Description
Write a 2- to 3-page critique of the article. In your critique, include responses to the following:
- Why did the authors use this t test?
- Do you think it’s the most appropriate choice? Why or why not?
- Did the authors display the data?
- Do the results stand alone? Why or why not?
- Paper must be written in past tense and with no opinions must be facts and cited by scholar peer reviewed article.
- I attached the paper for the quantitative article that you should use to write the paper.
South African Journal of Education, Volume 37, Number 4, November 2017
1
Art. # 1520, 11 pages, https://doi.org/10.15700/saje.v37n4a1520
The relationship between career decision-making self-efficacy and vocational outcome
expectations of preservice special education teachers
Basak Baglama
Department of Special Education, Atatürk Education Faculty, Near East University, North Cyprus, Mersin 10 Turkey
basak.baglama@neu.edu.tr
Huseyin Uzunboylu
Department of Educational Sciences, Atatürk Education Faculty, Near East University, North Cyprus, Mersin 10 Turkey
Social cognitive career theory, which is one of the most studied career approaches, recently proposed that self-efficacy and
outcome expectations are important determinants of the career choice process. Career self-efficacy and vocational outcome
expectations might both result in avoiding or having greater motivation levels in terms of career behaviours. These two
factors are both crucial in career decision-making and performing career behaviour. This study aims to examine the
relationship between career decision self-efficacy and vocational outcome expectations of preservice special education
teachers in North Cyprus. This study is based on quantitative research method, and 156 preservice special education teachers
participated in this research. Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale and Vocational Outcome Expectations Scale were used to
collect the data. The results were analysed with statistical analysis methods involving descriptive statistical analysis, t-test,
chi-square, Kruskal-Wallis, correlation and regression. Age was found to be significantly related with career decisionmaking self-efficacy. Results also showed that there is a significant relationship between career decision-making selfefficacy, and vocational outcome expectancy. The results are discussed with reference to relevant literature and
recommendations for further research and practices are also provided.
Keywords: career choice; career decision-making; preservice special education teachers; self-efficacy; vocational outcome
expectations
Introduction
Career development is a fundamental aspect of human development, and it is considered an especially important
dimension of psychosocial development (Eryılmaz & Mutlu, 2017; Yazici, 2009). “Career” as a term refers to a
combination and synthesis of work roles an individual experiences during their lifespan (Super, 1980). A career
choice involves the start of a specific job or working activity, whereas career development involves all the
activities that take place during the course of a career (Baruch, Szucs & Gunz, 2015). Career development is
regarded as a life-long process. A career is generally defined as a developmental process, which involves all an
individual’s roles before commencing with a profession, during the course of a profession, and after retirement
from a profession (Kuzgun, 2000).
There are many factors that play a crucial role in individuals’ career decision and outcome expectations
(Li, Hazler & Trusty, 2017). Career decision-making self-efficacy and vocational outcome expectations are two
of these factors. Self-efficacy beliefs involve psychological processes, which play an important role in acquiring
or changing behaviours. These processes are also effective in personal competence expectancies (Bandura,
1986). Personal competence expectancy deals with beliefs of fulfilling a specific behaviour and achieving
outcomes. Self-efficacy beliefs might be related to both past experiences, as well as expectancies for academic
achievement in the future. Individuals with higher levels of self-efficacy beliefs tend to determine reliable aims
and feel confident in being able to fulfil these aims. On the other hand, low self-efficacy beliefs might prevent a
person from performing a task, while high self-efficacy beliefs might trigger a person to perform a career task
(Komarraju & Nadler, 2013).
Many career theories have been proposed to understand the career development process and the career
behaviours of individuals. Especially after the 1980s, the use of cognitive approaches in understanding career
behaviours has increased. These cognitive approaches emphasise individuals’ active roles in their career
development (Özden, 2014). One of the recent cognitive approaches used for career behaviours is the Social
Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT). SCCT was firstly proposed by Lent, Brown and Hackett (1994) to understand
career behaviours and developmental processes from a cognitive perspective. Lent et al. (1994) suggested a
social cognitive framework to understand three aspects of career development, which included the development
of career interests, selection of career options, and performance and permanence in educational and occupational
work. This theory is based on the General Social Cognitive Theory proposed by Bandura (1986), which
emphasises the complex interaction between people, behaviour and environment. According to Bandura’s
theory, the SCCT focuses on human agency, as the capacities of individuals have from shaping their own career
behaviour. In addition, this theory emphasises three individual variables, which are important in career
development, namely self-efficacy beliefs, outcome expectations, and personal goals. SCCT argues that
performance goals are considerably affected by individuals’ self-efficacy beliefs and outcome expectations. On
the other hand, there is an interactive relationship between self-efficacy and outcome expectations. It is stated
that focusing on goals in an effective manner might strengthen self-efficacy beliefs and outcome expectations in
2
Baglama, Uzunboylu
a positive cycle (Lent, 2005). According to the
literature, self-efficacy and outcome expectation
concepts are generally addressed as career decision
self-efficacy and vocational outcome expectation
concepts, in studies based on SCCT in the area of
career development (Gore & Leuwerke, 2000;
Gushue, 2006; Lent, Ireland, Penn, Morris &
Sappington, 2017; Sarı & Şahin, 2013).
In understanding career development from the
perspective of SCCT, career decision self-efficacy
is regarded as a crucial element in an individual’s
career interests, goals, choices, experiences and
performances (Jo, Ra, Lee & Kim, 2016). Career
decision is defined as making a choice for a
profession, education programme, job or school
(Doğan, 2014). Therefore, career decision selfefficacy refers to the confidence enacted when
making effective career decisions and generating
positive outcomes in relation to career development
roles. These roles include competencies regarding
accurate self-evaluation, collecting information
about vocations, goal setting, planning and problem-solving (Betz, 2000). It is known that when
teachers feel competent in these aspects, they are
more likely to develop positive attitudes towards
their careers (Ozcan & Genc, 2016; Uzunboylu,
Hürsen, Özütürk & Demirok, 2015).
Furthermore, the vocational outcome expectancy concept is defined as beliefs regarding
long-term outcomes of an achievement (Betz &
Voyten, 1997). In other words, vocational outcome
expectancies denote individuals’ expectancies
related to the outcomes of their career choices. Işik
(2013) stated that vocational outcome expectancy
might be regarded as someone’s beliefs regarding
the possibilities of experiencing primary vocational
values such as income, status, productivity and
prestige. Some sample sentences of vocational
outcome expectancies include: “the vocation that I
choose will provide the income which I need”, and
“the vocation that I choose will support me to lead
the life which I want to live.” Therefore, career
decision self-efficacy and vocational outcome
expectations are important components of career
development, choice and decision-making with
regards to the SCCT.
