Development of the Cultural Tightness-Looseness Orientation Scale for College Students

Background

"The cultural tightness-looseness orientation of college students", which involves college students' cognition about tolerance for non-learning-behavior in class, strength of learning-behavior norms in class, and strength of social norms in the generalized macro-context, offers a new perspective to explain college students' psychology and behavior and could effectively promote their all-round development. However, there is severely lack of a reliable and valid instrument. Hence, we seek to develop the Cultural Tightness-Looseness Orientation Scale for College Students (CTLOS-S) in the Chinese context.

Methods

We firstly pooled the initial 17 measuring items of CTLOS-S through literature review and the open-ended interview. After conducting questionnaire survey among 264 college students using the initial scale, we did a series of reliability and validity tests to get the formal CTLOS-S, based on which we further administered questionnaire survey among 755 college students to check its reliability, construct validity, criterion validity, content validity, and across-gender invariance.

Results

The formal CTLOS-S contains 7-item subscale of tolerance orientation for non-learning-behavior in class, 4-item subscale of strength orientation of learning-behavior norms in class, and 3-item subscale of strength orientation of social norms in the generalized macro-context. The testing results of the second-stage questionnaire survey data (N = 755) demonstrate that the reliability coefficients of CTLOS-S and its three subscales are 0.85, 0.85, 0.83, and 0.76 separately, the internal 3-factor structure validity of CTLOS-S is satisfactorily acceptable with χ ²(74) = 318.76, CFI = 0.94, TLI = 0.93, RMSEA = 0.06, and SRMR = 0.04, and the content validity and criterion validity are satisfactory as the total score of CTLOS-S is positively correlated with each score of its three subscales and the total score of learning engagement scale. Besides, the 3-factor structure of CTLOS-S is invariant across gender.

Conclusion

The 14-item CTLOS-S we develop is a reliable and valid instrument for researchers to conduct quantitative studies on college students' cultural tightness-looseness orientation.

Validation of the Body Acceptance by Others Scale-2 (BAOS-2) and assessment of its associations with prospective changes in body image among young adults in China

The Body Acceptance by Others Scale-2 (BAOS-2) was developed to assess overall perceived body acceptance by others. In two studies, we evaluated its structure, reliability and validity among young adults in China. In Study 1, 435 women and 322 men completed newly translated simplified Chinese versions of the BAOS-2 and Functionality Appreciation Scale (FAS), conceptually related body image questionnaires and demographic items. Exploratory factor analyses supported a 13-item unidimensional BAOS-2 structure across men and women. Internal consistency, test-retest reliability, convergent validity and discriminant validity were also supported. Study 2 (307 men, 396 women) replicated the original gender-invariant BAOS-2 structure in confirmatory factor analysis and bolstered evidence for convergent, discriminant and incremental validity. Predictive validity, examined via longitudinal analyses, indicated baseline BAOS-2 scores and/or concomitant changes in BAOS-2 scores over time were related to improvements on other positive and negative body image measures at a six-month follow-up. Supplementary analyses replicated the original unidimensional FAS factor structure and provided considerable support for its psychometrics across samples. In sum, this research supported psychometric properties of the BAOS-2 among young adults in China and underscored its potential utility in predicting changes in other body image experiences over time.

Future Work Self Salience and Future Time Perspective as Serial Mediators Between Proactive Personality and Career Adaptability

In recent years, employment has become a growing problem for Chinese college students, who often face issues of slow employment and lazy employment. Guided by the framework of career construction theory, we explored how proactive personality strengthens career adaptability. A total of 423 Chinese college students effectively completed the online survey. The results showed a positive correlation between proactive personality, future work self salience, future time perspective, and career adaptability. Additionally, proactive personality can directly affect career adaptability through three indirect paths: the separate intermediary effect of future work self salience, future time perspective, and the continuous mediating role of future work self salience and future time perspective. The results indicate that proactive personality increases career adaptability through the mediating role of future work self salience and future time perspective. This study contributes to our understanding of the mechanisms underlying the relationship between proactive personality and career adaptability. Additionally, the findings have implications for the career development of college students.

