Career-related Factors Research Articles

Assessing self-efficacy in interdisciplinary learning experiences and the effects of career-related predictors

PurposeThis study explores the extent of undergraduate students' engagement in interdisciplinary learning experiences across their academic journey and its potential correlation with elevated levels of self-efficacy in learning. Furthermore, the research investigates how the clarity of career decisions and future goals contributes to the perception of relevance, value and alignment of interdisciplinary learning experiences among undergraduate students.Design/methodology/approachData were collected using a self-report questionnaire in a longitudinal survey administered annually to undergraduate students at a university in northern Taiwan over four waves from 2018 to 2021. The sample analyzed for this study consisted of 123 undergraduate students who willingly and continuously participated in the research throughout the specified period.FindingsThe results showed that self-efficacy within interdisciplinary learning experiences could be classified into three clusters: high efficacy, moderate efficacy and fluctuating efficacy. The determinants influencing these clusters include career decisions and years spent in university. Undergraduate students who have determined their career decisions and are in their latter two years of undergraduate studies demonstrate higher self-efficacy in interdisciplinary learning. Conversely, students who have yet to determine their career decisions exhibit a fluctuating pattern of self-efficacy across the three interdisciplinary learning categories.Research limitations/implicationsTwo key limitations of this research include a small sample size and a confined university-specific context, potentially constraining the applicability of the results to a broader population.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the interdisciplinary learning experience in higher education by explaining the significance of undergraduates' self-efficacy and career-related factors. Whereas most research has focused on the effects of self-efficacy, this study investigated the factors that influence undergraduates' self-efficacy.

Factors associated with retention of health workers in remote public health centers in Northern Uganda: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundHealth worker retention in remote and hard-to-reach areas remains a threat in most low- and middle-income countries, and this negatively impacts health service delivery. The health workforce inequity is catastrophic for countries like Uganda that still has a low health worker to patient ratio, and remote areas like Lira District that is still recovering from a long-term civil war. This study explores factors associated with retention of health workers in remote public health centers in Lira district in Northern Uganda.MethodsA descriptive cross-sectional study with quantitative methods of data collection was used among health workers namely; doctors, clinical officers, nurses, midwives, pharmacists and, laboratory technicians. The study utilized a structured questionnaire with closed ended questions to obtain quantitative information.ResultsMost of the respondents were females (62.90%), married (84.62%), with certificate level (55.74%), and nurses as qualification (36.60%) as well as attached to Health Center 3 level (61.28%). Significant individual factors associated with retention included having a certificate as highest level of education, staying with family, and working at facility for 6 or more years. The health system factors were good physical state of facility, equipment availability, availability of sundries, feeling comfortable with rotations, receiving adequate support from staff, feeling valued and respected by colleagues at workplace and access to incentives while career factors were job satisfaction, job motivation, promotion, and further training on scholarship.ConclusionThe study established that indeed several individual and social demographics, health system and career-related factors are significantly associated with retention of Health workers in the rural public health facilities and these are critical policy recommendations for establishing retention guidelines in a national human resources for health manual.

Relevance of university dual career support services – student–athletes’ perspectives

ABSTRACT Rationale/Purpose Universities provide various services supporting athletes pursuing a dual career. This paper focuses on the preconditions of being simultaneously included in elite sport and educational system, aiming to analyse the assessment of such services from the student–athletes’ perspective. Design/Methodology/Approach The data originate from an online survey of 1055 international student–athletes, who participated in the 2019 Winter and Summer Universiades. Based on exploratory factor analysis, support services were grouped into categories. Implementing probit models, the respondents’ perceptions were regressed with their sporting and academic background by controlling for socio-demographic factors. Findings The study identifies three factors of dual career support services in the context of higher education and reveals statistically significant associations between socio-demographic, academic, and sporting career-related factors and the perceived relevance of support services. Practical Implications To get the university context functionalised in favour of student–athletes’ dual careers, tailor-made support should particularly address differences regarding gender, university levels, and types of sport. Research Contribution The study enhances the understanding of dual career challenges, related to the student–athletes’ conflicting roles. It provides evidence that adequate dual career support services at the interfaces of elite sport and higher education need to be individualised according to the athletes’ needs.