The university years are an important developmental period, in which many changes are
experienced in academic, social, personal, and
occupational areas (Newman & Newman, 2017).
Kuzgun (2000) has stated that university students
experience a transition period in which they
encounter making decisions, and they have future
vocational outcome expectations. During their high
school years, students experience the challenge of
career decision-making, and there are many factors
that affect their choice. Studies carried out in
different countries imply that the challenge of
career decision-making is a common issue of many
different cultures. There are studies carried out in
different regions around the world that include
students from Turkey (Kondakci, 2011), North
Cyprus (Caliskan & Ozcan, 2017), as well as
French and Korean students (Sovet & Metz, 2014).
For instance, Shumba and Naong (2012) examined
factors affecting the career choice of students in
South Africa and showed that family and teacher
factors play an important role in students’ career
decisions.
Preservice special education teacher refers to
undergraduate students of a four-year Bachelor
Degree Programme of special education. In North
Cyprus, there is a growing labour trend in the area
of special education, because of the increasing
prevalence of individuals with special needs in the
general population, and the need for qualified
special education teachers. Preservice special
education teachers need to have necessary skills for
their profession. Special education teachers are
required to be patient, empathetic, and have vocational competence (Allahverdiyev & Yucesoy,
2017; Ozcan & Gur, 2016). From the perspective of
SCCT, career decision-making self-efficacies and
vocational outcome expectations are important for
a successful future career among special education
teachers. The aim of this study is to examine the
relationship between career decision self-efficacy
and vocational outcome expectations of preservice
special education teachers. When the literature is
examined, it is evident that the number of studies
examining this relationship among preservice special education teachers is limited. In other words,
there is a gap in this field, especially in North
Cyprus. The results of the study from North Cyprus
would provide important implications for career
counselling interventions in the world, by revealing
the relationship between career decision-making
self-efficacy and vocational outcome expectations.
In this regard, this study is important to contribute
to related fields in terms of research and practices
such as career education and counselling, as
fundamental concepts to career development (Enache & Matei, 2017). It is expected that this study
would contribute to career education and counselling, in terms of connecting theory and practice
in the field of career counselling. Since career
decision-making self-efficacy and vocational
outcome expectations are important factors for a
successful professional life, it is important to
understand the importance of these factors to develop and support students in their career decisions.
Based on this general objective, this study aimed to
answer the following questions:
•
•
Do career decision-making self-efficacy beliefs of
preservice special education teachers differ based on
age, gender, department, class and socioeconomic
status?
Do vocational outcome expectations of preservice
special education teachers differ based on age,
gender, department, class and socioeconomic status?
South African Journal of Education, Volume 37, Number 4, November 2017
•
•
Is there a significant relationship between career
decision-making self-efficacy and vocational
outcome expectations of preservice special education teachers?
Are career decision-making self-efficacy beliefs of
preservice special education teachers significant
predictors of their vocational outcome expectations?
Method
In this study, which aimed to examine the relationship between career decision-making selfefficacy and vocational outcome expectations of
preservice special education teachers, a survey model was used as a descriptive method. The survey
3
model is a research method that aims to reveal and
describe a specific situation (Karasar, 2006).
Participants
The sample included 156 volunteer preservice
special education teachers studying in Teaching
Individuals with Mental Retardation Department
and Teaching Individuals with Hearing Impairment
Department from Faculty of Education at a university in North Cyprus. Participants were selected
based on a simple random sampling method and the
demographic characteristics of the participants are
shown in Table 1.
Table 1 Demographic characteristics of the participants
Demographic characteristics
Age
Gender
Department
Class
Socioeconomic Status
18–22
23 and above
Total
Male
Female
Total
Teaching individuals with mental retardation
Teaching the hearing impaired
Total
First year
Second year
Third year
Fourth year
Total
Low
Middle
High
Total
Table 1 shows that 96 (61.5%) of the
participants were between the ages of 18 and 22, 60
of whom (38.5%) were 23 and above. In addition to
this, 89 (57.1%) of the participants were male, and
67 (42.9%) were female. A majority of the participants (64.1%) were studying in the Department of
Teaching Individuals with Mental Retardation. Six
of the participants (3.8%) were first year students,
67 (42.9%) were second year students, 59 (37.8%)
were third year students, and 24 (15.4%) were
fourth year students. Almost 80% of the participants indicated that their families have a middleclass socioeconomic status.
Instruments
A demographic information form, Career Decision
Self-Efficacy Scale and Vocational Outcome
Expectation Scale were used to collect the data of
the study. The demographic information form included questions about age, gender, department,
class and socioeconomic status of participants.
The Career-Decision Self-Efficacy Scale is an
instrument developed for assessing the career
decision self-efficacy construct. The original version of the scale was developed by Taylor and Betz
(1983) and adapted into Turkish by Akin, Saricam
and Kaya (2014). It was found that the Cronbach
f
96
60
156
89
67
156
100
56
156
6
67
59
24
156
6
124
26
156
%
61.5
38.5
100
57.1
42.9
100
64.1
35.9
100
3.8
42.9
37.8
15.4
100
3.8
79.5
16.7
100
Alpha internal consistency coefficient of the scale
was .84. Akin et al. (2014) found the scale to have
high validity and reliability. Thus, adequate
psychometric properties were established in order
to measure career decision-making self-efficacy
expectations of individuals. The scale includes 18
statements, where each item is rated on a five-point
scale ranging from “I don’t feel confident” (1), “I
feel slightly confident” (2), “I feel moderately
confident” (3), “I feel relatively confident” (4), “I
feel extremely confident” (5). “Making career decision and not feeling anxious whether the decision
is correct or incorrect”, “Determining the most
appropriate career for myself” and “Identifying the
important steps for achieving my career decision”
are some examples of the statements in the scale.
The Vocational Outcome Expectation Scale
was developed by McWhirter, Crothers and
Rasheed (2000) and adapted into Turkish by Işik
(2013). The scale measures vocational outcome
expectations and includes 12 statements, where
“my career plan will lead me to a satisfactory
conclusion”, and “I will be successful in the
career/profession that I choose”, serve as two
sample statements from the scale. Each item is
rated on a four-point scale ranging from “totally
agree” (4), “agree” (3), “disagree” (2) to “totally
4
Baglama, Uzunboylu
disagree” (1). “My future will be good”, “My
family will approve my career decision” and “I will
have a career that the society would respect” are
some examples of the statements in the scale.
Higher score means higher levels of expectation
with regards to vocational outcome. McWhirter et
al. (2000) showed that test-retest reliability of the
scale was .59, and that the Cronbach’s Alpha
internal consistency coefficient was .83. Işik (2013)
determined that test-retest reliability of Turkish
version was .79 and Cronbach’s Alpha internal
consistency coefficient was .87 indicating high
reliability and validity.
administered to the students during the lecture
hours. Students who were enrolled in Teaching
Individuals with Mental Retardation Department
and Teaching Individuals with Hearing Impairment
Department from the Faculty of Education at a
university in North Cyprus were eligible to
participate in this study. Participants took approx.imately 15 minutes to complete the questionnaires.
