Emotional and personality-related aspects of persistent career decision-making difficulties

The contribution of prosody to machine classification of schizophrenia

We show how acoustic prosodic features, such as pitch and gaps, can be used computationally for detecting symptoms of schizophrenia from a single spoken response. We compare the individual contributions of acoustic and previously-employed text modalities to the algorithmic determination whether the speaker has schizophrenia. Our classification results clearly show that we can extract relevant acoustic features better than those textual ones. We find that, when combined with those acoustic features, textual features improve classification only slightly.

Profiles of Career Indecision: A Person-Centered Approach with Italian Late Adolescents

Choosing career paths in today's contemporary labor market complexity is becoming more and more challenging for adolescents and young people. Career indecision could take over, and assessing its facets could guide career interventions to support the career decision-making process. To create increasingly tailored career guidance interventions, using a person-centered approach, this study aimed to understand whether profiles of late adolescents based on their career decision-making difficulties might be circumscribed. A total of 776 Italian late adolescents took part in this study. The assessment of career decision-making difficulties was conducted through the Career Decision-Making Questionnaire (CDDQ). To determine the optimal number of profiles, a Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) using the stepwise approach was used. Moreover, a multinomial logistic regression was conducted to study whether school grade and sex predicted profile membership. LPA revealed a four-profile model: "Lower Indecision" (Profile 1, 39%), "High Indecision" (Profile 2, 23%), "Very High Indecision" (Profile 3, 7%) and "Moderate Indecision" (Profile 4, 31%). Being enrolled in the last year of high school significantly predicted belonging to Profile 2 and Profile 3. Practical implications were discussed in light of these findings.

The Relationship between Self-Esteem, Self-Efficacy, and Career Decision-Making Difficulties: Psychological Flourishing as a Mediator

Well-being associated with optimism, social support, and self-esteem is positively correlated with career decision. In this perspective, a rather recent concept of flourishing as an integrative notion incorporating these different resources, positive affect, and positive experience is particularly relevant to better understand the relations and correlations between self-evaluation, well-being, and career decision-making difficulties. The present study then examines the relationship between these possible difficulties, self-esteem, self-efficacy, and flourishing. One hundred and seventy-two higher education students participated in the study and completed a four-part questionnaire with the Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire, the Flourishing Scale, the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, and the General Self-Efficacy Scale. The results highlight the mediation of psychological flourishing between personality dimensions-self-esteem and self-efficacy-and career decision difficulties and the fact that those who are most flourishing in their lives will also have the least difficulty in making a career decision. As for the practical implications, guidance counselors for students and young adults need to identify resources and difficulties they have to cope with. This study emphasizes the importance of guiding students in three areas: self-esteem, the perceived quality of social relations, and the meaning attributed to one's existence. Finally, the contribution of positive psychology to career development will be discussed.

Do I decide my career? Linking career stress, career exploration, and future work self to career planning or indecision

Career planning and career decision are important tasks for college students. The process may be affected by career stress, career exploration, and future work self, with some students facing career indecision. Combining both construction career and proactive motivation model, this study investigated the relationships between career stress, career exploration, future work self, career planning and career indecision among 1,012 Chinese college students using the Structure equation model (SEM) to test the proposed mediation model. Results show that career stress negatively predicts career planning, while career exploration positively predicts career planning. The mediating role of future work self has on career stress and career exploration's effects on both career planning and career indecision was verified. Moreover, the study also found future work self's positive effects on both career planning and career indecision in Chinese college students. Finally, the study's theoretical and practical significance and implications are discussed.

