Academic Major Satisfaction Research Articles

The Effect of Korean Culinary Entrepreneurship Program Education for App Usage on Academic Achievement and Major Satisfaction

The Effect of Korean Culinary Entrepreneurship Program Education for App Usage on Academic Achievement and Major Satisfaction

Communal Goals, Campus Racial Climate Perceptions, and Cultural Differences in Perceived Academic Satisfaction

Although some research has examined Latino collectivism and Latino students' campus climate perceptions, there remains a gap in the literature regarding the interactive effects of these two constructs. Therefore, the authors examined the moderating effect that perceptions of campus racial climate may have on the relationship between communal goals and academic major satisfaction for Latino students in comparison with European American students. Contrary to prediction, perceptions of a positive university campus racial climate moderated the relationship between communal goals and academic satisfaction for European American students but not Latino students. Specifically, European Americans endorsing higher communal goals were more likely to report higher academic satisfaction when holding a positive perception of the university's racial climate. However, a main effect was observed whereby communal goals were a significant positive predictor of academic satisfaction for Latino students. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Revisiting the Congruence–Satisfaction Relationship: The Role of External Forces

The main objective of the present study was to explore the role of the forces in the context external to the setting of a specific vocational setting (i.e., an academic major in a university) in the congruence–satisfaction relationship. Four hundred and fifty-three Chinese university students responded to the Career Personality Styles Inventory, the revised Contextual Supports and Barriers Scale, and the Academic Major Satisfaction Scale. Results indicated that the congruence between individual vocational interests and their academic majors (for brevity, congruence) and two types of external forces (external barriers and support from social relations) were significant predictors of students’ satisfaction with their academic majors. In comparison, the predictive power of external forces for students’ satisfaction with their academic majors was far beyond that of congruence. Moreover, external barriers were a marginally significant moderator in the relationship between congruence and satisfaction. Implications and limitations of the findings are discussed.

Examining Changes in Career Motivation and Academic Major Satisfaction in College Students Majoring in the Natural Sciences After Engaging in Field Experience

Examining Changes in Career Motivation and Academic Major Satisfaction in College Students Majoring in the Natural Sciences After Engaging in Field Experience

Examining Person–Environment Fit and Academic Major Satisfaction

Decisions regarding college majors have the potential to affect a person's overall academic performance and long‐term career success. With Holland's () trait‐and‐factor theory serving as a foundation, the authors examined relationships between person–environment fit, college major satisfaction, and grade point average of undergraduate students (N = 99). Results revealed that student–major congruence and academic major satisfaction were both significant predictors of grade point average.

Student congruence with academic major: Do hours worked and attitude affect satisfaction and success?

The current study sought to determine if student employment was a significant moderator of the relationship between congruence with college major, academic major satisfaction, and academic major success. Correlation results suggested that student employment has a negative relationship with academic success as measured by grade point average. No study hypotheses were supported but regression analyses showed significant impact of cognitive influences on academic major satisfaction and academic major success. Clinicians are encouraged to aid students in planning the relationship between required work and educational responsibilities, as well as consider implications of negative career thinking on academic satisfaction and success.

Capturing Serendipity in Careers: An Evaluation of the Planned Happenstance Career Inventory With Lithuanian Undergraduates

In the contemporary world, career counseling professionals need to focus on skills that help people bring benefit from positive chances and minimize the damage of negative events. The Planned Happenstance Career Inventory (PHCI) was created to measure these skills. The main aim of the present study was to test the dimensionality and concurrent validity of the PHCI scores in a Lithuanian student sample. A heterogeneous sample of undergraduates participated in the study ( N = 1,064). Confirmatory factor analyses revealed four interrelated planned happenstance skill factors. A fifth––the flexibility factor––was found to function in a separate manner. To further test for concurrent validity, the PHCI scores were correlated with a range of positive career development variables, namely, goal adjustment, academic major satisfaction, and vocational identity. The results supported the hypothesized links, thereby providing evidence on the validity of PHCI scores among Lithuanian students.