Data Analysis
Data of the study were analysed using SPSS 20
programme. Significance level was considered as p
< .05 in statistical analyses. Percentages, frequencies, t-tests, chi-squares, and Kruskal-Wallis
tests, correlation and regression analyses were used
in data analysis.
Procedure
After having approval from the ethical committee
of Faculty of Education for scientific research, a
consent form was prepared by the researchers. The
consent form provided an overview of the research
for the participants and indicated that participation
in the research was voluntary. The survey was
Results
Results obtained from the study were in line with
the general aim and sub-aims and are provided in
this section.
Descriptive Statistics on the Measures of Career Decision Making Self-Efficacy and Vocational Outcome
Expectancy Levels of Preservice Special Education Teachers
Table 2 Mean and standard deviations of career decision-making self-efficacy and vocational outcome
expectancy levels of preservice special education teachers
Variable
Career decision-making self-efficacy
Vocational outcome expectancy
N
156
156
Minimum
1
1
Maximum
5
4
Results of descriptive statistics on total scores
of career decision self-efficacy and vocational
outcome expectancy levels are shown in Table 2.
According to the table, mean and standard de-
M
3.58
3.38
SD
.69
.59
viation results of career decision self-efficacy
levels are (X̄ = 3.58, SD = .69) and mean and
standard deviation results of vocational outcome
expectancy levels are (X̄ = 3.38, SD = .59).
T-test Results of Career Decision Making Self-Efficacy Levels of Preservice Special Education Teachers Based
on Age, Gender and Department Variables
Table 3 Career decision making self-efficacy levels of preservice special education teachers based on age,
gender and department variables
Variable
Age
Gender
Department
18–22
23 and above
Male
Female
Teaching individuals with mental retardation
Teaching the hearing impaired
n
96
60
87
69
100
56
S
.70
.61
.67
.71
.66
.74
SD
t
p
154
-3.2
.002
154
1.03
.307
154
-.545
.587
Note. p < .05.
Table 3 shows detailed information about ttest results of career decision making self-efficacy
levels of pre-service special education teachers,
based on age, gender and department variables. As
can be seen from Table 3, career decision-making
self-efficacy levels of preservice special education
teachers show significant difference based on age (t
(156) = -3.2, p < .05). In other words, age of preservice special education teachers significantly
affects their career decision-making self-efficacy
levels.
South African Journal of Education, Volume 37, Number 4, November 2017
According to the results, career decisionmaking self-efficacy levels of pre-service special
education teachers do not show significant differences based on their gender (t (156) = 1.03, p <
.05). In addition, it was revealed that career
5
decision-making self-efficacy levels of preservice
special education teachers do not show significant
differences based on their Department (t (156) = .545, p < .05).
Kruskal-Wallis Test Results of Career Decision Making Self-Efficacy Levels of Preservice Special Education
Teachers Based on Class Level and Socioeconomic Level Variables
Table 4 Career decision self-efficacy levels of preservice special education teachers based on class level and
socioeconomic status variables
Variable
Class level
Socioeconomic level
1
2
3
4
Low
Middle
High
n
6
67
59
24
6
124
26
Mean rank
76.50
72.84
77.47
97.35
68.25
80.70
70.37
Chi-square
5.282
p
.152
1.448
.485
Note. p < .05.
When there are categories in which adequate
frequency cannot be obtained, the non-parametric
Kruskal-Wallis test is used to show whether there
are differences between categories. In the data
analysis, it was revealed that both class level and
socioeconomic level variables were not normally
distributed, therefore, the Kruskal Wallis test was
applied.
The Kruskal-Wallis test was applied to reveal
whether there was a significant difference between
class levels and socioeconomic levels of preservice
special education teachers and their career
decision-making self-efficacy levels. Table 4
demonstrates the results of Kruskal-Wallis test.
According to Table 4, it is seen that both class level
and socioeconomic level variables show no
significant difference based on career decisionmaking self-efficacy levels of preservice special
education teachers.
T-Test Results of Vocational Outcome Expectancy Levels of Preservice Special Education Teachers Based on
Age, Gender and Department Variables
Table 5 Vocational outcome expectancy levels of preservice special education teachers based on age, gender
and department variables
Variable
Age
Gender
Department
18–22
23 and above
Male
Female
Teaching individuals with mental retardation
Teaching the hearing impaired
n
96
60
87
69
100
56
S
.64
.51
.62
.57
.61
.53
SD
t
p
154
-3.47
.716
154
1.02
.308
154
.08
.081
Note. p < .05.
Table 5 provides detailed information about ttest results of vocational outcome expectancy levels
of preservice special education teachers based on
age, gender and department variables. As can be
seen from Table 5, vocational outcome expectancy
levels of preservice special education teachers do
not show any significant difference based on age (t
(156) = -3.47, p < .05), gender (t (156) = 1.02, p <
.05) and department (t (156) = .08, p < .05)
variables. In other words, age, gender and department of preservice special education teachers
do not significantly affect their vocational outcome
expectancy levels.
6
Baglama, Uzunboylu
Kruskal-Wallis Test Results of Vocational Outcome Expectancy Levels of Preservice Special Education Teachers
Based on Class Level and Socioeconomic Level Variables
Table 6 Vocational outcome expectancy levels of preservice special education teachers based on class level and
socioeconomic level variables
Variable
Class level
Socioeconomic level
n
6
67
59
24
6
124
26
1
2
3
4
Low
Middle
High
Mean rank
95.67
75.24
81.37
76.25
86.08
79.72
70.92
Chi-square
1.524
p
.677
.998
.607
Note. p < .05.
Both class level and socioeconomic level
variables were not normally distributed. Therefore
the Kruskal-Wallis test was applied to determine
whether there are differences between class level
and socioeconomic level categories of preservice
special education teachers and their vocational
outcome expectancy levels. In Table 6 above, the
results of Kruskal-Wallis test are provided.
According to Table 6, it is evident that both class
level and socioeconomic level variables do not
show any significant differences in vocational
outcome expectancy levels of preservice special
education teachers.
Correlational Analysis Results of the Relationship Between Career Decision Self-Efficacy Levels and Vocational
Outcome Expectancy Levels of Pre-service Special Education Teachers
Table 7 Relationship between career decision self-efficacy levels and vocational outcome expectancy levels of
pre-service special education teachers
Vocational outcome expectancy
Note. p < .05.