Determinants of Major Choice and Academic Expectations: Testing a Prediction Model Across Gender

With this study, we aim to test the predictive relationships between determinants of major choice (DMC) and academic expectations (AEs) and to analyze gender differences, using six items of the Determinants of Major Choice Scale and the Academic Perceptions Questionnaire to assess AEs. A convenience sample of Portuguese (n = 839) and Spanish (n = 1,001) first-year students (age-range = 17–23 years), mostly composed of women (56.9%, n = 1,047), was selected from two public universities. The invariance of the multivariate regression model with latent variables of the effect of DMC on AEs, with determinants linked to Personal Characteristics (PCs; e.g., capacities) and Mediating Agents (MAs; e.g., parents) as AE predictors, was tested across gender with LISREL. The invariance test of the multivariate regression model across gender fit the data well and revealed an equivalence of slopes between women and men, which allows a unique interpretation of the model’s predictive relationships for both genders. We also found statistically significant predictive relationships of PCs for six AE factors and MAs for five AE factors. The results showed theoretical relationships with the self-determination theory. At a practical level, they indicated the importance of PCs and MAs to design AE intervention programs in Higher Education (HE) institutions.

The Effect of Cultural Intelligence, Conflict, and Transformational Leadership on Decision-Making Processes in Virtual Teams

The rapid development of information and communication technology (ICT) has resulted in several improvements in diverse aspects of the organizational structures, including the introduction of virtual teams (VTs). Organizations rely on VTs since they bring a lot of benefits, such as the enhancement of organizational performance. However, effective VTs cannot exist without the proper implementation of decision-making processes. There is a lack of scientific research that attempts to understand the factors affecting decision-making processes in VTs. Studies in this area have only been conducted in the United States and Europe. However, such research has not been conducted in the Middle East, where specific scientific solutions are still required to improve the performance of VTs. Therefore, this study is conducted in the Middle East to gain scientific knowledge on this region’s specificity. Thus, the objective of this study is to identify the factors that affect VT decision-making processes. An online survey was used to collect data (Google forms) from companies in the IT industry in UAE, which are engaged in VTs. A literature review, survey methods, and structural equation modeling were used. The results showed that culture intelligence (CQ), transformational leadership (TL), and task conflict have a positive effect on VT decision-making processes, and relationship conflict has a negative impact on VT decision-making processes, which provides the management teams with a guideline on what to concentrate on in the measuring and enhancement of the effectiveness of VT decision making.

Reciprocal Relation Between Authenticity and Career Decision Self-Efficacy: A Longitudinal Study

Research suggests that authenticity plays a positive role in one’s career decision-making process but little is known of how this role unfolds over time. In the present study, we argue that authenticity positively relates to career decision self-efficacy over time, and vice versa. We conducted a study characterized by a three-wave longitudinal design with 459 Chinese university students over 1 year and examined the reciprocal dynamic effects of authenticity and career decision self-efficacy. Using a cross-lagged approach, we found that authenticity positively relates to career decision self-efficacy over time, and conversely, career decision self-efficacy also positively relates to authenticity over time. Our findings contribute to the literature on authenticity and career decision self-efficacy by demonstrating that they reciprocally promote each other. Our findings also have implications for university students, as well as educators and counselors who assist in facilitating the career decision process.

Passion matters but not equally everywhere: Predicting achievement from interest, enjoyment, and efficacy in 59 societies

How to identify the students and employees most likely to achieve is a challenge in every field. American academic and lay theories alike highlight the importance of passion for strong achievement. Based on a Western independent model of motivation, passionate individuals-those who have a strong interest, demonstrate deep enjoyment, and express confidence in what they are doing-are considered future achievers. Those with less passion are thought to have less potential and are often passed over for admission or employment. As academic institutions and corporations in the increasingly multicultural world seek to acquire talent from across the globe, can they assume that passion is an equally strong predictor of achievement across cultural contexts? We address this question with three representative samples totaling 1.2 million students in 59 societies and provide empirical evidence of a systematic, cross-cultural variation in the importance of passion in predicting achievement. In individualistic societies where independent models of motivation are prevalent, relative to collectivistic societies where interdependent models of motivation are more common, passion predicts a larger gain (0.32 vs. 0.21 SD) and explains more variance in achievement (37% vs. 16%). In contrast, in collectivistic societies, parental support predicts achievement over and above passion. These findings suggest that in addition to passion, achievement may be fueled by striving to realize connectedness and meet family expectations. Findings highlight the risk of overweighting passion in admission and employment decisions and the need to understand and develop measures for the multiple sources and forms of motivation that support achievement.

Novel Coronavirus Outbreak and Career Development: A Narrative Approach Into the Meaning for Italian University Graduates

INTRODUCTION

In times of economic crisis, the literature shows that young people have always been in the high-risk category. The COVID-19 outbreak and the consequence on the economic level have increased the sense of uncertainty and precariousness experienced by young people. The current scenario has forced young people at the school-to-work transition point to re-think their career plans. Although the difficulties of the school-to-work transition already lead to distress and mental health problems in young people, the slowdown imposed by the coronavirus could add up to these difficulties. The present study aimed to explore the process of career development and career planning in the coronavirus era. Twenty Italian university graduates were involved.

