Job Search Self-Efficacy of East Asian International Graduate Students

Abstract

Using a sample of 86 East Asian international graduate students, this study examined Bandura’s perceived self-efficacy model (1986) in the domain of job search self-efficacy and tested the mediating effects of job search self-efficacy in the relationship between efficacy source variables and job search behaviors. Results show that both performance accomplishments and verbal persuasion are significant predictors of job search self-efficacy and that performance accomplishments is a stronger predictor of job search self-efficacy than verbal persuasion. Moreover, verbal persuasion has a significant indirect effect on the job search behaviors through the mediation of job search self-efficacy. Vocational interventions for enhancing East Asian international graduate students' job search self-efficacy are suggested. The authors also address the theoretical and practical implications of the findings for East Asian international students' career development.

Keywords

job search self-efficacy Asian international students career development

International employees in the United States (U.S.) comprise an important part of the U.S. workforce. These employees deal with unique concerns and challenges in seeking work in the U.S., such as language barriers, cultural differences, technical procedures (e.g., applying for the Optional Practical Training [OPT], an immigration status that permits international students to work under a student visa for 12–29 months after they have obtained their degrees in the U.S.), and complicated legal requirements (e.g., obtaining H1B work visa; Spencer-Rodgers, 2000). Despite these challenges and limitations, many international students are motivated to obtain work experiences in the U.S. because of financial gains, family expectations, and the relatively liberal political environment in the U.S. These students express a strong desire to receive assistance in career exploration and job seeking (Leong & Sedlacek, 1989; Shen & Herr, 2004; Spencer-Rodgers, 2000), and research suggests that U.S. international students express greater needs for career and academic assistance than domestic students (Leong & Sedlacek, 1989). However, the vocational psychology literature addressing these specific vocational needs of international students has been scarce (Heppner et al., 2010). Thus, the current study aims to expand our understanding of the career development of international students in the U.S., focusing on their job search behaviors.

A positive relationship between job search behaviors and employment outcomes has been empirically documented (Wanberg, Kanfer, & Rotundo, 1999). To enhance the likelihood of positive job search outcomes among international students, it seems critical to understand the antecedents of job search actions. Self-efficacy is one such predictor variable that has been linked theoretically to career behaviors (Betz, 2000; Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994). The central role of career-related self-efficacy in the course of career development has been widely acknowledged and empirically supported (Anderson & Betz, 2001; Lent et al.,1994) and has also been applied to racial/ethnic minority groups (for a recent review, see Lindley, 2006). However, limited research (Bikos & Furry, 1999; Lent, Brown, Nota, & Soresi, 2003) on career-related self-efficacy has been conducted on international populations.

Bandura (1986, 1997) argued that self-efficacy can be acquired and modified through four sources: performance accomplishment (e.g., mastery of experiences), vicarious learning (e.g., modeling), verbal persuasion (e.g., guidance, encouragement), and low levels of emotional arousal (e.g., anxiety related to the task performed). The most influential source of self-efficacy is hypothesized to be the perceived judgments of one’s previous performance or mastery of experiences. Usually, a successful outcome raises self-efficacy and a failure lowers it. In addition, self-efficacy can be formed through observing others performing the designated tasks, especially when an individual has limited experiences or exposure to those tasks. The effects of observing a role model has been an essential change mechanism of self-efficacy. Furthermore, self-efficacy can also be developed by receiving adequate and accurate verbal/social persuasion. The forms of social persuasion can come from advice, guidance, and/or verbal judgments from others. When an individual receives positive and inspiring persuasion such as encouragement, one’s self-efficacy increases; whereas it decreases after receiving negative evaluations, false advice, or discouragement. Finally, high emotional arousal is theorized to negatively impact people’s confidence in their capability to perform the task. Performance anxiety serves a good example illustrating how emotional status can discount one’s real capabilities.

One purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the four efficacy source variables (i.e., performance accomplishment, vicarious learning, verbal persuasion, and emotional arousal) proposed by Bandura (1986) on the job search self-efficacy of East Asian international students. Prior studies have concentrated primarily on the domain of math self-efficacy and were conducted on relatively homogeneous groups of U.S. students (e.g., Betz & Schifano, 2000; Campbell & Hackett, 1986; Lent, Lopez, & Bieschke, 1991; Matsui, Matsui, & Ohnishi, 1990). Some unique differences in findings among these studies are worthy of attention. Lent and colleagues (1991) reported that only perceived and actual math performance explained a significant amount of variance in math self-efficacy in a sample of predominantly Caucasian college students. Other researchers found that among a sample of Japanese high school students, vicarious learning and emotional arousal explained a small unique variance in math self-efficacy and math performance (Matsui et al.,1990). These conflicting findings underscore the importance of examining the extent to which these four sources of efficacy contribute to self-efficacy across developmental stages, cultural groups, and career domains. In accordance with self-efficacy theory (Bandura, 1986), we hypothesized that job search-related performance accomplishments, vicarious learning, and verbal persuasion would positively predict job search self-efficacy, and job search-related anxiety would negatively predict job search self-efficacy. Further, we expected that among the four source variables, performance accomplishments will be the strongest predictor of job search self-efficacy (Hypothesis 1).

Career search self-efficacy refers to an individual’s judgment/beliefs in his or her ability to “successfully perform a variety of career exploration activities, including their judgments about their abilities to successfully explore personal values and interests, effectively network with professionals in a field of interest, successfully interview for a job, etc” (Solberg, Good, & Fisher, Brown, & Nord, 1995). Solberg (1998) proposed a model investigating both the developmental and the environmental sources of career search self-efficacy and its effects on career exploration and career outcomes. The developmental sources include human agency, family influence, and self-identity, and the environmental sources refer to the four sources of self-efficacy information proposed by Bandura (1986, 1997). Solberg (1998) proposed that career search self-efficacy mediated the relationship between the sources of career search self-efficacy and career outcomes (e.g., career exploration, vocational identity). Based on this model, we are particularly interested in examining whether career search self-efficacy mediates the relationship between the four sources of efficacy information that one receives in quality learning environments and job seeking behaviors (Hypothesis 2). We mainly focus on the environmental antecedents of career search self-efficacy in the model in comparison to the distal developmental factors of career search self-efficacy because the proximal effects of the environmental antecedents appear to be more relevant to the tasks and needs of the active international job seekers and have practical implications on intervention programming. Solberg also discussed career exploration and career outcomes (e.g., vocational identity, lower career stress, increased occupational information and options) as the effects of career search self-efficacy. Because the job seekers in the study were either currently in or about to enter job search market, the career outcome we were interested in investigating was their job search behaviors.

Research on job search behaviors and outcomes has received a great deal of attention particularly in industrial/organizational psychology (Saks & Ashforth, 1999). Saks and Ashforth (1999) examined the relations among job search self-efficacy, perceived control over job search outcome, job search behaviors, and employment status among 384 college students 3 months before and 4 months after their graduation. Consistent with previous studies (Kanfer & Hulin, 1985), results suggested that job search self-efficacy positively predicted three job search behaviors (i.e., preparatory job search behaviors, active job search behaviors, and job search intensity). Furthermore, job search self-efficacy predicted employment status at graduation. Moreover, with regard to job search behaviors, utilization of separate measures of preparatory and active job search behaviors (Blau, 1994) was empirically supported by the distinct dimensions. The authors noted limitations about the timeframe set for their study. They argued that 3 months before graduation may be the time that students are more engaged in active job search activities such as completing job applications and sending resumes to potential employers rather than preparatory activities. Thus, by expanding the timeframe to 6 months before graduation, it may help to better capture the frequency of preparatory job search behaviors. For international students in the U.S., the extension of the timeframe to six months may also be more strategically appropriate due to their timeline of OPT application and perceived and actual challenges of seeking employment in the U.S. after graduation. These internal and external concerns may force them to start job search preparation work earlier than their U.S. counterparts.