Career decision-making self-efficacy
r = .59
Pearson correlation analysis was applied in
order to reveal whether there was a relationship
between career decision self-efficacy and vocational outcome expectancy levels of preservice
special education teachers as well as strength and
direction of the relationship. Assumptions of the
analysis were met because the effect size was
calculated as .935. When Table 7 is examined, it is
evident that there was a significant and positive
N
156
relationship between career decision self-efficacy
and vocational outcome expectancy levels of
preservice special education teachers at a moderate
level (r = .59; p < .05). In other words, it can be
said that when career decision self-efficacy
increases, vocational outcome expectancy levels of
preservice special education teachers also increase
in a positive direction.
Regression Analysis Results of the Predictor Value of Career Decision Self-Efficacy for Vocational Outcome
Expectancy Levels of Preservice Special Education Teachers
Table 8 Linear regression analysis of career decision self-efficacy for vocational outcome expectancy levels of
pre-service special education teachers
Variables
Constant
Career decision self-efficacy
R = .585
Note. p < .05.
B
1.581
.503
R2 = .342
SE
.205
.056
β
.585
Regression analysis is used for determining
the relationship between two or more variables to
make estimations and predictions using this
relationship. In this study, linear regression analysis
was applied to determine how career-decision selfefficacy levels of preservice special education
teachers affect their vocational outcome expectancy
levels. Table 8 shows the regression analysis
results. As it can be seen from the table, career
t
7.715
8.948
p
.000
.000
Pair
Partial
.585
.585
decision-making self-efficacy can significantly
explain vocational outcome expectancy levels of
preservice special education teachers (R = .585, R2
= .342, p > .05).
Discussion
The aim of this study was to examine the
relationship between career decision-making selfefficacy and vocational outcome expectations of
South African Journal of Education, Volume 37, Number 4, November 2017
preservice special education teachers and to
determine whether these variables show difference
based on demographic variables of the participants.
When the literature is examined, it is evident
that there are various studies focusing on different
aspects of career decision-making self-efficacy.
Studies have focused on the relationship between
career decision-making self-efficacy, career salience, locus of control and vocational indecision
(Taylor & Popma, 1990); career-decision-making
self-efficacy as a predictive factor for career
decision-making attitudes and skills (Luzzo, 1993)
and the relationship between career decision
making self-efficacy and career commitment
among college students (Chung, 2002). In addition,
research has also examined the relationship
between perceived family interaction patterns,
vocational identity, and career decision-making
self-efficacy (Hargrove, Creagh & Burgess, 2002).
Furthermore, studies have explored career choice
and career decision-making self-efficacy (Gianakos, 1999) and the relationship between career
decision-making self-efficacy, vocational identity
and career exploration behaviour in AfricanAmerican high school students (Gushue, Scanlan,
Pantzer & Clarke, 2006). Moreover, the role of
thinking styles in career decision-making selfefficacy among university students has also come
under scrutiny (Fan, 2016).
According to the results obtained here, there
is a significant relationship between age and career
decision-making self-efficacy levels of teacher
candidates. In other words, preservice teachers with
higher ages had higher levels of career decisionmaking self-efficacy. However, the number of
studies examining the relationship between age and
career decision making self-efficacy levels is
limited. It is expected that this result will provide a
new perspective for this field of study in terms of
theory and practice. In parallel with the results of
the present study, Guan, Capezio, Restubog, Read,
Lajom and Li (2016) found that age as a
demographic variable influences career aspirations
of university students enrolled in a national
university in South China. Similarly, Bacanli
(2012) showed age to be an important factor, which
affects career decision-making self-efficacies of
university students in Turkey.
Gender was another demographic variable
examined in this study. There are many studies
with contradictory findings, which examine the role
of gender on career decision-making self-efficacy.
Gianakos (2001) has indicated that females
reported higher scores than their male counterparts
on career decision-making self-efficacy. Choi,
Park, Yang, Lee, Lee and Lee (2012) revealed that
gender roles are determinant factors for career
decision-making self-efficacy. In contrast, Eaton,
Watson, Foxcroft and Patton (2004) examined
career decision-making self-efficacy among South
7
African high school students, and no gender
differences were found. This result is reflected in
the findings of the present study, indicating that
career decision-making self-efficacy levels of preservice special education teachers does not show
significant difference, based on their gender.
Furthermore, special education teaching departments of preservice teachers was another demographic variable examined, with no differences
found between students from Teaching Individuals
with Mental Retardation and Teaching Individuals
with Hearing Impairment. According to the
literature, it was seen that the number of studies
examining the relationship between special education teaching departments, career-decision selfefficacy and vocational outcome expectancy are
limited. It is worth noting that special education
teaching departments are generally not handled as a
demographic factor in other available studies.
Vocational outcome expectancy was the
second main variable examined in the present
study. Ferry, Fouad and Smith (2000) stated that
age and gender are significant determinants of
career-related choice behaviour. In the present
study, all the demographic variables, namely age,
gender, department, class level and socio-economic
status were not found to be related with vocational
outcome expectancy levels of preservice special
education teachers. Similarly, Gushue (2006) found
that outcome expectations do not show significant
differences based on gender. In parallel with these
results, Buldur and Bursal (2015) showed that
gender and socio-economic status of preservice
science teachers were not statistically significant in
terms of predicting their future career expectations.
Akman (1992) investigated the relationship
between class levels of faculty of education
students and their vocational outcome expectations.
No significant differences between first and fourth
year students in terms of their vocational outcome
expectations were observed.
The primary objective of this study was to
examine the relationship between career decisionmaking self-efficacy and vocational outcome
expectancy, and whether self-efficacy has a
predictive value on vocational outcome expectancy among preservice special education
teachers from the Faculty of Education. Results
showed a positive and moderate level of correlation
between these two variables. Career decisionmaking self-efficacy has a predictive value on
vocational outcome expectancies. Woo, Lu,
Henfield and Bang (2017) found a similar result,
showing that vocational self-efficacy beliefs
significantly predict vocational outcome expectations.
The results of the current study showed that
career decision-making self-efficacy is a significant
predictor of vocational outcome expectancy levels
of preservice special education teachers. When
8
Baglama, Uzunboylu
preservice special education teachers feel that they
are competent in making career decisions, they
would expect that they will be successful in their
professional life. Therefore, it can be inferred that
career counselling interventions need to promote
career decision-making self-efficacy to increase
vocational outcome expectancy of high school
students who are planning to study specialised
education at university. Various studies discuss
career development, career decision-making selfefficacy and outcome expectations carried out with
university students. Yerin Güneri, Owen, Tanrikulu, Dolunay Cuğ and Büyükgöze Kavas (2016)
examined career development needs among Faculty
of Education students in Turkey. Gender and class
levels of students did not reveal a difference when
it came to their career development needs. Taylor
and Popma (1990) investigated the relationship
between career decision-making self-efficacy,
career salience, locus of control, and vocational
indecision among university students, determining
that only career decision-making self-efficacy was
significantly related to vocational indecision.