METHODS

A quantitative measure was used to evaluate the affective (positive/negative) experience. A narrative prompt was used to understand the individual dimensions of career planning. Cluster analysis was carried out by an unsupervised ascendant hierarchical method to explore the themes of the narration.

RESULTS

Italian young adults have tended to experience negative affects in the recent weeks of quarantine. The themes highlighted in the narratives showed that Italian young adults experience feelings of fear, uncertainty, and anxiety about the post-pandemic future.

CONCLUSION

The results appear as a starting point to re-think possible interventions for this group post-lockdown and post-pandemic.

Understanding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on career development: Insights from cultural psychology

The COVID-19 pandemic has become a significant global crisis that requires individuals, organizations and nations to take necessary steps to cope. To develop a comprehensive and systematic understanding of the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on individuals' career development and possible coping strategies, we adopt a cultural psychological perspective to analyze: (1) how internalized cultural orientations (e.g., values, thinking styles, regulatory focus) may shape individual responses and coping strategies to COVID-19 pandemic; (2) how national culture influences the collective actions and norms during COVID-19 pandemic; (3) how to integrate insights from cultural psychology to enrich research on career management strategies in response to a fast changing environment. While this paper primarily focuses on the role of national culture (i.e., the shared meanings and practices in a nation), these discussions can largely be applied to other cultural settings. Practical implications are also discussed.

Military Career Adaptability Questionnaire in China: Development and Validation

Objective

To develop the Military Career Adaptability Questionnaire (MCAQ) in China and to test its reliability and validity.

Methods

In study 1, an open-ended questionnaire survey was conducted among 200 military personnel. Based on the empirical construction by military personnel of various branches, the dimensions of the MCAQ were constructed, and a preliminary questionnaire was prepared. In study 2, the questionnaire survey was conducted in 1,578 participants enrolled through stratified cluster sampling. They were randomly divided into two groups (n = 789). Sample 1 was used for item analysis and exploratory factor analysis, and sample 2 was used for confirmatory factor analysis and internal consistency testing. In sample 1, the participants were selected to test the test–retest reliability of the questionnaire at a 4 weeks interval. In sample 2, participants were selected to test criterion validity using the Psychological Capital Questionnaire and the Job Satisfaction Questionnaire.

Results

According to study 1, we obtained an initial 23-item MCAQ containing five dimensions (organization and fusion ability, communication ability, learning development ability, emotion regulation ability, and career transformation ability). After the exploratory factor analysis in study 2, 21 items contributing 72.17% of the total variance remained. Via the subsequent confirmatory factor analysis, the model was confirmed to have good fit indices [chi-square/degree of freedom (X²/df) = 3.11, goodness of fit index (GFI) = 0.90, normed fit index (NFI) = 0.91, incremental fit index (IFI) = 0.94, tucker lewis index (TLI) = 0.93, comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.94, standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) = 0.07]. These five factors were significantly correlated with the total score of the MCAQ (r = 0.73–0.79, p < 0.01). The Cronbach α coefficient of the questionnaire was 0.92; the Cronbach α coefficients of the five factors were 0.89, 0.83, 0.88, 0.84, and 0.79, respectively, the test–retest reliability of the questionnaire was 0.93.

Conclusion

The MCAQ developed in this study has a clear five-factor structure and good reliability and validity. It can be used to assess the career adaptability of military personnel to provide a theoretical basis for military vocational psychological education.

Parents’ Career Values, Adaptability, Career-Specific Parenting Behaviors, and Undergraduates’ Career Adaptability

This study examined how Chinese parents’ career values and adaptability predict their career-specific parenting behaviors and their children’s career adaptability. We conducted a survey study with Chinese university students and their parents ( N = 264), and found support for the mediating roles of career-specific parenting behaviors in linking parents’ vocational characteristics and children’s career adaptability. Specifically, parental support is positively related to parents’ intrinsic fulfillment values, work–life balance values, and career adaptability. Moreover, parental support mediates the relationship between these variables and undergraduates’ career adaptability. Parental engagement mediates the negative effect of external compensation values and positive effect of work–life balance values on undergraduates’ career adaptability. Parental interference is negatively related to parents’ work–life balance values, and positively related to their external compensation values and career adaptability, but does not significantly predict undergraduates’ career adaptability. These findings advance current understanding of the career construction theory.