The target population in the present study was East Asian (e.g., China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, and Korea) international graduate students who were approaching graduation and who indicated interests and goals in seeking work in the U.S. upon graduation. Historically, East Asian countries have shared the same cultural roots and values, such as filial piety and Confucianism, and are culturally different from other Asian countries such as India or Philippines. Also, approximately 33% of the international students in the U.S. come from East Asian countries (Institute of International Educator’s Open Doors 2008 report). Thus, this study could yield an adequate level of generalizability and important implications for a considerable number of international student groups in the U.S. by focusing on East Asian students. Moreover, we only focused on graduate students because the level of job positions (professional vs. entry level) involves different job search tasks and resulting challenges.

Method

Participants

Participants were East Asian international graduate students (N = 86; 45% males and 55% females) who were seeking postgraduate employment in the U.S. and were graduating within 6 months of the time they took the survey. The participants were primarily from China (43%) and Taiwan (36%), and less than one fifth of them were from South Korea (14%) and Japan (6%). Forty-seven percent were pursuing a master’s degree, 41% were pursuing a doctoral degree, and 12% were pursuing other degrees (i.e., specialist, professional). Participants had majors in the following colleges: Engineering (37%), Arts and Science (27%), Business (18%), Education (8%), Medical School (6%), and Agriculture and Natural Science (4%). Most were single (69%) and 31% were married. Their mean age was 27.6 years (SD = 4.5, range 21–44 years); and their average length of stay in the U.S. was 52 months (SD = 32.6, range from 6 to 192 months). About 40% did not have work experiences in their home countries, 35% had 1–2 years of work experiences; and 25% had more than 2 years of work experiences before they came to U.S. Their average length of time studying English was 14 years (SD = 5), and they rated their English level fluency as 5.27 on a 7-point scale (SD = 1.6).

Procedure

Our study was conducted online. A pilot study was first conducted with East Asian international students (N = 35) at a large state university in the Midwest to gather reliability and validity data for the four author-constructed efficacy source measures. A total of 43 participants responded to the survey; 5 were dropped due to missing data and 3 because the participants were not Asian international students resulting in 35 usable data for the pilot study. The internal consistencies of the efficacy source measures indicate adequate reliabilities, ranging from .72 to .91. The test–retest reliability estimates indicated stability of these scales over a 4-week interval is adequate, ranging from .83 to .93. The Social Self-Efficacy Scale (SSS; Sherer, Maddux, Mercadante, Prentice-Dunn, Jacobs, & Rogers, 1982) and the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS; Pavot & Diener, 1993) were utilized to examine the discriminant validity of the source measures; and Career Search Efficacy Scale (CSES; Solberg et al., 1994) was used to explore the convergent validity of the source measures in the pilot study. Results of the construct validity of the source measures are reported in the instrument section.

For our main study, an e-mail message along with a link to the online survey was initially sent to various international student organizations at the top 20 universities in the U.S. that hosted most international students in the U.S. listed in the Open Door Report (2007). Among these 20 institutes, 60% of them are public and 40% private; 35% were located in the Midwest, 30% in the Northeast, 20% in the West, and 15% in the South; half of the institutions have a student body less than 40,000; 30% have a student body of 40,000–50,000, and 20% have a student body more than 50,000. A snowball strategy was also utilized as recipients were encouraged to forward the e-mails to anyone they knew that might be eligible to participate. The e-mail sought East Asian international students who planned to seek employment in the U.S. upon their graduation and who were to graduate at the end of the academic semester. Job search-related resources and raffle prizes were provided as incentives.

Measures

Research suggests that compared to Whites, East Asians are more likely to choose the midpoint in the odd-numbered response categories, which results in a bias/skew of the test results (Chen, Lee, & Stevenson, 1995; Si & Cullen, 1998). Therefore, it is recommended that using a scale with even numbered response categories could significantly reduce this tendency among this population. Thus, the relevant instruments in the current study were developed or modified to an even-point Likert-type scale.