Viewing the Joint Operation of Five Major Decision Difficulties Within the Dual-Process Theory of Career Decision-Making

While research has identified a five-factor model of career decision-making difficulty based on meta-analytical evidence and cross-cultural comparison, the field lacks an elaborated theoretical account of the joint operation of the five decision difficulties. The current study drew on the dual-process theory of career decision-making (DTC) to examine the interplay of the five decision difficulties in predicting career decidedness in the Chinese context. Study 1 developed and validated measures of decision ambiguity, advance in narrowing down, and career decidedness in a sample of Chinese college students ( n = 180). Study 2 examined the structural model using another sample of Chinese college students ( n = 408). Focusing on the relations of the five major decision difficulties to career decidedness, the results did not support the standalone mechanism of confusion management but supported the standalone mechanism of ambiguity management. Additionally, the results supported the crossover mechanism from confusion management to ambiguity management and the crossover mechanism from ambiguity management to confusion management. The results not only shed light on the role of each difficulty but also offer evidence for the interplay of key DTC macro elements. The practical implications based on the joint operation of the five decision-making difficulties are discussed.

The effect of family cohesion and adaptability on career choice self-efficacy of graduates: The mediating effect of State Anxiety

BACKGROUND:

As one of the most significant background factors affecting individuals’ growth and development, family environment has a specific and essential impact on individuals’ career choices.

OBJECTIVE:

To examine the effect of family cohesion and adaptability on career choice self-efficacy

METHOD:

This study was conducted with 584 graduates. Self-report questionnaires were used to collect data.

RESULTS:

The results showed that: (1) There is a significant positive correlation between family cohesion and adaptability; (2) State anxiety is significantly negatively correlated with career choice self-efficacy and family cohesion and adaptability; (3) State anxiety plays a completely mediating effect between family cohesion and career choice self-efficacy, and (4) State anxiety plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between family adaptability and career choice self-efficacy.

CONCLUSION:

The current study focused on the two aspects of family function and revealed the relationship between family cohesion and adaptability and career choice self-efficacy of graduates.

"Be perfect in every respect": the mediating role of career adaptability in the relationship between perfectionism and career decision-making difficulties of college students

BACKGROUND

Considering the weakening of the economy and the shrinkage of jobs under the current global epidemic crisis, the employment of college graduates is facing unprecedented and cruel competition. However, many college students lack a reasonable understanding and orientation of themselves, which leads to them having high expectations for future careers and not considering whether they are competent or not. Due to a lack of ability and self-confidence, they appear to be at a loss and hesitant when facing career choices. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between perfectionism, career adaptability and career decision-making difficulties from both positive and negative aspects.

METHODS

We sampled 400 college students in China and used a questionnaire to obtain cross-sectional data through the Perfectionism, Career Adaptability, and Career Decision Difficulties scales. This study explored the relationship between them using statistical analysis software such as SPSS and AMOS through the results of correlation analysis and mediating role analysis.

RESULTS

College students' perfectionism, career adaptability, and career decision-making difficulties were significantly correlated (p < 0.01). Positive perfectionism has a negative predictive effect on career decision-making difficulties, and career adaptability plays a completely mediating role in it (the direct effect is -0.032, the mediation effect is -0.244, and the total effect is -0.276.). Negative perfectionism plays a positive predictive role in career decision-making difficulties, and career adaptability plays a part in mediating roles (the direct effect is 0.334, the mediating effect is 0.099, and the total effect is 0.433.).

CONCLUSIONS

College students will more or less pursue "perfect", but often with their own preferences to pursue, cannot be done based on the rational analysis of things to pursue perfect. College students have higher positive perfectionism and negative perfectionism, and their career adaptability is also at a higher level, but there is a higher degree of career decision-making difficulties. Positive perfectionism of college students can reduce the difficulty of career decision-making, and career adaptability plays a completely mediating role in it. Negative perfectionism of college students will lead to difficulties in career decision-making, in which career adaptability plays a mediating role.