The Influences of Nursing Students’ Career Identity, Academic Major Satisfaction, Self-efficacy and Academic Self-efficacy on Adaptation to University Life

The Influences of Nursing Students’ Career Identity, Academic Major Satisfaction, Self-efficacy and Academic Self-efficacy on Adaptation to University Life

Effects of Bullying Experience on Psychological Well-Being Mediated by Conflict Management Styles and Psychological Empowerment among Nursing Students in Clinical Placement: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach.

This study aimed to test a proposed structural equation model in which bullying experience, conflict management styles and psychological empowerment predict psychological well-being among Chinese nursing students in clinical placement. Three hundred and sixty-six nursing students recruited from five hospitals in J city and Y city were assessed with self-report questionnaires on bullying experience, conflict management styles, psychological empowerment and psychological well-being including depression, self-esteem, and academic major satisfaction. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0 and AMOS version 22.0. The evaluation parameters included the comparative fit index at .90, the goodness of fit index at .93, the root mean square error of approximation at .07, and χ²/df ratio at 2.66, indicating that the proposed structural equation model provided a good fit to the data. Experience of being bullied during clinical placement, conflict management styles and psychological empowerment explained 93.0% of the variance and had significant effects on psychological well-being, with conflict management styles and psychological empowerment mediating the association between bullying and psychological well-being. The findings indicated that mediation by conflict management styles and psychological empowerment alleviated the negative influence of bullying on psychological well-being. To limit bullying and its negative effects, development of effective guidelines to deal with bullying will be a critical tool for both Chinese nursing students and their instructors. Further research should incorporate conflict management styles and psychological empowerment into the specific intervention strategies for handling bullying behaviors among nursing students and staff nurses and promoting nursing students' psychological well-being.

An Examination of Factors That Influence Students’ IT Career Decisions

ABSTRACTA key challenge resulting from the rapid growth of the information technology (IT) industry is finding enough qualified workers to fill available positions. In this paper, Holland’s Theory of Occupational Themes, Social Cognitive Career Theory, and Career Construction Theory are used to investigate how job-related beliefs, career planning perceptions, and occupational congruence work together to influence students’ career decisions, major satisfaction, and academic performance. Using 210 student responses, we empirically test a theoretically derived research model. Our findings suggest that job security is a strong predictor of both IT career optimism and career planning ability. In addition, career optimism and career planning ability are important antecedents of students’ IT career commitment, which significantly influences satisfaction with academic major. A modest portion of academic performance was explained by the model. Most notably, occupational congruence was found to be a poor predictor of academic major satisfaction and performance.

Relation between University Life Adaptation and Future Aspiration of Art Majoring University Students

Background/Objectives: This study has purpose to investigate the relation between university life adaptation and future aspiration of art major university students. Methods/Statistical Analysis: Art major university students were selected as a population in which a total of 367 subjects were gathered with 122 dance majors, 87 music majors, and 158 design majors. Questionnaires were used as the investigation tool in this research as a purposive sampling method. Collected data were analyzed by exploratory factor analysis and reliability analysis, correlation analysis, one-way ANOVA, t-test, and multiple regression analysis. Findings: First, music majors showed higher difference between university life adaptation and future aspiration, university satisfaction, academic adaptation, and major job satisfaction aspiration than dance or design majors in which dance majors showed higher socioeconomic status aspiration than music majors or design majors. Also, higher family average income showed higher university satisfaction, academic adaptation, and socioeconomic status aspiration. Academic ability of fathers showed difference in academic adaptation. Students with fathers of academic ability of high school graduation or higher are showed higher academic adaptation than middle school graduation. Second, as a result of looking into the difference between university life adaptation and future aspiration according to participation in majors of art major university students. Generally, higher practice frequency showed higher academic adaptation, university satisfaction, and major job satisfaction aspiration. Third, academic adaptation showed to have positive influence on socioeconomic status aspiration. Academic adaptation and university satisfaction showed to have positive influence on job satisfaction aspiration of art majoring university students. Application/Improvements: The job of art majoring students already demand keen competition. Therefore this research is provided students majoring in art with new art field jobs and employments information.