Self-Efficacy Source Variables

Performance accomplishments

An author-constructed 8-item scale was used to measure participants' perceived past success in seeking employment in their home countries and in the U.S. Participants responded on a six-point continuum (1 = strongly disagree, 6 = strongly agree) with high scores indicating high levels of mastery of job search-related tasks. Items include the rater’s past successful job search experiences in their home country and U.S. and their perceived current job search skills (e.g., American style resume writing, self-marketing, interviewing, and knowledge about work regulations placed upon international job seekers). Sample items included “I have successfully found a job in my home country” and “I have successfully applied for a paid job (e.g., assistantship, internship) in the U.S.” The internal consistency and the 4-week test–retest reliability estimates from the pilot study were .82 and .93, respectively. The Cronbach’s α coefficient in the current study was .77. Convergent validity was supported by a positive correlation between this scale’s scores and career search self-efficacy (r = .61), and discriminant validity was supported by a nonsignificant relationship with social self-efficacy (r = −.28) in the pilot study.

Vicarious learning

Vicarious learning was defined to be the perceived influence of role modeling on career behaviors. The Inspiration/Modeling (I/M) subscale of the Influence of Others on Academic and Career Decisions Scale (Nauta & Kokaly, 2001) was employed to measure the extent of influence of career role models. The I/M subscale consists of 7 items (e.g., “there is someone I am trying to be like”; “there is no one who inspires me”) rated on a 6-point Likert-type scale (1 = strongly disagree, 6 = strongly agree) with high scores indicating high levels of perceived influence and inspiration from career role models. To make the items relevant to perceived support in the domain of job search behaviors, the following item stem was used: “In the process of my job search in the U.S….” The I/M subscale was reported to have adequate test–retest reliability (r = .78) and good internal consistency with alpha coefficients ranging from .87 to .91. Convergent validity of the scale’s scores was supported by correlations in expected directions with measures of occupational information, career certainty, and career indecision, and discriminant validity was supported by the nonsignificant relationship with social desirability (Nauta & Kokaly, 2001). The internal consistency and the 4-week test–retest reliability estimates of the pilot study were .89 and .87, respectively. A Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of .82 was obtained in the current study. Findings from the pilot study indicated that I/M scores were not significantly related to social self-efficacy (r = −.02) and life satisfaction (r = .28), but were significantly related to career search efficacy (r = .46), providing construct validity support.

Verbal persuasion

To assess the degree of perceived verbal encouragement from different groups such as family, friends, and professors in the job search process, 8 items were developed based on the verbal persuasion subscale of Source of Math Efficacy Scale (SMES; Lent et al., 1991). The 8 items were presented on a six-point continuum (1 = strongly disagree, 6 = strongly agree) with high scores indicating high levels of perceived verbal encouragement. Sample items included “My family has discouraged me to seek employment in the U.S.” (reverse scored) and “My professor(s) have made positive comments on my capability to obtain the job I desire in the U.S.” The internal consistency and 4-week test–retest reliability estimates of the pilot study were .72 and .83, respectively; a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of .65 was obtained in the current study. Construct validity was demonstrated through a positive correlation (r = .59) with career search efficacy and nonsignificant correlations with social self-efficacy (r = −.23) and life satisfaction (r = .13) in the pilot study.

Emotional arousal

Emotional arousal was defined as the extent of perceived anxiety while performing job search-related tasks. Participants were asked to rate their anxiety levels in performing (a) general job search tasks (e.g., identify job openings, write a cover letter, prepare for a job interview) drawn from those listed in the Career Search Efficacy Scale (Solberg et al., 1994) and (b) international job seeker-specific issues (e.g., write an American style resume, discuss H1B visa issues during a job interview). This author-constructed scale consisted of nine 6-point Likert-type items (1 = Not anxious at all, 6 = Very anxious) with a high score indicating a high level of perceived anxiety. The internal consistency and 4-week test–retest reliability estimates of the pilot study were .91 and .88, respectively; a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of .91 was obtained in the current study. In the pilot study, evidence of discriminant validity was supported by its nonsignificant relationships with social self-efficacy (r = .33) and life satisfaction (r = −.15).

Job Search Self-Efficacy

Job search self-efficacy was measured by the CSES (Solberg et al., 1994). The terms of job search self-efficacy and career search self-efficacy are used interchangeably in this study. CSES is a 35-item scale that assesses the extent to which an individual feels confident in performing a variety of career exploration and search tasks and includes four subscales: (a) Job Search Efficacy, (b) Interviewing Efficacy, (c) Networking Efficacy, and (d) Personal Exploration Efficacy. Participants respond on a 10-point continuum (0 = Very little confidence, 9 = Very much confident), with high scores representing high levels of job search self-efficacy.