Different motivations for volunteering are associated with different outcomes for Australian animal welfare volunteers: a mixed-methods analysis

ABSTRACT Objective Inspired by the important role volunteers play in Australian society, the current study examined the relationship between different motivations for volunteering and different outcomes experienced by animal welfare volunteers. Method An anonymous, self-report questionnaire was completed online by 278 volunteers (84.53% female; M age = 45.19 years, SD = 18.13) of a large state-wide animal welfare organisation. A latent profile analysis was conducted with data collected using the Volunteer Functions Inventory (VFI), and interpreted alongside a thematic analysis of qualitative responses. Results Three groups of participants were identified, characterised by different prominent motivations to volunteer: personal values (values-driven group); personal values and personal growth (personal-gain group); and personal values, personal growth, and career-related factors (experience-oriented group). Values-driven volunteers experienced both pleasure and stress from the enactment of values-driven behaviour, and experienced increased opportunity for socialisation. Personal-gain volunteers experienced increased opportunity for socialisation and increased sense of purpose. Experience-oriented volunteers derived pleasure from enacting personal values, and increased opportunity to gain experience in animal-care. Conclusions Motivations for volunteering are complex and multifaceted. The current findings highlight how motivationally congruent volunteering behaviours can be associated with a range of positive outcomes for volunteers.

Exploring students’ motivations in choosing to study information systems: is there a gender difference? A survey study in Norway

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the motivations of undergraduate students in choosing to study the information systems (IS) program and explore gender differences in students’ motivations. Design/methodology/approach This study examines the results of an online survey of undergraduate IS students at a public university in Norway. An online survey was used to collect the data from undergraduate students who enrolled in an introductory IS course. T-test was used to test the differences between male and female students. Findings The results identified that career-related factors such as job availability and job security were the two most prominent factors for both male and female students to choose IS. The results also show that male and female students have essentially similar motivations to choose IS. There were only two significant differences found between female and male students in the perceptions of the importance of factors that influence the decision to choose IS: “personal interest in subject matter” and “ease of study topics.” Male students rated the importance of personal interest and ease of study topics significantly higher than female students. Originality/value Despite the fact that Norway is a highly digitalized and gender-equal country, women are still underrepresented in IT-related jobs and higher education studies. Findings from this study will help to understand the motivations of students in choosing IS and gender differences in their motivations in a highly gender-equal and digitalized European country.

Determining Factors Influencing Specialty Preferences of Iranian Medical Doctors: A Qualitative Study.

Background: The medical specialty choice of physicians directly affects the healthcare system, community wellbeing, and their own professional life. It is therefore important to identify its underlying factors to predict such medical career choices and to draw up a comprehensive evidence-based public health policy and health human resources planning. The present qualitative study aimed to identify these determinants of career choices through semi-structured interviews with medical doctors in the context of country-specific social and cultural characteristics.Methods: The present qualitative study was carried out in 2019-2020 at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (Shiraz, Iran). The target population was medical students, junior doctors, and medical residents. The purposive sampling method was used to recruit the participants and sampling continued until data saturation, i.e., no new information could be extracted. Data were collected through individual, face-to-face, semi-structured interviews and analyzed using the conventional content analysis method. Inductive thematic analysis was used to interpret the data based on which a thematic map was developed illustrating the factors influencing medical specialty preferences in Iran. Data trustworthiness was assessed according to the criteria proposed by Guba and Lincoln.Results: Analysis of the interview data resulted in three main themes and fourteen sub-themes. The main themes were “Personal determinants”, “Career-related factors”, and “Interpersonal influences”. The most important sub-themes were personal interests, income, and prestige.Conclusion: The determinants influencing the specialty preferences of Iranian medical doctors are identified. Our findings will facilitate the development of a comprehensive evidence-based public health policy, health human resources planning, and appropriate medical education policy.