Occupational Engagement and Academic Major Satisfaction: Vocational Identity's Mediating Role

This study examined vocational identity as a mediator of the relationship between occupational engagement (i.e., participation in a breadth of activities and interactions) and academic major satisfaction. Furthermore, the authors evaluated whether satisfaction with academic major related to academic success (i.e., grade point average). The mediational model was tested in a sample of undergraduate students (N = 215). Results indicated that occupational engagement significantly predicted academic major satisfaction and that vocational identity fully mediated that relationship. These findings support occupational engagement as an important contributor to adaptive career decision making and encourage research on occupational engagement as an intervention point for career counselors.

Perceived career barriers and vocational outcomes among university undergraduates: Exploring mediation and moderation effects

This study explores the role of perceived internal and external career barriers on undergraduates' vocational outcomes, such as academic major satisfaction and vocational identity commitment. Moreover, it tests career adaptability as a moderator in the barriers-vocational outcomes link. The study was carried out in three public universities in Lithuania. In total, 288 first and second year undergraduate students took part in it. Results demonstrated internal but not external barriers to be negatively associated with undergraduates' vocational outcomes.Furthermore, academic major satisfaction was found to be a partial mediator in the perceived career barriers-vocational identity commitment link. Finally, introducing career adaptability as a moderator revealed significant moderated mediation effects. In this case, both internal and external career barriers were found to negatively relate to vocational identity commitment through academic major satisfaction, the effect being particularly salient at the low values of career adaptability.

Parental Autonomy Support and Career Well-Being

Self-determination theory (SDT) was used to explain the relation of parental autonomy support for making their own decisions and career well-being (i.e., more academic major satisfaction and less subjective career distress). Perceived academic competence and perceived volitional autonomy were posited to mediate the relation of mother’s and father’s autonomy support and career well-being in 113 university students. Perceived academic competence mediated the relation of father’s support and both indicators of career well-being. Perceived volitional autonomy mediated the relation of mother’s support and both indicators of career well-being. A bootstrap procedure yielded significant mediation effects of mother’s and father’s autonomy support on career well-being. Results are discussed in terms of SDT and career well-being.

The adaptation of Academic Major Satisfaction Scale to Turkish: The validity and reliability study

Academic Major Satisfaction Scale (AMSS) was developed by Nauta (2007) with the aim of measuring the academic major satisfaction of students. The aim of this study is to examine the validity and reliability of the Turkish form of Academic Major Satisfaction Scale. The sample of the study consists of 321 college students studying at different departments of a state university at Western Black Sea part of Turkey. The construct validity of the scale, item analysis, test-retest and Cronbach Alpha internal consistency reliability coefficients were calculated in the study. The obtained data were analyzed by SPSS 20 and LISREL 8.7. Results and Conclusions: The studies were administered to 33 college students with one-week interval with the aim of determining linguistic equivalence, and the correlation between these studies were calculated as .76. In the study being administered to 267 college students for the construct validity of the scale, exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis was conducted in order to determine the factor structure of AMSS. The results of the factor analysis revealed that the scale has one-dimensional structure as in the original form. Cronbach Alpha internal consistency coefficient for AMSS was found .83 and the coefficient ω designed for congeneric measurements was calculated and found to .835. Test-retest reliability coefficient was found .94. It was seen that the one-dimensional model fit well in the confirmatory factor analysis (x²=17.34, sd=7, p=.015, RMSEA=.075, CFI=.99, IFI=.99, GFI=.98, SRMR=.021). Item factor loadings varied between .35 and .87. It was seen that the corrected item-total correlation of the scale varied between .26 and .78. The test-retest reliability coefficient obtained with four-week interval was found .94 for the whole scale. These results show that the Turkish form of Academic Major Satisfaction Scale can be used as a valid and reliable measurement tool.

