A Study on Factors Enhancing Perceived Employability Among Students in Yunnan, China
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14456/au-ejir.2025.25Keywords:
Perceived Employability, Career Self-management, Proactive Personality, Self-efficacy, Career AdaptabilityAbstract
Purpose: This study aims to explore the impact of four independent variables—career self-management, proactive personality, self-efficacy, and career adaptability—on a dependent variable, perceived employability. Additionally, this study seeks to identify significant differences among these variables. Research design, data and methodology: The research employed the Index of Item-Objective Congruence (IOC) to assess validity and Cronbach's Alpha in a pilot test (n=30) to evaluate reliability. A multiple linear regression analysis was conducted on 128 valid questionnaires from students at Yunnan Vocational College of Agriculture to examine significant relationships between variables. Subsequently, a 14-week strategic plan (SP) was implemented for 30 students. Afterward, the quantitative results from current-SP and expected-SP were compared and analyzed using a paired sample t-test. Results: Multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that career self-management, proactive personality, self-efficacy, and career adaptability significantly influence students' perceived employability. The results of paired-sample t-tests indicated significant differences between the current-SP and expected-SP stages in career self-management, proactive personality, self-efficacy, career adaptability, and perceived employability. Conclusions: The objective of this study is to enhance students' career development and school employment rates by fostering students' career self-management, proactive personality, self-efficacy, and career adaptability. This approach is expected to enhance perceived employability.
References
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191-215. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.84.2.191
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W.H. Freeman.
Bateman, T. S., & Crant, J. M. (1993). The proactive component of organizational behavior: A measure and correlates. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 14(2), 103-118. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.4030140202
Cao, K., & Dai, J. (2016). A longitudinal study on the mechanism of proactive personality affecting college students' job-seeking behavior. Exploration in Psychology, 36(4), 349-364. https://doi.org/10.3969/j.issn.1003-5184.2016.04.011
Chen, G., Gully, S. M., & Eden, D. (2001). Validation of a new general self-efficacy scale. Organizational Research Methods, 4(1), 62-83. https://doi.org/10.1177/109442810141004
Cronbach, L. J. (1951). Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests. Psychometrika, 16(3), 297-334. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02310555
Fugate, M., Kinicki, A. J., & Ashforth, B. E. (2004). Employability: A psycho-social construct, its dimensions, and applications. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 65(1), 14-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2003.10.005
Hair, J. F., Anderson, R. E., Tatham, R. L., & Black, W. C. (1995). Multivariate data analysis (4th ed.). Prentice-Hall.
Hillage, J., & Pollard, E. (1998). Employability: Developing a framework for policy analysis. Department for Education and Employment.
Jackson, D., & Wilton, N. (2017). Perceived employability among undergraduates and the importance of career self-management, work experience and individual characteristics. Higher Education Research & Development, 36(4), 747-762.
https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2016.1229270
Kim, S., Kim, H., & Lee, J. (2015). Employee self-concepts, voluntary learning behavior, and perceived employability. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 30(3), 264-279. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMP-01-2012-0030
Liu, J. (2013). Career self-management of newly employed staff. Enterprise Management, 6, 113-115. https://doi.org/10.3969/j.issn.1003-2320.2013.06.051
López-Miguens, M. J., Caballero, G., & Álvarez-González, P. (2021). Responsibility of the university in employability: Development and validation of a measurement scale across five studies. Business Ethics, the Environment & Responsibility, 30(1), 143-156. https://doi.org/10.1111/beer.12311
Ma, Y., & Bennett, D. (2021). The relationship between higher education students' perceived employability, academic engagement and stress among students in China. Education + Training, 63(5), 744-762. https://doi.org/10.1108/ET-12-2020-0362
Monteiro, S., Ferreira, J. A., & Almeida, L. S. (2020). Self-perceived competency and self-perceived employability in higher education: The mediating role of career adaptability. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 44(3), 408-422. https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877X.2018.1542669
Ngo, H. Y., Liu, H., & Cheung, F. (2017). Perceived employability of Hong Kong employees: Its antecedents, moderator, and outcomes. Personnel Review, 46(1), 17-35. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-05-2015-0133
Rahma, A., Priyatama, A. N., & Kusumawati, R. N. (2023). Career adaptability dan self perceived employability pada mahasiswa magang. Jurnal Psikologi Perseptual, 8(1), 49-59.
Rothwell, A., Herbert, I., & Rothwell, F. (2008). Self-perceived employability: Construction and initial validation of a scale for university students. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 73(1), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2007.12.001
Rothwell, A., Jewell, S., & Hardie, M. (2009). Self-perceived employability: Investigating the responses of post-graduate students. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 75(2), 152-161. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2009.05.002
Rottinghaus, P. J., Day, S. X., & Borgen, F. H. (2005). The Career Futures Inventory: A measure of career-related adaptability and optimism. Journal of Career Assessment, 13(1), 3-24. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072704270271
Santos, G. G., Ferreira, A. P., & Pinho, J. C. (2019). Career attitudes and employability: Analysis of mediation via career strategies. Employee Relations, 42(2), 417-436. https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-03-2019-0178
Wang, A. G., & Cheng, L. K. Y. (2022). The impact of college students' proactive personality on career choice anxiety: The chain mediating role of career choice self-efficacy and job search clarity. Heilongjiang Research on Higher Education, (7), 132-137.
Wang, J., Lim, X. J., & Ng, S. I. (2024). Why can’t I get a job? Exploring the drivers of perceived employability among fine art graduates. Current Psychology, 43(4), 3002-3020. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-02723-4
Yan, J., & Su, H. (2023). Intervention research on improving the employability of vocational college students from the perspective of positive personality theory. Educational Observation, 32, 44-47. https://doi.org/10.16070/j.cnki.cn45-1388/g4s.2023.32.020
Yang, C., & Zeng, L. (2015). The impact of career self-cognition on job-seeking behavior of post-90s college students. Occupation Time and Space, 1, 85-88.
Yang, S. (2013). On college students' career decision-making self-efficacy and its cultivation. Education and Occupation, 15, 111-113. https://doi.org/10.13615/j.cnki.1004-3985.2013.15.052
Ye, B., Zheng, Q., Liu, L., & Fang, X. (2016). The impact of career exploration on college students' job-seeking behavior: The mediating role of job-seeking self-efficacy and the moderating role of emotional regulation. Psychological Development and Education, 6, 691-697. https://doi.org/10.16187/j.cnki.issn1001-4918.2016.06.07
Zhao, X. (2021). Research on the career management issues of health supervision personnel [Master’s thesis]. Xinxiang Medical University. https://kns.cnki.net/KCMS/detail/detail.aspx?dbname=CMFD202201&filename=1021699251.nh
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Xiaochun Ke
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
A separate Copyright Form will be sent to authors whose paper is accepted for publication.