In our study, the items of Personal Exploration Efficacy subscale were not included because the main career search tasks of the target population were job search-oriented and not exploration-focused. In addition, two new items (i.e., conducting a job interview in English, and discuss H1B work visa with an employer) were added to the Interviewing Efficacy subscale to address the job search challenges of international students. Some items were modified by providing examples or by making slight wording changes based on feedback from a small group (N = 8) of East Asian international students. High internal consistency for scores on the four subscales were reported, with alpha coefficients ranging from .87 to .95, and convergent and discriminant validity were supported (Solberg, 1998). Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficients of .99 and .98 were obtained on scale scores with the pilot and current samples, respectively. Evidence of validity was supported by its positive correlations with performance accomplishments (r = .59), verbal persuasion (r = .42), and job search behaviors (r = .44) in the current study.

Job Search Behaviors

Job search actions were measured with two 6-item subscales developed by Blau (1994) to assess both preparatory and active job search behaviors. Preparatory job search behaviors included actions taken to gather job search information, and active job search behaviors referred to efforts to reach out to identified employers by sending a resume and going for job interviews (Blau). Minor modifications were made to update job search sources (i.e., help wanted/classified ads was modified to online job search engines such as monster.com, Head Hunter) and one additional item (“Obtaining information about H1 visa”) was included in the preparatory job search behaviors scale to address tasks required for international students in the U.S. Participants were asked to rate the frequency to which they were currently engaged in the preparatory and active job search behaviors using a 5-point continuum (1 = Never [0 times], 2 = Rarely [1 or 2 times], 3 = Occasionally [3 to 5 times], 4 = Frequently [6 to 9 times], 5 = Very frequently [at least 10 times]). High scores indicate high frequency of job search behaviors.

The Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of the preparatory and active job search behavior subscales on a sample of 384 undergraduates were .74 and .75 (Saks & Ashforth, 1999), on a sample of 443 insurance company employees were .88 and .90, (Griffeth, Steel, Allen, & Bryan, 2005), and on the present study were .85 and .90, respectively. A Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient of .93 of the total scale was obtained with the present sample. Evidence of convergent validity was established through its positive correlations with other job search measures (Griffeth et al., 2005.) and job search self-efficacy (r = .44) in our study.

Results

Preliminary Analysis

A multivariate analysis of variance was conducted to examine whether significant differences existed in country of origin and sex on the measured variables. The results revealed that men and women did not differ across the variables of interest, F(1, 84) = .56, p = .64 and that there were no significant differences in country of origin across the variables of interest, F(1, 84) = 1.14, p = .34. Thus, the main analyses were performed on the entire sample.

Table 1 presents the descriptive statistics, alpha coefficients, and bivariate correlations among the measured variables. To avoid alpha inflations resulting from multiple pairwise comparison, a Bonferroni correction was used to establish the alpha level at .01 (.05/5). Performance accomplishments was significantly related to verbal persuasion (r = .37, p < .01). In addition, career search self-efficacy was significantly related to performance accomplishments (r = .59, p < .01), verbal persuasion (r = .42, p < .01), and job search behaviors (r = .44, p < .01).

Table 1.

Means, Standard Deviations, Range, Alpha Coefficients, Skewness, and Kurtosis among the Measured Variables.

Variable	1	2	3	4	5	6
1. Performance accomplishment (PA)	??
2. Vicarious learning (VIC)	0.08	??
3. Verbal persuasion (VP)	0.37^**	0.2	??
4. Emotional Arousal (EA)	−0.17	−0.04	0.09	??
5. Career Search Self-Efficacy (CSES)	0.59**	0.07	0.42**	−0.1	??
6. Job Search Behaviors (JSB)	0.50**	−0.09	0.19	0.07	0.44**	??
M	4.63	3.85	4.42	3.77	6.73	3.13
SD	0.93	0.96	0.7	1.16	1.57	0.88
Actual ranges	2.3–6.5	1.6–6.0	3.0–6.0	1.0–6.0	2.2–10.0	1.3–5.0
Skewness	−0.47	−0.14	0.07	−0.51	0.14	0.07
Kurtosis	−0.41	0.03	0.43	0.37	−0.16	−0.37
α	.77	.82	.65	.91	.98	.93

Note. N = 86 (male = 39, female = 47).