AUTONOMY AS A PERSONAL RESOURCE FOR STUDENTS OCCUPATIONAL WELL-BEING

Background. The awareness of resources that help to overcome life challenges and flourish even in the conditions of uncertainty is critically important for young individuals transitioning from school to labor market. Autonomy, as self-governance, based on the basis of personal interests, integrated goals and values, is linked with a number of positive constructs. Those include performance, creativity, greater sense of personal reward and energy, engagement in pro-social activities and etc. Thus, autonomy might be a promising personal resource for successful functioning and occupational well-being manifested as satisfaction with life, engagement and academic major satisfaction. Purpose. The purpose of the study was to analyze the role of students“™ autonomy when predicting satisfaction with life, engagement and academic major satisfaction. Method. The sample consisted of 148 college students (97.3% male, 2.7% female; mean age 19.69 ± 1.30). The Short version of Utrecht Work Engagement Scale ““ student version (Schaufeli et al., 2002), Satisfaction With Life Scale (Diener et al., 1985), Academic Major Satisfaction Scale (Nauta, 2007) and Dis- positional Index of Autonomous Functioning scale (Weinstein et al., 2012) were used in the study. Results . Only one of the components of autonomy, authorship/self-congruence in particular, had significant positive relationship with study variables and was a significant predictor of study engagement, satisfaction with life and academic major satisfaction. Conclusion. Our findings suggest that at least to some extent au- tonomy might serve as an important resource of students“™ well-being while struggling in academic settings.Â

The Association between Bullying Experience related to Clinical Placement and Psychological Well-being in Nursing Students

This study aimed to explore the prevalence of bullying and to examine the effect of bullying on psychological well-being including depression, self-esteem, and academic major satisfaction among nursing students during clinical training. Methods: Three hundreds one nursing students who were recruited from three universities in D City were assessed with self-report questionnaires of bullying experience and psychological well-being. Data analyses were performed using the SPSS 21.0 program, which included one-way ANOVA, independent t-test, Pearson’s correlation, and multiple linear regression analyses. Results: More than three quarters of the participants experienced bullying during their clinical training, and their experience of being bullied was a significant predictor of psychological well-being even after controlling for perceived academic performance, relationship between nurses and students, teachers’ or nurses’ help to deal with bullying, and religion. Conclusion: Bullying was an issue among nursing students during clinical placement. Bullying experience yielded negative psychological outcomes associated with high depression, low self-esteem, and low academic major satisfaction. Practical guidelines are required in nursing education to protect students from the possible harm of bullying in clinical settings during training.

Occupational Engagement Scale–Student

The Occupational Engagement Scale–Student (OES-S)—a 9-item measure of occupational engagement in college students—was developed and initial validity evidence is presented. Using two samples of college students, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported the measure’s unidimensionality. Criterion validity was supported via the OES-S predicting (a) vocational identity, (b) academic major satisfaction, (c) gains in personal development, (d) gains in vocational competence, and (e) gains in general education. Implications for practice, theory, and future research are discussed.

Validation and Psychometric Properties of Academic Major Satisfaction Scale Among Korean College Students

The purpose of this research was to adapt and validate the 6-items Academic Major Satisfaction Scale (AMSS, Nauta in J Career Assess 15(4):446–462, 2007) for use in Korea. The scale was tested using 275 college students in South Korea. Results indicated adequate internal-consistency reliability of 0.87, and adequate test–retest reliability of 0.84. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated a unidimensional structure and measure invariance tests showed equivalent structure across gender groups. Correlations with career decision self-efficacy and variables related to subjective well-being ranged from moderate-tohigh and were all significant. All the results suggest suitable fit among the population of Korean college students. Suggestions for usage of and future research on the AMSS in the Korean context are discussed.

Beyond conscientiousness: Career optimism and satisfaction with academic major

The study focuses on psychological predictors of academic major satisfaction. According to the career construction theory (Savickas, 2005), vocational personality and career adaptability should generate career satisfaction. In this study, vocational personality was operationalised as Big Five conscientiousness, and career adaptability was operationalised as generalised self-efficacy and career optimism. A sample (N=529) of university students completed an online survey. The resultant data were used to construct a structural model of the hypothesised relationships among variables. A good fitting model [χ2=10.454 (7) p=.164; GFI=.993; CFI=.999; RMSEA<.031 (<.001–.066)] indicated that career optimism fully mediated the relationship between conscientiousness and academic major satisfaction. Results were consistent with previous research into personality and academic performance. Moreover, the results highlight the significant role of optimism in satisfaction with career generally, and studies, specifically. Suggestions are made for future research into modelling the relationships according to different academic disciplines and for the potential role of optimism as a learning objective for career education and counseling.