Assessment of Implicit Interests through an Unobtrusive Computer Task. Their Relations with Career Decision, Anxiety, and Personality Traits

Adolescence is a period where youngsters still do not know much about themselves. That makes some decisions, like those concerning vocational elections, a complicated issue that has important consequences for their life. The main goal of this piece of research is to measure implicit interests using a situated, unobtrusive computer tool (PrUnAs: Preferences Unobtrusive Assessment) as well as its connection with anxiety and personality traits: neuroticism, extraversion, self-efficacy, optimism, consciousness, and openness. Sample: 304 16-year-old adolescents enrolled in the last course of compulsory education. Instruments: Computer programs were used to measure implicit interests, career preferences, and to self-descript personality traits; finally, the paper-and-pencil test Stai was applied to measure anxiety. Results: Concordance between implicit interests and explicit choices was less than 50%. The software developed for assessing implicit interests not only proved to be an efficient tool to make them arise but also a good predictor of anxiety. Conclusions: Implicit interests and explicit elections are not the same. The approach from implicit preferences is an important shift in the approximation to vocational guiding and to reduce youngsters’ indecision level. Beyond vocational choice, this information may improve the short- and long-term quality of life and mental health.

Morphological characteristics of spoken language in schizophrenia patients - an exploratory study

Psychosis is diagnosed based on disruptions in the structure and use of language, including reduced syntactic complexity, derailment, and tangentiality. With the development of computational analysis, natural language processing (NLP) techniques are used in many areas of life to make evaluations and inferences regarding people's thoughts, feelings and behavior. The present study explores morphological characteristic of schizophrenia inpatients using NLP. Transcripts of recorded stories by 49 male subjects (24 inpatients diagnosed with schizophrenia and 25 controls) about 14 Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) pictures were morphologically analyzed. Relative to the control group, the schizophrenic inpatients employed: (1) a similar ratio of nouns, but fewer verbs, adjectives and adverbs; (2) a higher ratio of lemmas to token (LTR) and type to token (TTR); (3) a smaller gap between LTR and TTR; and (4) greater use of the first person. The results were cross-verified using three well-known fitting classifier algorithms (Random Forest, XGBoost and a support vector machine). Tests of prediction accuracy, precision and recall found correct attribution of patients to the schizophrenia group at a rate of between 80 and 90%. Overall, the results suggest that the language of schizophrenic inpatients is significantly different from that of healthy controls, being morphologically less complex, more associative and more focused on the self. The findings support NLP analysis as a complementary addition to the traditional clinical psychosis evaluation for schizophrenia.

For the Future Sustainable Career Development of College Students: Exploring the Impact of Core Self-Evaluation and Career Calling on Career Decision-Making Difficulty

As one of the important factors to predict future sustainable development, the difficulty of career decision-making has aroused widespread concern in psychological research. Core self-evaluation and career calling have a positive impact on college students’ career development, employees’ organizational behavior, life satisfaction, and life meaning, thus promoting individual sustainable development. Based on the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT), this study mainly discusses the positive role of core self-evaluation and career calling in overcoming college students’ career decision-making difficulties, which provides support for strengthening theory and proposing educational countermeasures. This study investigates the relationship among core self-evaluation, career calling, and career decision-making difficulties for 483 Chinese college students. The results show that core self-evaluation positively predicts career calling, while core self-evaluation and career calling negatively predict career decision-making difficulties. Accordingly, career calling plays a partial mediating role between core self-evaluation and career decision-making difficulties. Therefore, college students’ career calling can be enhanced by improving their core self-evaluation, so as to further solve the difficulties in career decision-making. In the future, effective strategies should be taken to reduce the career decision-making difficulty for students’ sustainable development.

“What Can I Be When I Grow Up?”—The Influence of Own and Others’ Career Expectations on Adolescents’ Perception of Stress in Their Career Orientation Phase

The future that adolescents are growing up to live and work in becomes increasingly complex and vague, making job choice a moving target. Thus, adolescents develop and are confronted with a number of different options for what job they wish to take up and have to balance their own and their social environment’s job aspirations for them. Prior research has suggested including more dynamic approaches to understanding career choice and counseling. In this research, we therefore draw on the possible selves approach and aim at understanding how far imbalance between adolescents’ own and their social environments’ expectations for their vocational future will cause stress. In an online mixed-methods study, 163 adolescent participants, aged 14–22, reported their own and their parents’, teachers’, and friends’ emotions, future orientation, and perceived stress regarding the career choice. Results showed a variety of expectations for future careers held by participants and their social environment, as well as emotions regarding these expectations. Positive deactivating emotions (satisfaction and relief) negatively predicted adolescents’ stress and strain and the older and closer to final job choice participants were, the more they reported stress and strain. These findings suggest including adolescents’ social environment in the career choice process.