The Relationship Between Parental Career-Related Factors and Adolescents’ Ambivalence in Career Decision-Making: A Longitudinal Mediation Study

Our current research aimed to investigate the mediating relationship between Parental Career-Related Factors, adolescents’ Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy, and Ambivalence in Career Decision-Making with a total of 605 students from China. We collected data at three different time points, with a 6-month interval between each time point. Then we applied a Cross-Lagged Panel Model using data from all three waves, and the results showed that a higher level of support in Parental Career-Related Behaviors and Adolescent Parent Career Congruence measured at time 1 positively predicted Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy at time 2; Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy at time 2 negatively predicted Ambivalence in Career Decision-Making at time 3; and the indirect effect of support in Parental Career-Related Behaviors and Adolescent Parent Career Congruence on Ambivalence in Career Decision-Making was significant. Therefore, Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy mediated the relationship between support in Parental Career-Related Behaviors and Ambivalence in Career Decision-Making and between Adolescent Parent Career Congruence and Ambivalence in Career Decision-Making. The implications, limitations, and future direction are discussed.

A moderated mediation model of implicit theories of intelligence and life satisfaction among Chinese adolescents

Although life satisfaction is critical for adolescents’ emotional, social, and educational functioning and positive development, social cognitive roles in adolescents’ life satisfaction and potential underlying processes are less known. The present study aimed to explore the effect of implicit theories of intelligence on adolescent life satisfaction and their potential mechanisms. A moderated mediation model was constructed to investigate the mediating role of career exploration and the moderating role of career-specific parental support. Data were collected from 443 10th grade high-school students in Sichuan, China. Results revealed that career exploration fully mediated the positive relationship between implicit theories of intelligence and life satisfaction, while career-specific parental support moderated the relationship between career exploration and life satisfaction. These findings highlight the value of exploring social-cognition and career-related factors in life satisfaction.

The Student-Centered Education Design in the Age of Automation: A Case Study

Research into educational design has highlighted the growing concern of learner disengagement in English as Foreign Language classrooms. This issue has received increasing scholarly attention, as the need for reskilling in the era of automation has impinged the way foreign languages are taught and learned at the university level. However, the degree to which this occurs is little explored. This paper intends to investigate the career-related factors that influence learner engagement in the learner-centered education design. Drawn upon Kolb’s Experiential Learning Theory and the Biggs’ constructive alignments, this paper intends to explicate the possibilities of guided career planning, transferrable skills practice, and technology-assisted multimodal assessments to resolve learner engagement problems in response to automation-induced skill shortages in future workplaces. This paper reports a case study of a standard 45-minute teaching session designed for a first-year foundational course involving a total of 22 undergraduate students. A portfolio of interactive technology platforms (e. g. , Sli. do, Kahoot) and professional tools (e. g. , MBTI, SWOT) are employed. The results revealed improved engagement in learner-centered environments with career-oriented exercises. While the findings cannot be regarded as representative, they point to the positive direction of learner- centered education design in the age of automation.

A conceptual framework for supporting the mental health of the health workforce and key determinants

Abstract EXPH members and Opinion collaborators A conceptual framework was developed to guide the Opinion. The visual representation shows how determinants of mental health interact and displays the evolution of various mental health profiles of an individual over time under different stressful scenarios. Mental health is a continuum of two dimensions - mental wellbeing and mental health-illness. Mental health is influenced by a complex interplay of determinants. At work, these include both non-occupational and occupation-specific factors that interact. Following a particularly stressful event, an individual may face a possible deterioration in their mental health. There are various trajectories. The individual can respond or cope effectively and maintain his/her current level of mental health. If the stressor is intense, severe, and/or prolonged, deterioration in mental health may result. The level of deterioration depends on prior mental health and the interaction of non-occupational and occupation-specific factors. A recovery in mental health from the stressor may occur spontaneously or some form of intervention may be needed. Intervention could help to mitigate the appearance of a stressor (primary prevention), to mitigate impact of the stressor on mental health and/or ensure a rapid recovery from the stressor (secondary prevention), and/or decrease the rate of deteriorating mental health (tertiary prevention). Work-related risk factors related to mental health in the health workforce include issues related to role, relationships, control, demand, job-related factors, organizational environment, career-related factors, and interaction with non-work factors. Exposure-related concerns, burnout, and moral injury have received considerable attention during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Impact of Previous Cardiology Electives on Canadian Medical Student Interest and Understanding of Cardiology