Faculty of Education student
1
Art. # 1520, 11 pages, https://doi.org/10.15700/saje.v37n4a1520
The relationship between career decision-making self-efficacy and vocational outcome
expectations of preservice special education teachers
Basak Baglama
Department of Special Education, Atatürk Education Faculty, Near East University, North Cyprus, Mersin 10 Turkey
basak.baglama@neu.edu.tr
Huseyin Uzunboylu
Department of Educational Sciences, Atatürk Education Faculty, Near East University, North Cyprus, Mersin 10 Turkey
Social cognitive career theory, which is one of the most studied career approaches, recently proposed that self-efficacy and
outcome expectations are important determinants of the career choice process. Career self-efficacy and vocational outcome
expectations might both result in avoiding or having greater motivation levels in terms of career behaviours. These two
factors are both crucial in career decision-making and performing career behaviour. This study aims to examine the
relationship between career decision self-efficacy and vocational outcome expectations of preservice special education
teachers in North Cyprus. This study is based on quantitative research method, and 156 preservice special education teachers
participated in this research. Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale and Vocational Outcome Expectations Scale were used to
collect the data. The results were analysed with statistical analysis methods involving descriptive statistical analysis, t-test,
chi-square, Kruskal-Wallis, correlation and regression. Age was found to be significantly related with career decisionmaking self-efficacy. Results also showed that there is a significant relationship between career decision-making selfefficacy, and vocational outcome expectancy. The results are discussed with reference to relevant literature and
recommendations for further research and practices are also provided.
Keywords: career choice; career decision-making; preservice special education teachers; self-efficacy; vocational outcome
expectations
Introduction
Career development is a fundamental aspect of human development, and it is considered an especially important
dimension of psychosocial development (Eryılmaz & Mutlu, 2017; Yazici, 2009). “Career” as a term refers to a
combination and synthesis of work roles an individual experiences during their lifespan (Super, 1980). A career
choice involves the start of a specific job or working activity, whereas career development involves all the
activities that take place during the course of a career (Baruch, Szucs & Gunz, 2015). Career development is
regarded as a life-long process. A career is generally defined as a developmental process, which involves all an
individual’s roles before commencing with a profession, during the course of a profession, and after retirement
from a profession (Kuzgun, 2000).
There are many factors that play a crucial role in individuals’ career decision and outcome expectations
(Li, Hazler & Trusty, 2017). Career decision-making self-efficacy and vocational outcome expectations are two
of these factors. Self-efficacy beliefs involve psychological processes, which play an important role in acquiring
or changing behaviours. These processes are also effective in personal competence expectancies (Bandura,
1986). Personal competence expectancy deals with beliefs of fulfilling a specific behaviour and achieving
outcomes. Self-efficacy beliefs might be related to both past experiences, as well as expectancies for academic
achievement in the future. Individuals with higher levels of self-efficacy beliefs tend to determine reliable aims
and feel confident in being able to fulfil these aims. On the other hand, low self-efficacy beliefs might prevent a
person from performing a task, while high self-efficacy beliefs might trigger a person to perform a career task
(Komarraju & Nadler, 2013).
Many career theories have been proposed to understand the career development process and the career
behaviours of individuals. Especially after the 1980s, the use of cognitive approaches in understanding career
behaviours has increased. These cognitive approaches emphasise individuals’ active roles in their career
development (Özden, 2014). One of the recent cognitive approaches used for career behaviours is the Social
Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT). SCCT was firstly proposed by Lent, Brown and Hackett (1994) to understand
career behaviours and developmental processes from a cognitive perspective. Lent et al. (1994) suggested a
social cognitive framework to understand three aspects of career development, which included the development
of career interests, selection of career options, and performance and permanence in educational and occupational
work. This theory is based on the General Social Cognitive Theory proposed by Bandura (1986), which
emphasises the complex interaction between people, behaviour and environment. According to Bandura’s
theory, the SCCT focuses on human agency, as the capacities of individuals have from shaping their own career
behaviour. In addition, this theory emphasises three individual variables, which are important in career
development, namely self-efficacy beliefs, outcome expectations, and personal goals. SCCT argues that
performance goals are considerably affected by individuals’ self-efficacy beliefs and outcome expectations. On
the other hand, there is an interactive relationship between self-efficacy and outcome expectations. It is stated
that focusing on goals in an effective manner might strengthen self-efficacy beliefs and outcome expectations in
2
Baglama, Uzunboylu
a positive cycle (Lent, 2005). According to the
literature, self-efficacy and outcome expectation
concepts are generally addressed as career decision
self-efficacy and vocational outcome expectation
concepts, in studies based on SCCT in the area of
career development (Gore & Leuwerke, 2000;
Gushue, 2006; Lent, Ireland, Penn, Morris &
Sappington, 2017; Sarı & Şahin, 2013).
In understanding career development from the
perspective of SCCT, career decision self-efficacy
is regarded as a crucial element in an individual’s
career interests, goals, choices, experiences and
performances (Jo, Ra, Lee & Kim, 2016). Career
decision is defined as making a choice for a
profession, education programme, job or school
(Doğan, 2014). Therefore, career decision selfefficacy refers to the confidence enacted when
making effective career decisions and generating
positive outcomes in relation to career development
roles. These roles include competencies regarding
accurate self-evaluation, collecting information
about vocations, goal setting, planning and problem-solving (Betz, 2000). It is known that when
teachers feel competent in these aspects, they are
more likely to develop positive attitudes towards
their careers (Ozcan & Genc, 2016; Uzunboylu,
Hürsen, Özütürk & Demirok, 2015).
Furthermore, the vocational outcome expectancy concept is defined as beliefs regarding
long-term outcomes of an achievement (Betz &
Voyten, 1997). In other words, vocational outcome
expectancies denote individuals’ expectancies
related to the outcomes of their career choices. Işik
(2013) stated that vocational outcome expectancy
might be regarded as someone’s beliefs regarding
the possibilities of experiencing primary vocational
values such as income, status, productivity and
prestige. Some sample sentences of vocational
outcome expectancies include: “the vocation that I
choose will provide the income which I need”, and
“the vocation that I choose will support me to lead
the life which I want to live.” Therefore, career
decision self-efficacy and vocational outcome
expectations are important components of career
development, choice and decision-making with
regards to the SCCT.
The university years are an important developmental period, in which many changes are
experienced in academic, social, personal, and
occupational areas (Newman & Newman, 2017).