*p < .05. **p < .01. (Cohen & Cohen, 1983).

Main Analyses

Following the guidelines for mediation outlined in Baron and Kenny (1986) and Holmbeck (1997), we examined the correlations (see Table 1) among variables in the hypothesized model in which job search self-efficacy mediates the relations between the four source efficacy variables (performance accomplishments, vicarious learning, verbal persuasion, emotional arousal) and job search behaviors. We determined that the mediator (job search self-efficacy) and outcome (job search behaviors) variables were significantly correlated. In addition, performance accomplishments, was significantly related to both the mediator and outcome variables. Thus, these three variables were included in the mediation model because the significant coefficients support the mediation assumptions (Baron & Kenny, 1986; Holmbeck, 1997). According to Preacher and Hayes (2004), it is possible that an independent variable can have an indirect effect on the outcome variable, even in instances where an initial direct effect is not indicated. Thus, we also included verbal persuasion in the model because it was significantly related to the mediator. Vicarious learning and emotional arousal were dropped from the model because they were not related to either the mediator or outcome variables.

The hypothesized mediation model that was tested is presented in Figure 1. A path analysis was conducted using the EQS (Version 6.1) statistical package (Bentler, 2004) to test the fit of the model. Before running the analysis, we assessed the data for multivariate normality; no violations to normality were detected among the variables. Overall model fit was determined using a variety of goodness of fit measures, including the chi-square test (a nonsignificant p value suggests good fit), the comparative fit index (CFI), the goodness-of-fit index (GFI), the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), and the standardized root mean squared residual (SRMR) to assess the adequacy of the model in the current study. CFI and GFI values that are .90 or higher, and RMSEA and SRMR values that are around or below .05 suggest adequate fit between the data and the model (Loehlin, 1998). The goodness-of-fit indices of the path model resulted in a relatively good fit to the data: χ²(1, N = 86) = 2.86, p > .05, CFI = .98, GFI = .98, NNFI = .86, SRMR = .04, RMSEA = .15 (90% CI = [.00, .36]). All of the path coefficients were significant. Thirty-nine percent of the variance in job search self-efficacy was accounted for by the two sources of self-efficacy (performance accomplishments, verbal persuasion), and 19% of the variance in job search behaviors was accounted for by job search self-efficacy. See Figure 1 for the standardized path values associated with the model.

Figure 1

The structural model showing standardized path coefficients. N = 86. *p < .05. **p < .01.

Results suggest that both performance accomplishments and verbal persuasion are significant predictors of job search self-efficacy and that performance accomplishments was a stronger predictor of job search self-efficacy than verbal persuasion (βs .54 vs. .16). Thus, hypothesis 1 was partially supported.

Preacher and Hayes (2004) argue that bootstrapping is appropriate to detect indirect effects when the sample size is small or when the sample is not normally distributed. We used the SPSS macro syntax file available from Preacher and Hayes (2004) to perform the bootstrapping analysis. Following the bootstrap procedures developed by Shrout and Bolger (2002), 1,000 samples from the original data set (N = 86) are created by random sampling with replacement. These bootstrap samples are then tested in a path model and yield 1,000 estimates of each path coefficient. Next, to calculate estimates of the indirect effects of performance accomplishments and verbal persuasion on job search behaviors through the mediation of job search self-efficacy, 1,000 pairs of path coefficients are multiplied from the predictor variables (i.e., performance accomplishments, verbal persuasion) to the mediator variable (job search self-efficacy) and from the mediator (job search self-efficacy) to the outcome variable (job search behaviors). Finally, according to Shrout and Bolger, a significant indirect effect is be determined if the 95% CI for the estimate of indirect effects based on the 1,000 indirect effect estimates does not include zero. Results shown in Table 2 indicate that verbal persuasion has a significant indirect effect on job search behaviors through the mediation of job search self-efficacy (z = 2.89, p < .01). The indirect effect of performance accomplishment on job search behaviors through job search self-efficacy was not significant (z = 1.84, p > .05), suggesting that the effect of performance accomplishment on job search behaviors is direct.