Background: Most Canadian medical schools do not have mandatory cardiology rotations. Early exposure to clinical cardiology aids career navigation, but clerkship selectives are chosen during pre-clerkship. This study investigates whether prior elective experiences affect medical student interest as well as understanding of cardiology before clerkship selections.
 Methods: A literature search was conducted using Google Scholar, Embase and PubMed to create an evidence-based cross-sectional survey. The anonymous questionnaire was administered to 53 second-year medical students at a Canadian medical school via Opinio, an online survey platform. Students were assessed on their interest and understanding of cardiology practice using a 5-point Likert Scale. Descriptive statistics and Chi-Square analysis were applied to assess the relationship between previous elective experience, medical student interest, and understanding of career-related factors pertaining to cardiology.
 Results: Overall, 26 (49.1%) students reported cardiology interest, while it was a preferred specialty for 9 (17.0%). Medical students reported low understanding of community practice (n=20, 37.7%), duration of patient relationships (n=14, 26.4%), spectrum of disorders (n=13, 24.5%), and in-patient care (n=11, 20.8%) associated with cardiology practice. Students with prior cardiology electives had increased understanding of in-patient care (χ2 = 4.688, Cramer’s V = 0.297, p = 0.030 and were more likely to select cardiology as a top specialty choice (χ2 = 7.983, Cramer’s V = 0.388, p = 0.005).
 Conclusions: Pre-clerkship medical students have a low understanding of cardiology practice. Increasing pre-clerkship exposure to cardiology may help students determine their interest in the specialty before clerkship selectives are chosen.

Does Organization Inclusion Matter in Expatriate Mission Accomplishment?

The main goal of the study is to explore if organisational inclusion features prominently in the expatriation policies of companies in emerging markets. In this study, the expatriation policies of three Taiwanese financial services institutions were examined to establish the presence or lack of organisational inclusion and its effect on expatriate mission accomplishment. In-depth interviews with the expatriates and faceto-face focus group discussions with senior HR managers at their headquarters in Taipei were employed to collect data from financial services institutions. The findings revealed that organisational inclusion is low, but the organizations are considering a more inclusive approach in future. Among the factors that emphasize the need for more organisational inclusion expatriation are cultural competence, social norms adjustment, positive mindset, professional skills and career-related factors. The study contributes to knowledge on how the financial services industry in emerging economies in the Chinese context view organisational inclusion in their expatriation policies. It further provides an insight of the necessity to embrace organisational inclusion in the expatriation policies to enhance expatriate mission accomplishment.

Does Learning, Development and Work-Life Balance Affect Happiness? A Moderated Mediatory Model

Happiness is a major issue faced by today’s workforce. The Big Challenge is to find what job-related factors caused happiness, even bigger challenge is to know how they cause it. We proposed a theoretical framework based on Joshanloo and Jarden's (2016) work explaining hedonism as a major cause of happiness moderated by individualism. We further extended the model, including career-related goals that effect hedonism. Hence we theorized that work-life balance, career development, learning affect hedonism, which subsequently affects happiness. Moreover, more individualistic (vs. collectivist) societies hedonism (tend to value pleasure) is more closely linked with happiness. Empirical validity was established by conducting a survey using a close-ended questionnaire. Data was collected from 219 respondents from different organizations of Pakistan and analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis and structured equation modeling. The results suggested that all three career-related factors negatively and significantly affect hedonism. Subsequently, hedonism negatively affects happiness. Individualism has a positive role in happiness directly, as well as directly, is it negatively complements the inverse effect of Hedonism on Happiness. Finding implies career-related factors decrease hedonism that would, in turn, bring more happiness. Most importantly, seeking pleasure doesn’t bring happiness. This study will benefit organizations working in Pakistan as they can estimate what to value for their employee for their happiness.

Job Tenure, International Work Experience, and the Acceptance of Corruption

In the past, management studies have paid insufficient attention to the relationship between professionals’ career-related backgrounds and their corrupt business practices Therefore, the aim of this paper is to gain deeper insights into career-related factors shaping professionals’ tendency to condone corruption. Specifically, we focus on two central career-related factors: job tenure and international work experience. Based on a survey of 184 professionals – employed and self-employed – we find an inverted u-shaped relationship between job tenure and the likelihood of condoning corruption meaning that in the middle of their career professionals show the highest tendency to condone corrupt behavior. Moreover, we find an almost J-shaped relationship between international work experience and the acceptance of corruption. This indicates that professionals who spent most of their business lives abroad, are the most likely to condone corruption. Based on these findings, we discuss theoretical explanations and implications for research and practice.