Kuzgun (2000) has stated that university students
experience a transition period in which they
encounter making decisions, and they have future
vocational outcome expectations. During their high
school years, students experience the challenge of
career decision-making, and there are many factors
that affect their choice. Studies carried out in
different countries imply that the challenge of
career decision-making is a common issue of many
different cultures. There are studies carried out in
different regions around the world that include
students from Turkey (Kondakci, 2011), North
Cyprus (Caliskan & Ozcan, 2017), as well as
French and Korean students (Sovet & Metz, 2014).
For instance, Shumba and Naong (2012) examined
factors affecting the career choice of students in
South Africa and showed that family and teacher
factors play an important role in students’ career
decisions.
Preservice special education teacher refers to
undergraduate students of a four-year Bachelor
Degree Programme of special education. In North
Cyprus, there is a growing labour trend in the area
of special education, because of the increasing
prevalence of individuals with special needs in the
general population, and the need for qualified
special education teachers. Preservice special
education teachers need to have necessary skills for
their profession. Special education teachers are
required to be patient, empathetic, and have vocational competence (Allahverdiyev & Yucesoy,
2017; Ozcan & Gur, 2016). From the perspective of
SCCT, career decision-making self-efficacies and
vocational outcome expectations are important for
a successful future career among special education
teachers. The aim of this study is to examine the
relationship between career decision self-efficacy
and vocational outcome expectations of preservice
special education teachers. When the literature is
examined, it is evident that the number of studies
examining this relationship among preservice special education teachers is limited. In other words,
there is a gap in this field, especially in North
Cyprus. The results of the study from North Cyprus
would provide important implications for career
counselling interventions in the world, by revealing
the relationship between career decision-making
self-efficacy and vocational outcome expectations.
In this regard, this study is important to contribute
to related fields in terms of research and practices
such as career education and counselling, as
fundamental concepts to career development (Enache & Matei, 2017). It is expected that this study
would contribute to career education and counselling, in terms of connecting theory and practice
in the field of career counselling. Since career
decision-making self-efficacy and vocational
outcome expectations are important factors for a
successful professional life, it is important to
understand the importance of these factors to develop and support students in their career decisions.
Based on this general objective, this study aimed to
answer the following questions:
•
•
Do career decision-making self-efficacy beliefs of
preservice special education teachers differ based on
age, gender, department, class and socioeconomic
status?
Do vocational outcome expectations of preservice
special education teachers differ based on age,
gender, department, class and socioeconomic status?
South African Journal of Education, Volume 37, Number 4, November 2017
•
•
Is there a significant relationship between career
decision-making self-efficacy and vocational
outcome expectations of preservice special education teachers?
Are career decision-making self-efficacy beliefs of
preservice special education teachers significant
predictors of their vocational outcome expectations?
Method
In this study, which aimed to examine the relationship between career decision-making selfefficacy and vocational outcome expectations of
preservice special education teachers, a survey model was used as a descriptive method. The survey
3
model is a research method that aims to reveal and
describe a specific situation (Karasar, 2006).
Participants
The sample included 156 volunteer preservice
special education teachers studying in Teaching
Individuals with Mental Retardation Department
and Teaching Individuals with Hearing Impairment
Department from Faculty of Education at a university in North Cyprus. Participants were selected
based on a simple random sampling method and the
demographic characteristics of the participants are
shown in Table 1.
Table 1 Demographic characteristics of the participants
Demographic characteristics
Age
Gender
Department
Class
Socioeconomic Status
18–22
23 and above
Total
Male
Female
Total
Teaching individuals with mental retardation
Teaching the hearing impaired
Total
First year
Second year
Third year
Fourth year
Total
Low
Middle
High
Total
Table 1 shows that 96 (61.5%) of the
participants were between the ages of 18 and 22, 60
of whom (38.5%) were 23 and above. In addition to
this, 89 (57.1%) of the participants were male, and
67 (42.9%) were female. A majority of the participants (64.1%) were studying in the Department of
Teaching Individuals with Mental Retardation. Six
of the participants (3.8%) were first year students,
67 (42.9%) were second year students, 59 (37.8%)
were third year students, and 24 (15.4%) were
fourth year students. Almost 80% of the participants indicated that their families have a middleclass socioeconomic status.
Instruments
A demographic information form, Career Decision
Self-Efficacy Scale and Vocational Outcome
Expectation Scale were used to collect the data of
the study. The demographic information form included questions about age, gender, department,
class and socioeconomic status of participants.
The Career-Decision Self-Efficacy Scale is an
instrument developed for assessing the career
decision self-efficacy construct. The original version of the scale was developed by Taylor and Betz
(1983) and adapted into Turkish by Akin, Saricam
and Kaya (2014). It was found that the Cronbach
f
96
60
156
89
67
156
100
56
156
6
67
59
24
156
6
124
26
156
%
61.5
38.5
100
57.1
42.9
100
64.1
35.9
100
3.8
42.9
37.8
15.4
100
3.8
79.5
16.7
100
Alpha internal consistency coefficient of the scale
was .84. Akin et al. (2014) found the scale to have
high validity and reliability. Thus, adequate
psychometric properties were established in order
to measure career decision-making self-efficacy
expectations of individuals. The scale includes 18
statements, where each item is rated on a five-point
scale ranging from “I don’t feel confident” (1), “I
feel slightly confident” (2), “I feel moderately
confident” (3), “I feel relatively confident” (4), “I
feel extremely confident” (5). “Making career decision and not feeling anxious whether the decision
is correct or incorrect”, “Determining the most
appropriate career for myself” and “Identifying the
important steps for achieving my career decision”
are some examples of the statements in the scale.
The Vocational Outcome Expectation Scale
was developed by McWhirter, Crothers and
Rasheed (2000) and adapted into Turkish by Işik
(2013). The scale measures vocational outcome
expectations and includes 12 statements, where
“my career plan will lead me to a satisfactory
conclusion”, and “I will be successful in the
career/profession that I choose”, serve as two
sample statements from the scale. Each item is
rated on a four-point scale ranging from “totally
agree” (4), “agree” (3), “disagree” (2) to “totally
4
Baglama, Uzunboylu
disagree” (1). “My future will be good”, “My
family will approve my career decision” and “I will
have a career that the society would respect” are
some examples of the statements in the scale.
Higher score means higher levels of expectation
with regards to vocational outcome. McWhirter et
al. (2000) showed that test-retest reliability of the
scale was .59, and that the Cronbach’s Alpha
internal consistency coefficient was .83. Işik (2013)
determined that test-retest reliability of Turkish
version was .79 and Cronbach’s Alpha internal
consistency coefficient was .87 indicating high
reliability and validity.
administered to the students during the lecture
hours. Students who were enrolled in Teaching
Individuals with Mental Retardation Department
and Teaching Individuals with Hearing Impairment
Department from the Faculty of Education at a
university in North Cyprus were eligible to
participate in this study. Participants took approx.imately 15 minutes to complete the questionnaires.