Online career counseling success: the role of hardiness and psychological capital

Online career counseling is an important new horizon for vocational guidance. The present study investigates the role of online career counseling and of psychological capital and hardiness on career decision making. The research population included all Tehran students in 2019. After random selection, 30 students each were assigned into either the online counseling group or the control group. After online counseling, intervention students had higher scores than the control group on career decision-making. In the intervention group (but not the control group), students with higher hardiness and psychological capital had higher scores on career decision-making.

Future Time Perspective, Career Adaptability, Anxiety, and Career Decision-Making Difficulty: Exploring Mediations and Moderations

The current study investigates how future time perspective (FTP) is linked to career decision-making difficulty among 1,074 Chinese undergraduates. We specifically examined different components of FTP (valence and connectedness) as well as their interactions. The results confirmed the following: (1) Valence is positively associated with career decision-making difficulty, whereas connectedness is negatively associated with anxiety and career decision-making difficulty; (2) both career adaptability and anxiety significantly mediate the link from valence/connectedness to career decision-making difficulty, and the serial mediations of valence/connectedness–career adaptability–anxiety–decision-making difficulty are significant; and (3) connectedness moderates the association of valence with career adaptability and career decision-making difficulty but not its association with anxiety. The relationship between valence and career adaptability is higher at a lower level of connectedness, and the relationship between valence and decision-making difficulty is weaker at a higher level of connectedness. Implications for incorporating FTP into adaptability-based career intervention practices are discussed.

Does it Matter If I Am a Worrier? The Effect of Worry as a Moderator between Career Decision-Making Difficulties and Negative Dysfunctional Emotions

The association between career decision difficulties and negative emotions of adolescents has been researched; however, less is known about what moderates this relationship. Based on the transactional model of stress and cognitive theories, it was hypothesized that career decision-making difficulties in high school students are associated with psychological distress and this relationship will be moderated by worry. To test the hypothesis, 384 students from five public high schools in Romania (54% adolescent females, mean age 17.9 years) were assessed. Analyses indicated that career decision-making difficulties (lack of readiness, lack of information, inconsistent information) are associated with negative dysfunctional emotions, and this association is significantly moderated by worry. The results help us to better understand the circumstances in which career decision-making difficulties activate psychological distress.

The Validity of Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire in Croatia

The aim of this study was to develop and test the psychometric properties of the Croatian paper-and-pencil and Internet versions of the Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire (CDDQ). The CDDQ is based on the theoretical taxonomy of difficulties in career decision-making and comprises three major clusters of difficulties: Lack of readiness, lack of information, and inconsistent information that are further divided into 10 specific types of difficulties. The paper-and-pencil version and the Internet version were filled out by 451 and 568 high school students, respectively. Both versions of the Croatian CDDQ showed to be reliable and structurally equivalent measures. A hierarchical cluster analysis and confirmatory factor analysis generally supported the three-cluster classification system of career decision-making difficulties, with the exception of the Dysfunctional Beliefs Scale that was not significantly associated with any of the other scales. The associations between the CDDQ Scales on the one hand, and two measures of career maturity—Student Career Construction Inventory and Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy Scale—were moderate and negative and thus supported the concurrent validity of the CDDQ. The results suggest revising the dysfunctional beliefs subscale or using the CDDQ without this scale in counseling practice.