Decent Work’s Association With Job Satisfaction, Work Engagement, and Withdrawal Intentions in Australian Working Adults

The present research is focused on the measurement properties of the Decent Work Scale (DWS) in Australia and adds to the cumulative evidence of the measure’s international utility for psychological research into the role of work in people’s lives. The study contributes new evidence via a survey of a sample of workers ( N = 201) who completed the DWS and criterion measures of career-related factors including job satisfaction, work engagement, and withdrawal intentions. Correlated factors, higher order, and bifactor models were tested using confirmatory factor analysis. All models were satisfactory and the bifactor model evinced preferable fit. The DWS Values Congruence subscale predicted all criterion measures. Workers’ incomes and ratings of their occupations’ prestige had no main effects or interaction effect on the DWS subscales. Recommendations for future research include testing the DWS’s relations with measures of mental health which are known correlates of career-related outcomes.

Does Learning, Development and Work Life Balance Affects Happiness: A Moderated Mediatory Model

Keeping the workforce happy is a major issue faced by today’s employers. The big challenge is to find what job-related factors can lead to happiness, the bigger challenge is to identify the sources that lead to happiness. We proposed a theoretical framework based on the research of (Joshanloo & Jarden, 2016) which studied hedonism as a major cause of happiness when moderated by individualism. We further extended the model, including career related goals that effect hedonism. Hence, we theorized that, work life balance, career development, learning affect hedonism, which subsequently effects happiness. Moreover, individualistic societies are proven to be more hedonistic (tend to value pleasure) and are more closely linked with happiness as compared to collectivist societies. Empirical validity was established by conducting a survey using a close ended questionnaire. Data was collected from 219 respondents from different organizations of Pakistan and was analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis and structured equation modeling to test the hypotheses testing the impact of all three career related factors to see how significantly they affect hedonism, which would ultimately have an impact on happiness. Results indicate that Individualism plays a significant positive role on happiness, as well as in directly, is it negatively complements the inverse effect of Hedonism on Happiness. Findings imply that the career related factors positively affect hedonism that would in turn bring more happiness. Most importantly, seeking pleasure is necessary to bring happiness. This study will benefit organizations working in Pakistan to identify the valuable sources of keeping their employees happy.

Career interests of undergraduate nursing students: A ten-year longitudinal study

An understanding of students' career interests at entry and exit from undergraduate nursing programmes could inform decisions regarding curricula and clinical placements. Since 2006, the University of Auckland has surveyed healthcare students at entry to and exit from their respective programmes, collecting information on a range of demographic, and career-related factors. This article describes career interests of over 500 undergraduate nursing students in New Zealand over a ten-year period. All Bachelor of Nursing cohorts commencing between 2006 and 2016 were invited to complete a questionnaire which included questions about their career interests. In total 1875 questionnaires were completed (89% response rate). Among the overall cohort at entry, there was strongest interest for emergency care and child health, and least interest in older person's health. At exit, child health and surgery (general) were of strongest interest to the cohort, while older person's health remained of least interest. The analysis of the paired data (n = 564) identified decreases in interest for mental health and child health over the course of the programme, while there was an increased interest in primary health care. Changes in career interests indicate that education and clinical exposure to specialty areas during the programme may influence career interests.