Data Analysis
Data of the study were analysed using SPSS 20
programme. Significance level was considered as p
< .05 in statistical analyses. Percentages, frequencies, t-tests, chi-squares, and Kruskal-Wallis
tests, correlation and regression analyses were used
in data analysis.
Procedure
After having approval from the ethical committee
of Faculty of Education for scientific research, a
consent form was prepared by the researchers. The
consent form provided an overview of the research
for the participants and indicated that participation
in the research was voluntary. The survey was
Results
Results obtained from the study were in line with
the general aim and sub-aims and are provided in
this section.
Descriptive Statistics on the Measures of Career Decision Making Self-Efficacy and Vocational Outcome
Expectancy Levels of Preservice Special Education Teachers
Table 2 Mean and standard deviations of career decision-making self-efficacy and vocational outcome
expectancy levels of preservice special education teachers
Variable
Career decision-making self-efficacy
Vocational outcome expectancy
N
156
156
Minimum
1
1
Maximum
5
4
Results of descriptive statistics on total scores
of career decision self-efficacy and vocational
outcome expectancy levels are shown in Table 2.
According to the table, mean and standard de-
M
3.58
3.38
SD
.69
.59
viation results of career decision self-efficacy
levels are (X̄ = 3.58, SD = .69) and mean and
standard deviation results of vocational outcome
expectancy levels are (X̄ = 3.38, SD = .59).
T-test Results of Career Decision Making Self-Efficacy Levels of Preservice Special Education Teachers Based
on Age, Gender and Department Variables
Table 3 Career decision making self-efficacy levels of preservice special education teachers based on age,
gender and department variables
Variable
Age
Gender
Department
18–22
23 and above
Male
Female
Teaching individuals with mental retardation
Teaching the hearing impaired
n
96
60
87
69
100
56
S
.70
.61
.67
.71
.66
.74
SD
t
p
154
-3.2
.002
154
1.03
.307
154
-.545
.587
Note. p < .05.
Table 3 shows detailed information about ttest results of career decision making self-efficacy
levels of pre-service special education teachers,
based on age, gender and department variables. As
can be seen from Table 3, career decision-making
self-efficacy levels of preservice special education
teachers show significant difference based on age (t
(156) = -3.2, p < .05). In other words, age of preservice special education teachers significantly
affects their career decision-making self-efficacy
levels.
South African Journal of Education, Volume 37, Number 4, November 2017
According to the results, career decisionmaking self-efficacy levels of pre-service special
education teachers do not show significant differences based on their gender (t (156) = 1.03, p <
.05). In addition, it was revealed that career
5
decision-making self-efficacy levels of preservice
special education teachers do not show significant
differences based on their Department (t (156) = .545, p < .05).
Kruskal-Wallis Test Results of Career Decision Making Self-Efficacy Levels of Preservice Special Education
Teachers Based on Class Level and Socioeconomic Level Variables
Table 4 Career decision self-efficacy levels of preservice special education teachers based on class level and
socioeconomic status variables
Variable
Class level
Socioeconomic level
1
2
3
4
Low
Middle
High
n
6
67
59
24
6
124
26
Mean rank
76.50
72.84
77.47
97.35
68.25
80.70
70.37
Chi-square
5.282
p
.152
1.448
.485
Note. p < .05.
When there are categories in which adequate
frequency cannot be obtained, the non-parametric
Kruskal-Wallis test is used to show whether there
are differences between categories. In the data
analysis, it was revealed that both class level and
socioeconomic level variables were not normally
distributed, therefore, the Kruskal Wallis test was
applied.
The Kruskal-Wallis test was applied to reveal
whether there was a significant difference between
class levels and socioeconomic levels of preservice
special education teachers and their career
decision-making self-efficacy levels. Table 4
demonstrates the results of Kruskal-Wallis test.
According to Table 4, it is seen that both class level
and socioeconomic level variables show no
significant difference based on career decisionmaking self-efficacy levels of preservice special
education teachers.
T-Test Results of Vocational Outcome Expectancy Levels of Preservice Special Education Teachers Based on
Age, Gender and Department Variables
Table 5 Vocational outcome expectancy levels of preservice special education teachers based on age, gender
and department variables
Variable
Age
Gender
Department
18–22
23 and above
Male
Female
Teaching individuals with mental retardation
Teaching the hearing impaired
n
96
60
87
69
100
56
S
.64
.51
.62
.57
.61
.53
SD
t
p
154
-3.47
.716
154
1.02
.308
154
.08
.081
Note. p < .05.
Table 5 provides detailed information about ttest results of vocational outcome expectancy levels
of preservice special education teachers based on
age, gender and department variables. As can be
seen from Table 5, vocational outcome expectancy
levels of preservice special education teachers do
not show any significant difference based on age (t
(156) = -3.47, p < .05), gender (t (156) = 1.02, p <
.05) and department (t (156) = .08, p < .05)
variables. In other words, age, gender and department of preservice special education teachers
do not significantly affect their vocational outcome
expectancy levels.
6
Baglama, Uzunboylu
Kruskal-Wallis Test Results of Vocational Outcome Expectancy Levels of Preservice Special Education Teachers
Based on Class Level and Socioeconomic Level Variables
Table 6 Vocational outcome expectancy levels of preservice special education teachers based on class level and
socioeconomic level variables
Variable
Class level
Socioeconomic level
n
6
67
59
24
6
124
26
1
2
3
4
Low
Middle
High
Mean rank
95.67
75.24
81.37
76.25
86.08
79.72
70.92
Chi-square
1.524
p
.677
.998
.607
Note. p < .05.
Both class level and socioeconomic level
variables were not normally distributed. Therefore
the Kruskal-Wallis test was applied to determine
whether there are differences between class level
and socioeconomic level categories of preservice
special education teachers and their vocational
outcome expectancy levels. In Table 6 above, the
results of Kruskal-Wallis test are provided.
According to Table 6, it is evident that both class
level and socioeconomic level variables do not
show any significant differences in vocational
outcome expectancy levels of preservice special
education teachers.
Correlational Analysis Results of the Relationship Between Career Decision Self-Efficacy Levels and Vocational
Outcome Expectancy Levels of Pre-service Special Education Teachers
Table 7 Relationship between career decision self-efficacy levels and vocational outcome expectancy levels of
pre-service special education teachers
Vocational outcome expectancy
Note. p < .05.
