through positive interference of innovation capability, social adaptability, and self-efficacy in the era of information technology and knowledge-based economy.

Potential categories of employment stress among rural college students and their relationship to employment psychology

“…The results showed that those in the high level group had higher scores for personal factors, social environment, family and friends, school, and professional issues, suggesting that employment stress among rural college students is the result of a combination of factors. This result is consistent with the findings of Li et al (2022) , whose study showed that personal and professional factors are related to students’ personal evaluations and employment expectations, and that low personal evaluations and high employment expectations often lead to a loss of individual self-confidence in employment and a sudden increase in employment pressure. In addition, according to the stimulus-physiological/psychological-response (SOR) theoretical model, external factors can produce a direct psychological response in the body: when the employment social environment the is highly competitive, there are too few jobs, and the school’s previous students have poor employment records, it will increase the individual’s employment panic ( Ardern et al, 2012 ; Anselme and Güntürkün, 2019 ; Mladenović et al, 2023 ).…”

“…Previous studies have shown that employment stress includes many aspects such as personal factors, social environment, family and friends, school, and professional issues, and that rural college students have different characteristics of employment stress when they face different employment dilemmas ( Szromek and Wolniak, 2020 ; Kossek et al, 2021 ; Ojo et al, 2021 ; Rawal, 2023 ). According to the characteristics of the employment pressure on rural college students, formulating individualized employment guidance and support will help adjust their employment psychology and employment outlook, and effectively help rural college students achieve successful employment ( Li et al, 2022 ). Previous studies showed that rural college students with the same employment psychology presented different employment stress characteristics ( Belle et al, 2022 ; von Keyserlingk et al, 2022 ).…”

Employability challenges of vocational college graduates in the state of Johor

“…A strong belief in one's capacity to apply information and abilities is a sign of high self-efficacy, and this belief is a crucial factor in determining success in the job. Graduates that possess high self-efficacy are more likely to be innovative, proactive, and problem-solvers, which increases job satisfaction and opens up professional progression prospects (Li et al, 2022). This combination benefits individual career trajectories and the competitiveness of organisations by fostering a culture of innovation and continual learning.…”

Psychological Adjustment Strategies of Vocational College Students' Employment Based on Psychological Capital

“…On the whole, there are various reasons for students' employment psychological problems in higher vocational colleges, which may be the result of the interaction of internal, external, personal or social factors. Therefore, solving these problems requires the joint efforts of schools, families and society, providing more comprehensive support and help, guiding students to establish a correct concept of employment, making career plans, enhancing self-confidence and enhancing employment competitiveness, so as to better adapt to employment challenges [6].…”