Dysfunctional Career Decision-Making Beliefs: A Multidimensional Model and Measure

Dysfunctional beliefs are among the most prevalent, severe difficulties many individuals face in the process of making career decisions. The goal of the present study was to develop and test a new multidimensional measure of Dysfunctional Career Decision-Making Beliefs ( DCB). The DCB questionnaire elicits individuals’ beliefs in five aspects of career decision-making: the role of chance or fate, the criticality of the decision, the role of significant others, the role of professional help, and perceived gender barriers. Study 1 used exploratory factor analysis and cluster analysis to test the psychometric properties and the five-factor structure of the DCB with a sample of 937 young adults deliberating about their future career. Study 2 used confirmatory factor analysis to validate the structure of the DCB with another sample of 1,251 young adults and analyzed the associations between individuals’ DCB Scale scores and career decision status to test its concurrent validity. The results supported the proposed multidimensional model of dysfunctional beliefs. Implications for future research and career counseling are discussed.

Paternal and maternal support and Taiwanese college students’ indecision: Gender differences

Regression analysis using 633 Taiwanese college students revealed that only maternal support had a significant predictive effect on the developmental indecision of male and female college students; furthermore, neither paternal nor maternal support had a significant predictive effect on the indecisiveness of male and female college students. For male college students, maternal tangible assistance predicted a lower level of developmental indecision due to the lack of information on decisions, whereas maternal information support predicted a higher level of developmental indecision due to the lack of information on decisions. For female college students, maternal emotional support predicted a lower level of developmental indecision arising from unreliable information.

The Mediation Effects of Career Exploration on the Relationship Between Trait Anxiety and Career Indecision

This study investigated trait anxiety, career exploration behaviors, and career indecision. Using longitudinal data, career exploration behavior was examined as a mediator in the relationship between trait anxiety and career indecision. Five hundred and one Korean college students completed online questionnaires at three different time points with a 6-month interval. Results showed significant mediation effects of career exploration behaviors. Specifically, a higher level of trait anxiety was associated with a lower level of initial career exploration, yet anxiety increased career exploration behaviors over time. Additionally, an increase in career exploration behaviors predicted a decrease in career indecision. The results suggest that the role of trait anxiety in career exploration and decision-making may change over time. While trait anxiety is related to less exploration and more difficulty in decision-making from a cross-sectional perspective, it may facilitate career exploration and, ultimately, career decision-making from a longitudinal perspective.

Attachment, Career-Choice Pessimism, and Intrinsic Motivation as Predictors of College Students’ Career Adaptability

The purpose of this study was to examine the cross-cultural validity of the effects of attachment, career-choice pessimism, and intrinsic motivation on career adaptability (CA) in American ( n = 198) and Korean ( n = 294) college students. We hypothesized that the association between attachment and CA is sequentially mediated by career-choice pessimism and intrinsic motivation in both samples, and the results supported the hypothesized multilevel model. These results have important implications for practice to promote CA for college students across cultures by providing evidence for cross-cultural validation of factors influencing on CA.

Strategies for Coping with Career Indecision

The goal of the present research was to test the convergent and divergent validity of the Strategies for Coping with Career Indecision (SCCI) model and questionnaire, which comprises three main coping styles— Productive coping, Support-seeking, and Nonproductive coping—using three samples of young adults deliberating about their career choice. Study 1 tested the association between the SCCI and career decision-making profiles, using a sample of 390 young adults. Study 2 tested the relations between the SCCI and emotional and personality-related career decision-making difficulties, using a sample of 454 young adults. Finally, Study 3 tested the associations between the SCCI and career decision self-efficacy as well as the five dimensions of the Big Five Inventory, using a sample of 451 young adults. All three studies also tested the SCCI’s incremental validity by assessing its ability to predict individuals’ stages in the career decision-making process over and above the other measures. The results supported the convergent and divergent validity and partially supported the incremental validity of the SCCI. The theoretical and counseling implications are discussed and suggestions for future research are presented.

The Role of Affect Spin in the Relationships between Proactive Personality, Career Indecision, and Career Maturity

This study attempted to investigate the influence of proactive personality on career indecision and career maturity, and to examine the moderating effects of affect spin. The author administered proactive personality, career indecision, and career maturity scales to 70 college students. Affect spin was calculated using the day reconstruction method, wherein participants evaluated their affective experiences by using 20 affective terms at the same time each day for 21 consecutive days. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that proactive personality significantly predicted career indecision and career maturity, even after controlling for valence and activation variability, neuroticism, age, and gender. Furthermore, affect spin moderated the associations of proactive personality with career indecision and maturity. The theoretical and practical implications of the moderating effects of affect spin are discussed.