Examining a Sequential Mediation Model of Chinese University Students' Well-Being: A Career Construction Perspective

Despite career construction theory attends to individual subjective career and provides a useful lens to study well-being, extant research has yielded limited insights into the mechanisms through which career construction variables influence individual well-being. To address this important gap, the present study examined a mediation model that links indicators of career adaptivity (big-five personality and approach/avoidance traits) to psychological well-being (psychological flourishing and life satisfaction) through career adaptability and in sequent meaning of life (presence of life meaning and search for life meaning) among a sample of Chinese university students (N = 165). The results of a two-wave survey study showed that career adaptability and presence of life meaning mediated the effects of openness to experience, consciousness, approach trait, and avoidance trait on individual well-being in sequence. The results also showed that approach trait’s effect on presence of meaning was partially mediated by career adaptability; career adaptability’s effect on psychological flourishing was partially mediated by presence of meaning. These findings advance understanding of antecedents to individual well-being from a career construction perspective, and carry implications for career education and counseling practices.

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.

American = Independent?

U.S. American cultures and psyches reflect and promote independence. Devos and Banaji (2005) asked, does American equal White? This article asks, does American equal independent? The answer is that when compared to people in East Asian or South Asian contexts, people in American contexts tend to show an independent psychological signature—a sense of self as individual, separate, influencing others and the world, free from influence, and equal to, if not better than, others (Markus & Conner, 2013). Independence is a reasonable description of the selves of people in the White, middle-class American mainstream. Yet it is a less good characterization of the selves of the majority of Americans who are working-class and/or people of color. A cultural psychological approach reveals that much of North American psychology is still grounded in an independent model of the self and, as such, neglects social contexts and the psychologies of a majority of Americans. Given the prominence of independence in American ideas and institutions, the interdependent tendencies that arise from intersections of national culture with social class, race, and ethnicity go unrecognized and are often misunderstood and stigmatized. This unseen clash of independence and interdependence is a significant factor in many challenges, including those of education, employment, health, immigration, criminal justice, and political polarization.

Validation of the German Career Decision-Making Profile—An Updated 12-Factor Version

The Career Decision-Making Profile (CDMP) was developed by Gati and colleagues in 2010 as an attempt to reliably measure which strategies individuals apply when making career decisions. In order to provide counseling and coaching professionals with a German version of the scale, we translated and validated the German version (G-CDMP) in two studies (total N = 622). Results of Study 1 verified the proposed 12-factor structure by means of confirmatory factor analyses, confirming that the G-CDMP assesses 12 distinct career decision-making strategies. Results of Study 2 demonstrated the G-CDMP’s construct validity on subscale level by relating it to self-evaluations (e.g., occupational self-efficacy) and personality (i.e., the Big Five) as well as to career-related constructs, such as career adaptability and cognitive reactions toward career-life decisions (e.g., life satisfaction). As the studies provide support for the G-CDMP’s factor structure and its construct validity, implications for its use during career counseling are discussed.

Self-Referent and Other-Referent Career Successes, Career Satisfaction, and Turnover Intention Among Chinese Employees

Based on the social comparison theory, this research examined how self-referent and other-referent career successes predict career satisfaction and turnover intention among a sample of Chinese employees ( N = 299). It was found that both self-referent and other-referent career successes played unique roles in predicting career satisfaction, which, in turn, predicted turnover intention. In addition, this research examined the role of achievement motivation in this process and revealed a moderated mediation model for the relations among these variables. Specifically, the indirect effect of self-referent career success on turnover intention through career satisfaction was stronger among employees with a higher level of individual-orientated achievement motivation, and the indirect effect of other-referent career success on turnover intention through career satisfaction was stronger among employees with a lower level of individual-orientated achievement motivation. These findings carry implications for research on career success and turnover intention.

What moves people to action? Culture and motivation

The study of motivation answers the question: what moves people to action in particular situations. A large volume of research provides compelling evidence that the answer to this question depends on the cultural context. In the individualist West, particularly in middle-class, college educated North America, the motivation for 'good' actions such as persistent productive performance is commonly understood to come from preferences and values inside the person. Yet in most contexts (those of the majority world), motivation takes form as being receptive to specific others, realizing expectations, and following culturally inscribed norms. Explaining the actions of people with a mismatched model of motivation can lead to inferences of irrationality, deficiency or immorality and is a barrier to intercultural communication.