The purpose of this study was to identify the structural relationships among career decision-making, work-based learning, teacher career support, academic self-efficacy, and career outcome expectations of prospective graduates from specialized vocatio...
The purpose of this study was to identify the structural relationships among career decision-making, work-based learning, teacher career support, academic self-efficacy, and career outcome expectations of prospective graduates from specialized vocational high schools. Accordingly, the specific research objectives were established as follows. First, this study aimed to identify an appropriate structural relationship model among career decision-making, work-based learning, teacher career support, academic self-efficacy, and career outcome expectations of prospective graduates from specialized vocational high schools. Second, it sought to examine the direct effects among career decision-making, work-based learning, teacher career support, academic self-efficacy, and career outcome expectations. Third, it aimed to examine the mediating effects of academic self-efficacy and career outcome expectations on career decision-making.
The population of this study consisted of 52,188 prospective graduates from specialized vocational high schools nationwide as of April 2024. Considering the number of observed variables, population size, and analysis methods, the sample size was set at 650. Stratified proportional cluster sampling was employed. The population was stratified by school location and major field, after which 40 schools were randomly selected in proportion to each stratum, and samples were then extracted from the selected schools.
An online questionnaire was used as the research instrument. The questionnaire consisted of 78 items, including measurement tools for observed variables measuring each latent variable and items on respondents’ general characteristics. For career decision-making, items were extracted and reconstructed from appropriate measurement tools used in prior studies to measure the observed variables established by the researcher. Measurement tools for work-based learning, academic self-efficacy, and career outcome expectations were modified and supplemented based on prior studies to fit the research context. Teacher career support was measured using an existing instrument without modification. The measurement items were examined for content validity and face validity by experts and graduating vocational high school students, and reliability and validity were secured through first and second pilot tests.
Data were collected online from October 29 to November 9, 2025, resulting in a total of 644 responses. Among these, 496 responses were used for analysis after excluding inappropriate cases, careless responses, and statistical outliers. The distribution of graduating vocational high school students in the analyzed data was found to be similar to that of the population.
Data analysis was conducted using SPSS 23 for Windows, including box plots, reliability analysis (Cronbach’s α), exploratory factor analysis, descriptive statistics and correlation analysis by observed variables, Mahalanobis distance, multicollinearity diagnostics, common method bias testing, and one-way analysis of variance. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were conducted using Mplus 7. The level of statistical significance was set at .05.
The major findings of the study were as follows. First, statistically significant differences were found in the mean values of observed variables related to career decision-making according to gender, school location, major field, career decision status, career decision type, and work experience. Second, the structural relationship model established to identify the relationships among career decision-making, work-based learning, teacher career support, academic self-efficacy, and career outcome expectations showed good model fit (CFI=.966, TLI=.953, RMSEA=.080, SRMR=.032), confirming that it was appropriate for identifying relationships among the latent variables. Third, academic self-efficacy (β=.471), career outcome expectations (β= .354), and teacher career support (β=.144) were found to have direct effects on career decision-making in that order, whereas work-based learning did not have a direct effect. Fourth, work-based learning was found to have a positive effect on career decision-making through academic self-efficacy as a single mediator (β=.384), teacher career support had a positive effect on career decision-making through career outcome expectations as a single mediator (β=.114), and academic self-efficacy had a positive effect on career decision-making through career outcome expectations as a single mediator (β=.231). Fifth, work-based learning was found to have a positive effect on career decision-making through sequential double mediation in which academic self-efficacy influenced career outcome expectations (β=.189).
The major conclusions of this study are as follows. First, a structural relationship model among work-based learning, teacher career support, academic self-efficacy, career outcome expectations, and career decision-making of prospective graduates from specialized vocational high schools can be established. Based on this model, it can be predicted that work-based learning and teacher career support have significant effects on career decision-making through academic self-efficacy and career outcome expectations. Second, academic self-efficacy, career outcome expectations, and teacher career support were found to have direct positive effects on career decision-making in that order. This suggests that enhancing students’ beliefs in their academic performance abilities may be the most effective way to improve the level of career decision-making. Third, work-based learning and teacher career support influence career decision-making through different pathways. This indicates that learning experiences that cultivate job competencies required in industrial settings enhance beliefs in academic performance, whereas career support from teachers enhances positive career outcome expectations. Fourth, work-based learning influences career decision-making indirectly through academic self-efficacy and career outcome expectations rather than directly. This suggests that work-based learning contributes to career decision-making through an internalization process in which job competency development leads to a sense of achievement and positive expectations. Fifth, teacher career support has a positive effect on career decision-making not only directly but also indirectly through career outcome expectations, indicating that teacher career support functions as a psychological mechanism that fosters positive expectations for the future while providing career direction.
Based on the research findings and conclusions, practical implications for enhancing career decision-making among prospective graduates from specialized vocational high schools and suggestions for future research are as follows. As practical implications, first, it is necessary to restructure school learning environments to support the operation of field-centered curricula so that work-based learning can enhance students’ practical job performance competencies. Second, teachers in specialized vocational high schools need to strengthen their roles as career facilitators who help students explore and decide on their own career paths, while also developing professional expertise to respond sensitively to rapidly changing industrial trends. Third, education in specialized vocational high schools should be designed and implemented not only to provide direct and indirect experiences of industrial settings but also to enhance academic self-efficacy through students’ achievement experiences. Fourth, efforts should be made to create an integrated career education environment in which learning activities and career guidance are organically linked.
For future research, first, follow-up studies are needed to conduct more refined analyses of pathways that were not statistically significant in the structural relationship model. Second, to secure the external validity of the verified structural relationship model, it is necessary to expand the research population and apply the model to more diverse populations. Third, the scope of research should be expanded by extending factors influencing career decision-making from school-related variables to family and social environmental variables.