Career Decision-Making Difficulties and Help-Seeking Among Israeli Young Adults

The present research focused on the various types of support young adults consider using when making career decisions and located factors that affect their intentions to seek help. Career decision-making difficulties (assessed by the Career Decision-making Difficulties Questionnaire), self-reported intentions to seek help, and career decision status were elicited from 300 young adults deliberating about their future career. The results show that participants’ intentions to seek help were positively correlated with their career decision-making difficulties and with their career decision status. The results also show discrepancies between the perceived effectiveness of the various types of support (e.g., family and friends, career counselors, and Internet) and the participants’ intentions to use them. Young adults are more inclined to seek help from types of support that are easily accessible to them (e.g., family and friends, and the Internet), and less from those that have been proven to be beneficial (e.g., career counselors, online questionnaires).

The Emotional and Personality-Related Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire—Validation of the Chinese Version

The purpose of the present study was to examine the internal consistency and test–retest reliability, the internal structure, and construct validity of the Chinese version of the Emotional and Personality-Related Career Difficulties questionnaire ( EPCD). Based on a sample of 540 Chinese university students, high-reliability coefficients for the overall scale (α = .93), the three clusters (.78, .85, and .93), and adequate reliability for its 11 difficulty categories (range from .64 to .85) were observed. The 2-week test–retest reliabilities of the overall scale, three clusters, and 11 difficulty categories were also adequate (ranging from .61 to .94). Confirmatory factor analysis of the original theoretical model (11 difficulty categories loaded on three major clusters and then one general factor) demonstrated acceptable model fit after deleting three small-loading items. The pattern of associations between the clusters of the EPCD and the Trait Anxiety Scale, the Career Decision Scale, and the Vocational Identity Scale supported its construct validity. The discussion of the use of EPCD in China and suggestions for future research are proposed.

Exploring the Linkage Between the Components of Motivational Systems Theory and Career Decisiveness

This study examined the role of individual and contextual factors in the development of career optimism, which leads to career decisiveness using motivational systems theory (MST). The study was conducted by adopting a longitudinal study design using responses from 254 management students in India. Results of structural equation modeling analyses suggested that the hypothesized model adequately fit the data. Career optimism mediated the relationship between each of the components of MST (goal, capability beliefs, context beliefs, and emotions) and career decisiveness except goals. Career optimism partially mediated the relationship between goals and career decisiveness. Furthermore, results indicated that none of the demographic variables (age, gender, qualification, and academic background) had any effect on either career optimism or career decisiveness.

Validation of the Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire Among Korean College Students

The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Korean version of the Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire (CDDQ) among 854 college students. Confirmatory factor analyses partially confirmed the original 10-factor structure of the instrument and demonstrated metric equivalence across gender. The dysfunctional beliefs subscale was particularly inconsistent. Cronbach’s α reliabilities ranged from .66 to .88 for the CDDQ subscales and α = .92 for the CDDQ total score. The test–retest reliability for a 1-month interval was .88. The correlation between CDDQ and the Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale was r = –.54 ( p < .01), which was convergent with previous studies. The undecided college students reported higher CDDQ scores than the decided college students. All the results suggested that CDDQ is a reliable instrument for assessing career decision-making difficulties in the Korean context. Implications for career interventions and research are discussed.

The Role of Personality in the Career Decision-Making Difficulties of Italian Young Adults

Both career-related developmental indecision and chronic indecisiveness are manifested in the difficulties individuals experience when choosing a career. Developmental career indecision is often regarded as a normal stage that many individuals undergo, regardless of individual differences in various personality factors. Testing this premise was the focus of this study. Specifically, the associations between career decision-making difficulties (Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire, a measure of developmental career indecision) and the Big Five personality factors were investigated among participants from three educational settings: 248 high school students, 167 on-the-job training (OJT) interns, and 186 university students. The results revealed that university students experience less developmental career indecision than high school students and OJT interns, suggesting that individuals’ educational setting affects the prevalence of such difficulties. However, the personality factors of Extroversion and Neuroticism consistently explained a significantly larger percentage of variance in participants’ developmental career indecision levels in all three samples than did educational setting or age. These results suggest that developmental career indecision may in fact be more personality related than previously thought.