계획된 행동이론(TPB)에 따른 대학생 졸업 예측 척도 타당화와 대학생 졸업 예측 변인과 진로 변인과의 관계

본 연구는 대학생의 대학 졸업을 예측하기 위해 계획된 행동이론(Theory of Planned Behavior)에 따라 개발된 TPB 졸업 척도를 국내에서 타당화하고자 하였으며, 졸업의도 점수를 기준으로 한 TPB 졸업 척도의 잠정적 절단점(tentative cutoff score)을 확인하고자 하였다. 또한, TPB 졸업 척도의 하위요인인 태도, 주관적 규범, 지각된 행동 통제가 진로 관련 변인과 어떤 관계인지를 변인중심접근 및 사람중심접근으로 살펴보고자 했다. 즉, 변인중심접근으로는 구조방정식을 사용하여 TPB 졸업 척도의 세 하위변인에 대한 학업중단 요인과 진로결정자기효능감의 영향을 살펴보았으며, 사람중심접근으로 진로정체감 지위에 따른 잠재집단을 분석한 후, 각 잠재집단별 TPB 졸업 척도의 점수에 차이가 있는지를 살펴보았다. 본 연구를 위하여 경남, 충남, 전남 지역의 대학생 531명의 자료를 사용하였다. 분석 방법으로는 척도 타당화를 위한 확인적 요인분석(CFA)과 상관분석, 절단점 산출을 위한 ROC분석, 그리고 구조방정식과 잠재프로파일분석(LPA), 일변량분산분석(ANOVA)을 사용하였다. 연구결과, TPB 졸업 척도는 부정문항의 방법효과로 인한 문제점을 안고 있었으나 척도의 구조 및 요인과 문항 간 관계가 양호하였으며, 졸업의도 척도 평균점을 중심으로 한 잠정적 절단점은 12.44점임을 확인할 수 있었다. 또한, 진로결정자기효능감은 학업적 효능감과 함께 지각된 행동 통제에 유의한 영향을 주고 있음을 확인하였다. 그리고 진로정체감 지위 척도(VISA-K)의 잠재프로파일분석 결과 선행연구와 동일한 6개의 잠재집단을 확인하였으며, 잠재집단 간에 TPB 졸업 척도 점수에 유의한 차이가 있음을 확인하였다. 즉, 진로정체감 지위가 성취인 집단으로 갈수록 미분화나 혼미 등인 집단보다 TPB 졸업 척도 점수가 유의하게 높아지는 것을 확인하였다. 끝으로 본 연구결과를 바탕으로 한 논의와 시사점 및 연구의 제한점을 논하였다.

Predicting the research performance of early career scientists

This paper examines how early career-related factors can predict the future research performance of computer and information scientists. Although a few bibliometric studies have previously investigated multiple factors relating to early career scientists that significantly predict their future research performance, there have been limited studies on early career-related factors affecting scientists in the fields of information science and computer science. This study analyzes 4102 scientists whose publishing careers started in the same year. The criteria used to quantify future research performance of the target scientists included the number of publications and citation counts of publications in a 4-year citation window to indicate future research productivity and research impact, respectively. These criteria were regressed on 13 early career-related factors. The results showed that these factors accounted for about 27% and 23% of the future productivity of the target scientists in terms of journal articles and conference papers, respectively; these 13 factors were also responsible for 19% of the future impact of target scientists’ journal articles and 19% of the future impact of their conference papers. The factor that most contributed to explaining the future research performance (i.e. publication numbers) and future research impact (i.e. citation counts of publications) was the number of publications (both journal articles and conference papers) produced by the target scientists in their early career years.

항공서비스학과 재학생의 사회적 지지가 진로결정 자기효능감과 진로준비행동에 미치는 영향

The purpose of this study is to enrich career guidance for current aviation service major undergraduate students who will be the future driving force of the aviation industry. The study aims to seek out social and institutional support that can effectively promote career preparation and self-efficacious career decision for undergraduates as well as to establish educational and practical guidelines and resource for future career guidance. Drawing on previous literature on the four variables of social support, selfefficacious career decision, career preparatory behavior and the career deciding stage, this research constructed a research model based on a survey targeting undergraduates studying aviation service. The survey and analysis resulted partial confirmation of the first hypothesis, which predicted the positive impact of social support on self-efficacious career decision. The second hypothesis on the positive impact of social support on career preparation and the third hypothesis on the impact of self-efficacious career decision on career preparatory were both partially confirmed. There is a gap in research addressing career-related factors and social support of undergraduates studying a specific major. As undergraduates advance into industries, it is critical to survey and measure the impact of career-related variables on the individual and social level so that industries can reasonably respond and provide support to the upcoming labor force.