Table 2.

Bootstrap Analyses of the Magnitude and Statistical Significance of Indirect Effects.

Predictor Variable	Mediator Variable	Outcome Variable	B	B	SE of Mean	95% CI Mean Indirect Effect (Lower and Upper)
Predictor Variable	Mediator Variable	Outcome Variable	Unstandardized Indirect Effect	Mean Indirect Effect	SE of Mean	95% CI Mean Indirect Effect (Lower and Upper)
Performance accomplishments	Job search self-efficacy	Job search behaviors	(.99) × (.13) = .12	0.1285	0.071	[−.0149, .2644]
Verbal persuasion	Job search self-efficacy	Job search behaviors	(.95) × (.24) = .23	0.2313	0.0885	[.0798, .4199]

Discussion

The path model of this study confirmed the utility of Bandura’s perceived self-efficacy model (1986, 1997) and partially supported the hypothesized relations of the four efficacy sources to job search self-efficacy on East Asian international students. Specifically, participants who possessed more experiences in job search-related tasks and received more verbal encouragement from their family, faculty, and colleagues/friends regarding their capability to find a job in U.S. were more likely to report higher confidence in their capabilities to perform job search-related activities. In addition, among the four efficacy source variables, only performance accomplishments and verbal persuasion were significantly correlated to one another. This is inconsistent with the findings of previous studies in which moderate to high intercorrelations among the four efficacy source variables were reported (Anderson & Betz, 2001; Lent et al., 1991; & Matsui et al., 1990). The low interrelations among the efficacy source variables suggest that the four sources represent distinct constructs with East Asian international students.

Across various domains of self-efficacy, performance accomplishments has been consistently found to be a significant predictor of self-efficacy (Lent et al., 1991; Matsui et al., 1990). This was consistent with our sample. When East Asian graduate student job seekers possess a higher sense of mastery of job search tasks, they are more likely to develop high levels of job search self-efficacy. In addition, our findings suggest that the effects of performance accomplishments on job search behaviors are entirely direct and that job search self-efficacy does not mediate the relation between these two variables. This suggest that opportunities to practice and successfully perform job search-related behaviors or to develop mastery in these behaviors prior to the job search are especially important for East Asian international graduate students in their eventual job search actions.

Verbal persuasion from family, faculty, and colleagues/friends also contributed significantly to the enhancement of the job search self-efficacy in this sample. Bandura (1997) posited that an individual’s self-efficacy is mediated by the perceived credibility and expertness of the persuaders. East Asians highly value the opinions of authority figures. Thus, based on this finding, it is possible that the persuasive efficacy feedback from the perceived authority figures significantly boosted students' efficacy. Although, family members and colleagues/friends may not be considered authority figures, they are most likely to be trustworthy and reliable individuals to the target population. Their supportive comments on their capabilities to perform job search-related tasks may have a positive impact on their perceived job search self-efficacy.

Finally, verbal persuasion had a significant indirect effect on job search behaviors through the mediation of job search self-efficacy. Verbal encouragement, guidance, and feedback may be an important strategy to help increase both preparatory and active job search behaviors among East Asian international job seekers, but it is not in itself sufficient. To East Asian international job seekers, without effectively addressing their job search self-efficacy, the verbal messages conveyed by their authority figures or persuaders may not be effective in improving or motivating their job search behaviors. Thus, to promote proactive and productive job seeking behaviors among East Asian international job seekers, it is important to assess and address their cognitive appraisal of their abilities to find a job in the U.S.

Theoretical and Practical Implications

The results of this study suggest that Bandura’s model was partially valid in terms of the predictive strength of the four efficacy source variables in the domain of job search self-efficacy. To expand the scope of the theoretical implications of this model, further examination of this model in other international student samples and other domains of self-efficacy are needed. As our results suggested, developing interventions that address East Asian international job seekers' sense of job search-related performance accomplishments and focus on effective verbal encouragement and guidance is especially important. To increase one’s sense of mastery in job search tasks, structuring successful performance accomplishments in vocational counseling is critical. To do so, career counselors can (a) assist East Asian international graduate students to make connections between their job search skills developed from their previous jobs and desired jobs and help them demonstrate those connections in their resume writing and interviews; (b) conduct job search-related presentations or workshops (e.g., resume writing, interview, self-marketing strategies, work visa application process and timeline); and (c) provide opportunities such as mock interviews for the international job seekers to practice interviewing. A multisession program such as job-search focused support groups can be instrumental for international job seekers than a one-time intervention.

It may be critical for career counselors to verbally underscore the strengths of these clients to increase their confidence in their job search abilities. Modesty is a salient cultural value of this population, which may lead them to focus more on personal weaknesses than strengths. Career-related assessment can be employed to help East Asian international student job seekers to identify their strengths. Additionally, guidance and sometimes direct advice in the development of job search-related skills to this population may be helpful to boost one’s sense of self-efficacy (Bandura, 1997). Yet as discussed earlier, it is important to assess and address the subjective appraisal of their job search self-efficacy to facilitate the effectiveness of the verbal encouragement or guidance provided to the East Asian international job seekers on their job search behaviors.

Suggestions for Future Research

Based on the discussion above, future investigations can incorporate additional contextual factors such as perceived coping efficacy, acculturation level, career certainty, and family expectations and investigate how they may influence the relationship between job search self-efficacy and job search behaviors. While including these variables in the future research, the assessment of acculturation level of East Asian international students warrants particular caution because thus far no psychometrically appropriate acculturation measure for this population of interest is available. In addition, Ajzen’s (1991) Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) proposed that people’s confidence in their abilities to perform various job search activities and their job search intentions predict their job search behaviors. In our study, we mainly focused on international job seekers' job search self-efficacy and did not include a measure of job search intentions. Thus, future research can expand this line of investigation by examining intention variables such as job search attitudes (e.g., commitment to seek employment in the U.S.) and perceptions of social pressure to engage in job seeking. Moreover, our study examined the job search self-efficacy and the frequency of job search activities within the time span of 6 months prior to the graduation of the participants. Longitudinal research can be conducted by following up the job search outcomes during their OPT period. Furthermore, this study was the first to examine the effects of the four sources variables of job search self-efficacy and its relationship to the job search behaviors among East Asian international graduate students. Future investigation of job search self-efficacy and job search behaviors can replicate this study with other international groups and noninternational populations to further understand the predictive strengths of the sources variables of job search self-efficacy and its influences on the job search behaviors. Finally, more refined validity studies on the source measures of job search self-efficacy are needed. A factor analysis may yield interesting findings regarding how the four efficacy source variables cluster together and how that may look differently for different groups.

Limitations

As with all studies, this study has some limitations. First, given the uniqueness of the target population, the purposeful recruitment may have limited the sample size for our study. Our findings should be replicated with a larger sample of East Asian international students. Given the skewed country of origin distribution (79% from China and Taiwan; 21% from Japan and South Korea) in the sample, we are not able to compare or evaluate for cross-cultural differences in the sample, which is also a limitation in the study and an area for future research. Because we did not use random selection in recruiting participants to the study, it is possible that the sample is not representative of East Asian international students across the U.S. universities. Second, all of the instruments were self-reported measures. Thus, these subjective perceptions may not reflect the participants' actual experiences. Third, this study looked at participants' job search behaviors within a 6-month time span prior to their graduation. This restriction of time span yielded partial evidences of the job search process and behaviors and cannot be generalized to job search outcomes. Furthermore, the measures of four sources of job search self-efficacy were constructed for the study and have only been validated on two small samples, which raise an issue of measurement error. The marginal internal consistency reliability estimate of the verbal persuasion in this sample suggests the findings related to this variable are tentative until replicated with other samples. Therefore, more psychometrically adequate properties of these source scales are needed in future studies.

Footnotes

Editor's Note: The authors thank Scott V. Solberg for serving as external action editor for this article.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

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