Validation of a Korean Translation of the Emotional and Personality-Related Career Decision-Making Difficulties Scale–Short Form (EPCD-SF)

This study examined the psychometric properties of a Korean translation of the Emotional and Personality-Related Career Decision-Making Difficulties–Short Form (EPCD-SF). The participants were 501 Korean students; 239 also completed a second survey to assess the test–retest reliability. The overall factor structure of the original EPCD was supported with the Korean EPCD-SF, but 2 items of the conflictual attachment and separation subcategory in self-concept and identity dimension showed low factor loadings, indicating that the 2 items might not be relevant to the Korean participants. The Korean EPCD-SF had a better model fit than the EPCD-Long Form did, and it was reliable and stable. The Korean EPCD-SF was positively related to other career indecision measures, such as career stress, external locus of control, and trait anxiety, and it was negatively related to career decision self-efficacy and self-esteem.

Career Indecisiveness of Turkish High School Students:

Career indecisiveness involves more pervasive, severe, and chronic difficulties in making career decisions and focuses on deeper personality roots as well as cognitive origin. The purpose of this study was to examine the associations between career indecisiveness on one hand and self-esteem, personal indecisiveness, and five-factor personality characteristics on the other. As hypothesized, the career indecisiveness was higher in 545 Turkish high school students who had not yet decided on a profession than that of decided individuals. Also, the results showed that emotional and personality-related career decision-making difficulties are positively related to self-esteem, exploratory and impetuous indecisiveness, and neuroticism, while being negatively related to extroversion and conscientiousness. In addition, female experienced more career indecisiveness. Based on the result of the multiple regression analysis, exploratory indecisiveness was the most significant contributory factor to career indecisiveness for female and male.

Career Indecision, Meaning in Life, and Anxiety

The current study examines the role of meaning in life with respect to career indecision and state anxiety in a sample of 229 university students. This article seeks to build upon the career indecision literature by examining the role of meaning in life. An existential model of career indecision was applied in order to provide a theoretical framework for the relationship between career indecision and anxiety. Measures include the Career Decision Scale (Osipow, Carney, Winer, Yanico, & Koschier, 1976), the Meaning in Life Questionnaire (Steger, Frazier, Oishi, & Kaler, 2006), and the State-Trait Inventory for Cognitive and Somatic Anxiety (Ree, MacLeod, French, & Locke, 2000). Presence of meaning in life mediated the relationships between career indecision and anxiety. However, the results did not support the hypothesis that the search for meaning in life moderates the relationship between career indecision and anxiety. Future research and practical implications are also discussed.

A New Perspective on Job Lock

This paper analyses the situation when employees fail to adapt to overall job dissatisfaction. By combining the existing knowledge in economics on job lock and in psychology on employees' feeling of being 'stuck' at work, the paper explains why some employees fail to adapt when dissatisfied with their job. Thus, the paper aims to expand our understanding of why some employees are job locked or are 'stuck' at their work even though dissatisfied. Using the British household panel survey, the possibility of falling in a job-lock state is analyzed to outline a set of factors that explain why employees differ in the way they adjust to job dissatisfaction. We divide these factors into socio-demographic features, personality attributes, type of occupation, employment conditions, type of sector, and work-related contextual features. Based on results of probit regression analysis, we provide evidence that all these group of factors can jointly predict the state of job dissatisfaction, the absence of job turnover and job lock (being 'stuck' at job). Moreover, our results suggest that the adaptation to job dissatisfaction could be better understood if personality attributes (such as self-esteem) are included in the analysis. Thus, this study expands our understanding of how and why employees might feel 'stuck' at work and fall in a state of job lock.