Perceived Peer Support as a Moderator of the Relationship between Core Self-Evaluations and Career Adaptability among University Students from Papua Region

Abstract

Introduction. According to The Organizer of Indonesian Higher Education (2018), 7% of students in Papua and West Papua drop out of college. In contrast, this figure is much higher than the national dropout rate, which is 3%. For Papuan students to succeed academically, they ought to have a good career adaptability. Papuan students with higher career adaptability have the resources to be responsible and adapt to the university environment. Career adaptability may be influenced by key factors such as core self-evaluation and perceived peer support. Method. This study examines the role of perceived peer support in moderating the relationship between core self-evaluations and career adaptability. The participants consisted of students from Papua (N=176) who have been actively carrying out their lectures since year 2011-2020. Result. The result of the moderation analysis using the Hayes Process shows that perceived peer support significantly moderated the relationship between core self-evaluations and career adaptability (t=2.06, p<.05). Discussion and Conclusion. The role of perceived peer support as a moderator may be influenced by the culture of collectivism prevalent among Papuan students. In this culture, individuals tend to associate their level of social support with their self-assessments. The results of this study provide information on interventions that can be given to the students in order to develop their career adaptability.