Career decision-making self-efficacy
r = .59
Pearson correlation analysis was applied in
order to reveal whether there was a relationship
between career decision self-efficacy and vocational outcome expectancy levels of preservice
special education teachers as well as strength and
direction of the relationship. Assumptions of the
analysis were met because the effect size was
calculated as .935. When Table 7 is examined, it is
evident that there was a significant and positive
N
156
relationship between career decision self-efficacy
and vocational outcome expectancy levels of
preservice special education teachers at a moderate
level (r = .59; p < .05). In other words, it can be
said that when career decision self-efficacy
increases, vocational outcome expectancy levels of
preservice special education teachers also increase
in a positive direction.
Regression Analysis Results of the Predictor Value of Career Decision Self-Efficacy for Vocational Outcome
Expectancy Levels of Preservice Special Education Teachers
Table 8 Linear regression analysis of career decision self-efficacy for vocational outcome expectancy levels of
pre-service special education teachers
Variables
Constant
Career decision self-efficacy
R = .585
Note. p < .05.
B
1.581
.503
R2 = .342
SE
.205
.056
β
.585
Regression analysis is used for determining
the relationship between two or more variables to
make estimations and predictions using this
relationship. In this study, linear regression analysis
was applied to determine how career-decision selfefficacy levels of preservice special education
teachers affect their vocational outcome expectancy
levels. Table 8 shows the regression analysis
results. As it can be seen from the table, career
t
7.715
8.948
p
.000
.000
Pair
Partial
.585
.585
decision-making self-efficacy can significantly
explain vocational outcome expectancy levels of
preservice special education teachers (R = .585, R2
= .342, p > .05).
Discussion
The aim of this study was to examine the
relationship between career decision-making selfefficacy and vocational outcome expectations of
South African Journal of Education, Volume 37, Number 4, November 2017
preservice special education teachers and to
determine whether these variables show difference
based on demographic variables of the participants.
When the literature is examined, it is evident
that there are various studies focusing on different
aspects of career decision-making self-efficacy.
Studies have focused on the relationship between
career decision-making self-efficacy, career salience, locus of control and vocational indecision
(Taylor & Popma, 1990); career-decision-making
self-efficacy as a predictive factor for career
decision-making attitudes and skills (Luzzo, 1993)
and the relationship between career decision
making self-efficacy and career commitment
among college students (Chung, 2002). In addition,
research has also examined the relationship
between perceived family interaction patterns,
vocational identity, and career decision-making
self-efficacy (Hargrove, Creagh & Burgess, 2002).
Furthermore, studies have explored career choice
and career decision-making self-efficacy (Gianakos, 1999) and the relationship between career
decision-making self-efficacy, vocational identity
and career exploration behaviour in AfricanAmerican high school students (Gushue, Scanlan,
Pantzer & Clarke, 2006). Moreover, the role of
thinking styles in career decision-making selfefficacy among university students has also come
under scrutiny (Fan, 2016).
According to the results obtained here, there
is a significant relationship between age and career
decision-making self-efficacy levels of teacher
candidates. In other words, preservice teachers with
higher ages had higher levels of career decisionmaking self-efficacy. However, the number of
studies examining the relationship between age and
career decision making self-efficacy levels is
limited. It is expected that this result will provide a
new perspective for this field of study in terms of
theory and practice. In parallel with the results of
the present study, Guan, Capezio, Restubog, Read,
Lajom and Li (2016) found that age as a
demographic variable influences career aspirations
of university students enrolled in a national
university in South China. Similarly, Bacanli
(2012) showed age to be an important factor, which
affects career decision-making self-efficacies of
university students in Turkey.
Gender was another demographic variable
examined in this study. There are many studies
with contradictory findings, which examine the role
of gender on career decision-making self-efficacy.
Gianakos (2001) has indicated that females
reported higher scores than their male counterparts
on career decision-making self-efficacy. Choi,
Park, Yang, Lee, Lee and Lee (2012) revealed that
gender roles are determinant factors for career
decision-making self-efficacy. In contrast, Eaton,
Watson, Foxcroft and Patton (2004) examined
career decision-making self-efficacy among South
7
African high school students, and no gender
differences were found. This result is reflected in
the findings of the present study, indicating that
career decision-making self-efficacy levels of preservice special education teachers does not show
significant difference, based on their gender.
Furthermore, special education teaching departments of preservice teachers was another demographic variable examined, with no differences
found between students from Teaching Individuals
with Mental Retardation and Teaching Individuals
with Hearing Impairment. According to the
literature, it was seen that the number of studies
examining the relationship between special education teaching departments, career-decision selfefficacy and vocational outcome expectancy are
limited. It is worth noting that special education
teaching departments are generally not handled as a
demographic factor in other available studies.
Vocational outcome expectancy was the
second main variable examined in the present
study. Ferry, Fouad and Smith (2000) stated that
age and gender are significant determinants of
career-related choice behaviour. In the present
study, all the demographic variables, namely age,
gender, department, class level and socio-economic
status were not found to be related with vocational
outcome expectancy levels of preservice special
education teachers. Similarly, Gushue (2006) found
that outcome expectations do not show significant
differences based on gender. In parallel with these
results, Buldur and Bursal (2015) showed that
gender and socio-economic status of preservice
science teachers were not statistically significant in
terms of predicting their future career expectations.
Akman (1992) investigated the relationship
between class levels of faculty of education
students and their vocational outcome expectations.
No significant differences between first and fourth
year students in terms of their vocational outcome
expectations were observed.
The primary objective of this study was to
examine the relationship between career decisionmaking self-efficacy and vocational outcome
expectancy, and whether self-efficacy has a
predictive value on vocational outcome expectancy among preservice special education
teachers from the Faculty of Education. Results
showed a positive and moderate level of correlation
between these two variables. Career decisionmaking self-efficacy has a predictive value on
vocational outcome expectancies. Woo, Lu,
Henfield and Bang (2017) found a similar result,
showing that vocational self-efficacy beliefs
significantly predict vocational outcome expectations.
The results of the current study showed that
career decision-making self-efficacy is a significant
predictor of vocational outcome expectancy levels
of preservice special education teachers. When
8
Baglama, Uzunboylu
preservice special education teachers feel that they
are competent in making career decisions, they
would expect that they will be successful in their
professional life. Therefore, it can be inferred that
career counselling interventions need to promote
career decision-making self-efficacy to increase
vocational outcome expectancy of high school
students who are planning to study specialised
education at university. Various studies discuss
career development, career decision-making selfefficacy and outcome expectations carried out with
university students. Yerin Güneri, Owen, Tanrikulu, Dolunay Cuğ and Büyükgöze Kavas (2016)
examined career development needs among Faculty
of Education students in Turkey. Gender and class
levels of students did not reveal a difference when
it came to their career development needs. Taylor
and Popma (1990) investigated the relationship
between career decision-making self-efficacy,
career salience, locus of control, and vocational
indecision among university students, determining
that only career decision-making self-efficacy was
significantly related to vocational indecision.
Faculty of Education student
Categories: