Assessing the impact of courage and proactive personality on Italian and Spanish psychology students in career transitions: A multigroup analysis

Abstract

The instability resulting from major changes in recent decades has fostered a climate of uncertainty and risk that has had repercussions in terms of unemployment, social inequality, and precariousness. To cope with this phenomenon, especially in the context of career transitions, individuals have had to activate multiple psychological resources. In particular, these resources are required in the transition from academic life to the world of work and in the propensity and courage to make certain choices. In our study, we examined two main hypotheses: the mediating effect of courage and proactive personality in the relationship between career adaptability and university satisfaction in a sample of 657 (336 Italian and 321 Spanish) psychology students attending their final year of studies; through a multigroup analysis, the comparison of the two different subsamples, coming from different cultural contexts: Italian and Spanish. The results suggest important differences between these two groups.

Keywords

Academic satisfaction career development career transitions courage career adaptability

Introduction

The third millennium has been defined as an instability era; its prominent features are rapid social and technological changes, and phenomena that increase risky and uncertain conditions (e.g., globalization, unemployment, a sense of precariousness, social inequality, and disruptive events as pandemics or war). These characteristics, involving socioeconomic dimensions at a global level, require individuals to be flexible and adaptable to changing working and living conditions, to nonlinear career and life trajectories (Beck, 2015; Ginevra et al., 2018). These processes involve overall individuals who are crossing life and career transition periods, requiring the activation of many psychological resources to face the growing perception of negativity about the future, and feelings of fear about the possible outcomes (Nota & Rossier, 2015).

As underlined in a recent literature review (Magnano et al., 2021), the classical studies on university-to-work transition have explored the influence of sociodemographic variables, personality traits, and career development variables (Di Fabio & Kenny, 2015; Hirschi, 2010; Santisi et al., 2018); more recently, a large body of literature has deepened the role that positive psychological resources can play in managing effectively career transitions. The Life Design paradigm offers the theoretical framework for career construction to encompass the complex dynamics and multiple nonlinear interactions involved in the evolution of people's life and career trajectories (Reid, 2016; Savickas, 2011; Savickas et al., 2009). Savickas (2005) defining career paths in the third millennium as unpredictable, identified career adaptability as the core psychological resource to enable individuals to respond adaptively to continuous career changes (Gori et al., 2022). In Savickas’ theories, successful career construction is a continuous process of active adaptation resulting from person-environment integration, where people must actively build their careers, responding effectively to environmental challenges through acquiring career resources (Savickas, 2002, 2012). Moreover, positive psychology (Lodi et al., 2021; Vela et al., 2019) identifies the positive resources that can support individuals in dealing with challenging and uncertain conditions; among others, proactive personality and courage are protective factors in the management of career paths, in the negotiation of transitions, and in the design of the future (Hirschi, 2014; Jiang et al., 2023; Parola & Marcionetti, 2022; Zammitti, 2021). They can interact with specific career resources helping emerging adults to respond more efficiently given the current context of fluidity and risk in building a successful and satisfactory career path. The use of these resources will probably have a positive effect on the future careers of recent graduates (Krumboltz & Worthington, 1999), affecting the university-to-work transition and other future career transitions and ensuring their general and domain-specific well-being.

Literature Review

Career Adaptability

We briefly introduce the variables analyzed in the empirical research more analytically. As underlined above, the core construct in the Life Design paradigm is career adaptability: It enables individuals to manage effectively professional tasks and role transitions, actively building one's own professional life by facing changes and considering the social context (Savickas et al., 2009). Career adaptability helps individuals in constructing their uncertain future, in facing unfavorable working conditions, in actively adapting to changes in labor market conditions, and finally in increasing their well-being. The construct of career adaptability derives from the intersection of four dimensions: (a) concern, which is the positive, optimistic, and hopeful vision of the future; (b) control, which is referred to the sense of individual ability to handle adequately the career decision-making process; (c) curiosity, that is related to the propensity for exploration of alternative possibilities in career choices; and (d) confidence, the perception of self-efficacy in facing challenges and overcoming obstacles to obtain career-related goals (Savickas, 1997). Students and workers high in career adaptability are able to handle career challenges more effectively, as they can count on high levels of optimism, persistence, coping, ability to search for information, ability to imagine multiple possible future scenarios, academic performance, and well-being (Creed et al., 2009; Hirschi, 2009; Maggiori et al., 2013). Several recent studies have related career adaptability with indicators of subjective well-being, both in general life and in specific domains: Hirschi (2009) found that different levels of adaptability can be correlated with the levels of control in one's life and perceived well-being; Veres and Szamosközi (2018) in a meta-analytic study found a relationship between career adaptability and professional well-being (academic, school, work, and career satisfaction). Konstam et al. (2015) showed that career adaptability is a protective factor of subjective well-being in unemployment situations, generally characterized by anxiety and depression: in their study, emerging adults who showed higher levels of control and confidence also revealed higher levels of life satisfaction. Moreover, in a recent meta-analytic study conducted by Rudolph et al. (2017), career adaptability was positively associated with many career, work, and subjective well-being outcomes, such as the disposition to be flexible in making career transitions and behaving adaptively in exploring diverse career paths, that, in turn, increase career satisfaction and reduce stress perception. A recent study (Urbanaviciute et al., 2019) demonstrated that career adaptability can affect long-term individual adjustment through its capacity of maintaining high levels of well-being. Finally, career adaptability is involved in university adjustment (Almeida & Teixeira, 2018; Ramos & Lopez, 2018); accordingly, Cabras and Mondo (2018) found that higher levels of career adaptability in university students were associated with higher life satisfaction (Ceschi et al., 2019; Di Fabio & Bucci, 2013; Gori et al., 2020).

Proactive Personality (o Proactivity)

Starting from the definition of proactive behavior proposed by Crant (2000), “taking initiative in improving current circumstances or creating new ones” (p. 436), proactivity or proactive personality is the disposition or the tendency to engage in proactive behaviors, with the aim to change the surrounding environment (Trifiletti et al., 2009). Proactive individuals are oriented toward the identification and solution of problems, they are opened to new opportunities, engaged in action, and perseverant toward their scopes. In career development tasks, proactive individuals act as active agents interacting with the environment, dealing with work transitions and traumas, and coping with anticipated and unexpected challenges (Cai et al., 2015). Consistently with the sense of personal agency, the concept of proactive personality reflects individuals’ tendency to initiate actions to identify alternative opportunities and shape their environments (Bateman & Crant, 1993; Crant, 2000). Several studies in the career construction domain have demonstrated that persons high in proactivity are engaged in actively developing their careers and are more likely to achieve better career goals (e.g., Fuller & Marler, 2009; Kammeyer-Mueller & Wanberg, 2003; Seibert et al., 2001); Tolentino and colleagues (2014), for example, have found a positive association between career adaptability and proactive personality, among others.

Proactive personality literature has shown that proactive personality is positively associated with job satisfaction (e.g., Liao, 2015, 2021) and career satisfaction (e.g., Jawahar & Liu, 2017). There is a limited number of studies that have explored the role of proactive personality in the academic context and the relationship between proactive personality and academic satisfaction. The study presented will try to fill this gap.

Courage

Among the character strengths, Peterson and Seligman (2004) and Seligman (2012) identified courage as one of the positive resources that help people to flourish. In fact, courage, overcoming humans’ vulnerability, enables people to protect something considered important, acting despite the feeling of fear (Howard & Alipour, 2014; Norton & Weiss, 2009). Therefore, if the future is something important to protect, especially in periods of transition and insecurity, courage can support the engagement in constructing one's future opportunities despite the risks it entails. Very recent studies have demonstrated the protective role of courage in facing risky situations, coping with stressful conditions, making career choices, and planning career paths despite current fears (Fowers et al., 2017). Courage has the power to reduce negative feelings, such as fear, discomfort, and apprehension, that can negatively affect general and career-related (Fusco et al., 2019; Reibling et al., 2017) well-being (Lange, 2013); we agree with Ginevra et al. (2020) that courage is “an adaptive behavior to cope with career development tasks and changing work and career conditions and for promoting life satisfaction” (p. 459). There is a growing interest in exploring the relationships between courage and career-related variables, as behaving courageously despite fears and perceived risks, can affect how people succeed or not in facing new challenges, such as career management or career transitions. In the field of career development, recent studies have found courage to be positively related to career adaptability, positive working behavioral outcomes, self-efficacy, positive affect, and motivation to achieve aims by implementing alternative solutions; people with higher levels of courage feel fewer threats and show more adaptive coping skills (Ginevra et al., 2018; Magnano et al., 2017; Magnano et al., 2021). Putman (1997) stated that the development of psychological courage is a key factor to improve personal well-being. Subsequently, individuals with higher levels of courage tend to show better personal well-being.

Academic Satisfaction

Academic satisfaction is defined as the feeling of pleasure related to the experiences related to the student role and involves the achievement of academic objectives and aspirations (Magnano, Boerchi, et al., 2020; Magnano, Lodi, et al., 2020). In the sociocognitive framework for career development (Lent et al., 2007), academic satisfaction, being affected by several domain-specific variables, is related to overall satisfaction with life (Lent et al., 2009) and psychological well-being (Lent et al., 2005). Academic satisfaction is also related to career development variables: it is influenced by the perception of consistency between individual professional interests and the specific university course attended (Schmitt et al., 2008; Tracey & Robbins, 2006); it is related negatively to career choice anxiety and indecision and positively to career decision self-efficacy (Nauta, 2007). The recent literature on positive psychology applied to career development has found that the feeling of satisfaction with the educational context is related to positive psychological resources that, in turn, enhance the capacity to imagine positive future scenarios and a positive orientation toward the future. The very recent literature on career development has underlined that satisfaction with school and university is related in emerging adults to effective career planning by the activation of career management skills and other non-intellective competencies (Kumar, 2006; Lent et al., 2007; Shalley et al., 2004; Zammitti et al., 2021).

However, most part of the studies in the literature on these issues has used mainly students’ life satisfaction, rather than a strictly domain-specific measure (Magnano et al., 2021). Academic satisfaction with university courses is an antecedent of future positive variables linked to the work context, such as involvement in work, as it is related to career competencies and subjective career achievement (Blanch & Aluja, 2010; Lo Presti et al., 2022; Lodi et al., 2020). Finally, a hopeful attitude toward the future is a protective factor for college students’ mental health, psychological and physical health, and positive life outcomes at various educational levels (Larsen & Stege, 2012; Marques et al., 2011; Vela et al., 2019). As affirmed in a recent work, “theory and research about the development of career paths underline that satisfaction with school and university is related to the use and improvement of positive resources and planning skills in career projects; in fact, the positive experience in the educational context derives from the opportunity to acquire and improve the skills, the professional interests, and the competencies, which, in turn, will support future transitions” (Lodi et al., 2021, p. 1033). More specifically, the positive experience in an academic context will contribute to imagining a positive future scenario that can affect the behavioral intention and the subsequent actions (Ajzen & Fishbein, 2000) that, in turn, will implement in active research of a job; this dynamic will lead students in a university-to-work transition to be effective and not discouraged from the current changing and unstable situation of the job market.

The Rationale and Purpose of the Study

Altogether, the career-related individual resources presented in the previous paragraphs can act as protective factors for the positive outcomes and well-being experienced in career transitions, despite the current unpredictable context, assuming a proactive and constructive function toward individuals’ own career projects, and activating effectual response to challenges and threats. Nevertheless, the dimensions presented interact at different levels: career adaptability includes beliefs and attitudes in the exploration of oneself and the context, and the capacity to adapt and integrate different individual and contextual factors in a long time and space with respect to career readiness; proactivity is a tendency to be engaged in proactive behavior toward the environment's challenges; courage is a behavioral dimension, is the persistence and the perseverance in action despite the fear linked to the perception of risk. These protective factors, supporting people in coping with the probable career shocks, can positively impact the career development process, affecting also life and academic satisfaction (Ginevra et al., 2018; Siebert et al., 2020). The degree of university satisfaction is a source of information on future positive dimensions related to work. Specifically, Blanch and Aluja (2010) demonstrated that satisfaction with university courses correlates with subsequent involvement in work, and Lo Presti and colleagues (2022) showed in a sample of new graduates that academic satisfaction was a mediator between career competencies and subjective career success.

This dynamic interaction among the variables could act differently in different cultural contexts; with the aim of testing the mediational role of courage and proactivity in the relationship between career adaptability and academic satisfaction in two different cultural contexts, the study has been conducted in Spain and Italy. Spain and Italy are both European Union countries with a high rate of youth unemployment: the latest data received in October 2022 indicate that the unemployment rate among young people is 23.9% in Italy, while it is 32.3% in Spain (source: https://www.fxempire.it/macro/spain/youth-unemployment rate). The career transition from the university context to the working context, therefore, requires, above all, the improvement of the psychological resources to face an uncertain context and numerous challenges. Compared to the past, the profession of psychologist is particularly in demand by virtue of a greater awareness of its role as a promoter of well-being within the social context, but in contexts characterized by a strong economic crisis, this aspect is left out compared to others deemed more necessary.

Starting from these premises, we hypothesize that:

Hypothesis 1 (H1): There is a positive relationship between career adaptability (independent variable) and satisfaction of university students with respect to the choice of their study path (outcome), final year Psychology students (see Figure 1).

Hypothesis 2 (H2): In line with the literature review expressed so far, there is a mediating effect by individual variables such as proactive personality and courage (see Figure 1).

Finally, there is a Research question:

RQ1: Are there differences between the two cultural contexts (the Italian and the Spanish one) with respect to the model of Figure 1? To answer this question, we conduct a multi-group analysis. In particular, the aims will be to identify similarities and differences with respect to the different countries of origin. We will therefore verify whether the relationship between the constructs is different in the two countries of origin and whether the variables in question have a different impact in the two groups.

Figure 1.

Theoretical model.

Intercultural comparison of the mediational model could provide further knowledge on the development of psychosocial resources involved in career transitions in different cultural contexts, offering insights into the implementation of career counseling programs.

Method

Participants and Procedure

The participants in the research were 657 (336 Italians and 321 Spanish) psychology students attending the last year of their studies (Italians interviewed in northern and southern Italy, Spaniards in Salamanca and Almeria) mostly female (57 .9%), aged between 23 and 28, 9.1% were working students and 5.1% out of course.

The participants were enrolled through convenience sampling; the study design is cross-sectional. The participants were involved in the study in two ways: (1) a link to the survey was published in the social media groups; and (2) via written correspondence (e.g., email or invitation by letter to participate). By clicking on the link, respondents were presented with a participant information sheet and an informed consent form, which, only once accepted, led to the survey with instructions on how to complete it. The data were collected between May 2021 and October 2022 and the relevant research procedures followed all the guidelines of the AIP (Italian Psychology Association) and its Ethics Council. Participation was voluntary. Questionnaires were administrated individually and anonymously. For administration to the sample of Spanish students, all the scales were subjected to back translation following the indications of Beaton and colleagues (2000).

Measures

Career adaptability

Career adaptability was measured through the 24 items of the CAAS (Savickas & Porfeli, 2012; Italian adaptation Soresi et al., 2012). It is divided into four first-order factors each consisting of six items: concern, control, curiosity, and confidence as psychosocial resources for managing occupational transitions, developmental tasks, and work traumas. Participants responded on a five-point Likert-scale ranging from “I absolutely have this capacity, skill” to “I absolutely do not have this capacity, skill.” An example item for each of the four dimensions follows: concern: “Thinking about what my future will be like.”; control: “Making decisions by myself.”; curiosity: “Exploring my environment.”; and confidence: “Taking care to do things well.” (Cronbach's alpha for the Italian version is .95; Cronbach's alpha for the Spanish version is .89).

College Satisfaction Scale

The College Satisfaction Scale (Lodi et al., 2017) measures the degree of college satisfaction in a multidimensional perspective; it is composed of 20 items, four for each of the following areas of satisfaction it assesses the appropriateness of the student's choice, the quality of the university's services, relationships with his or her colleagues, the quality of his or her study habits, and the usefulness for his or her future career. The instructions asked the participants to indicate how satisfied they feel about different aspects of college experience, using a five-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (not at all) to 5 (completely). (Cronbach's alpha for the Italian version is .91; Cronbach's alpha for the Spanish version is .80).

Proactive Personality Scale

We have used the abbreviated version of Seibert et al. (1999, 2001), in the Italian adaptation of Trifiletti and colleagues (2009). The scale measures the inclination to take action and change the environment to achieve one's goals. In particular, this dimension represents an individual's ability to control their surrounding environment in an active, self-determined way (Lorenz et al., 2016; Platania & Paolillo, 2022). Proactive people search for opportunities, act, show initiative, and persevere until they produce a change (Alarcon et al., 2009). Participants answered 10 items using a seven-point Likert scale ranging from 1 = “absolutely false” to 7 = “absolutely true”. (Cronbach's alpha for the Italian version is 91; Cronbach's alpha for the Spanish version is .82).

Courage measure

The courage measure has been developed by Norton and Weiss (2009). This scale composed of 12 items measures courage as a single and broad construct. The CM had a unidimensional factor structure, had adequate test–retest reliability, and strongly correlated with the approach distance to the spider. Subsequently Howard and Alipour (2014) conducted several psychometric analyses that showed that CM is not unidimensional but consisted of two dimensions (regular and reverse coding). The authors suggested removing reverse-coded items and avoiding the two items that specifically mentioned courage in the items, proposing that the remaining six positively worded items constitute a new construct defined as persistence despite fear. For the current study, we used the Italian adaptation of Ginevra and colleagues (2020), composed of six items and a single factor. Participants responded using a seven-point Likert scale ranging from 1 = “never” to 7 = “always”. An example item is “I tend to face my fears.” (Cronbach's alpha for the Italian version is .89; Cronbach's alpha for the Spanish version is .80).

Data Analysis

First, descriptive statistics, discriminant validity, reliability, and bivariate correlations between variables were calculated. Moreover, to complete the reliability analyses, convergent validity was added by calculating the extracted mean variance (AVE) and construction reliability (CR). Both, the AVE must be >0.50 (Fornell & Larcker, 1981) and the CR > 0.60. To test the differences between the groups and provide evidence of the discriminant validity of the scales between unconstrained (baseline) and constrained models, a significant chi-squared difference was conducted.

Other well-known analytical tools such as correlations were also used, which were implemented using SPSS 27.0 and AMOS 26.0. We tested mediation in which two regression models were applied simultaneously, assuming that the total effect of the dependent variable on the independent variable is different from the direct effect of the variable. The indirect effect was tested using a bootstrap estimation approach on 2000 samples and a percentile method corrected for 95% bias. Furthermore, for estimating the moderating effect of the two different groups, we applied invariance tests and multigroup analyses. To do this, we used the maximum likelihood (ML) estimation methods, we adapted the model individually to each group to eliminate the elements that did not contribute to the quality of regulation and then we tested for model estimation between groups.

Results

The Preliminary Questions

As preliminary questions, students were asked “What do you think likely after graduation finding a job consistent with your studies?” and “What likely do you think after graduation finding a job within three years of completing your studies?.” The questions were asked on a graded scale with a score ranging from 1 = highly unlikely to 7 = highly likely. As regard the first question, the Italian students answered with an average score of 4.13 (SD = .79), while the Spanish students with an average score of 5.29 (SD = .96); the second question was answered by Italian students with an average of 4.69 (SD = .85) and Spanish students with 6.32 (SD = 1.03). Spanish students, therefore, seem more confident than Italian students, even if no statistically significant differences between the two groups can be deduced.

Descriptive Statistic, Bivariate Correlation, and Reliability

The results in Table 1 showed descriptive statistics and correlation matrix for the study variables. Specifically, career adaptability correlates positively (p < 0.001) with all the variables present in the research model. Furthermore, all the variables present in the model correlate positively with each other (see Table 1).

Table 1.

Descriptive statistic, correlation, and reliability.

	Mean	SD	α	AVE	CR	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
1.Career adaptability	4.06	.39	.87	.62	.84	-
2.Concern	3.57	.97	.86	.71	.90	.39**	-
3.Control	4.83	1.07	.89	.72	.95	.51**	.16*	-
4. Curiosity	4.73	.74	.85	.70	.91	.43**	.29**	.31**	-
5. Confidence	4.56	.67	.82	.65	.86	.38**	.45**	.27**	.62**	-
6.Courage	5.59	.53	.80	.69	.87	.42**	.14**	.71**	.36**	.28**	-
7.Proactive personality	5.49	.71	.84	.72	.96	.27**	.21**	.17*	.19*	.14*	.31**	-
8. College satisfaction	4.85	.62	.78	.58	.79	.46**	.60**	.09	.81**	.79**	.54**	.43**

p scores: *<0.05, **<0.001.

Table 2.

Confirmatory factor analysis results for the study model and alternative models for comparison.

Model	Cmin/df	χ²	df	TLI	CFI	SRMR	RMSEA (C.I.)	AIC	BIC	Δχ²
3-s order factors and 1-first factor model (a)	2.56	425.369	166	.91	.92	.04	.057 (.041–.068)	168.587	96.752	-
1-factor model with all items loading on a unique factor (b)	3.33	559.784	168	.72	.64	.06	.131 (.123–.142)	365.117	185.463	134.42

To verify the convergent validity, we tested the composite reliability and the average variance extracted, the results were: CR .84, AVE .62, for Career Adatability; CR .90, AVE .71, for Concern; CR .95, AVE .72, for Control; CR .91, AVE .70, for Curiosity; CR .86, AVE .65, for Confidence; CR .87, AVE .69, for Courage; CR .96, AVE .72, for Proactive personality and CR 0.79, AVE 0.58, for College satisfaction. Finally, the analysis of the coefficients Cronbach's alpha (α) also strengthens the validity. Together with CR and AVE, indicated a good overall internal consistency of the scale (Hair et al., 2009).

CFA to Test the Model

To confirm the goodness of our model, it was performed a comparison between two different models. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted according to Harman's single-factor test in order to diagnose the extent to which common method variance might be a problem. The first model gave a better fit for the data across all CFA fit measures. CFA was performed using robust maximum likelihood estimation to examine the structure of the constructs. We compared our model with 3-s order factors (Courage, College satisfaction, and Proactive personality) and three factors of Career adaptability (Concern, Control, Curiosity and Confidence), with a model with one factor (with all items loading on a unique factor). The results revealed that the first model (a) provided a good fit to the data: χ² [166, n = 657] = 425.369, p < 0.001, χ²/df = 2.56, RMSEA = 0.06 (CI = 0.041–0.068), CFI = 0.92, TLI = 0.91, SRMR = 0.04. Moreover, the AIC and BIC values were 168.587 and 96.752.

The second CFA model included the same factors but considered all scales with a single-factor structure, in which all indicators were loaded onto a single factor. The results of this model provided a worse fit to the data (χ² [168, n = 657] = 559.784, p < 0.001, χ²/df = 3.33, RMSEA = 0.13 (CI = 0.123–0.142), CFI = 0.64, TLI = 0.72, SRMR = 0.06, AIC = 365.117; BIC = 185.463). The differences were found to be significant by comparing the chi-square values and the degrees of freedom of both models (Δχ² (2) = 134.542, p < 0.001). According to these results, no evidence for common method bias was found in the data (see Table 2).

Structural Model

To perform the multiple mediation analysis, we used structural equation models. The effects of multiple mediator variables could be tested individually and simultaneously (Chen & Hung, 2016). The College satisfaction was entered as the dependent variable, while the variables of Career adaptability (Concern, Control, Curiosity and Confidence) were independent variables; Courage and Proactive personality were entered as mediators. All variables were entered as latent constructs, with the exception of variables of the College satisfaction, which were entered as an observed construct. The bootstrapping method (i.e., 2000 samples) was used with bias-corrected (BC) confidence intervals to obtain more powerful confidence interval limits for indirect effects (95% CI) (Preacher & Hayes, 2008).

Direct Effects

The Path in Figure 2 showed that there was a positive direct effect of all paths (Concern, Control, Curiosity and Confidence) on the outcome (College Satisfaction). In particular, there was a direct effect of Concern on College satisfaction (β = .31; p < 0.001), of Control on College Satisfaction (β = .43; p < 0.001), of Curiosity on College satisfaction (β = .22; p < 0.001) and Confidence on College Satisfaction (β = .36; p < 0.001). Moreover, there was a direct effect of Control (β = .27; p < 0.001) and Confidence (β = .24; p < 0.001), on Courage and on Proactive Personality (β = .51; p < 0.001), and there was a direct effect of Curiosity (β = .25; p < 0.001), and Confidence (β = .22; p < 0.001) on Proactive Personality. Finally, there was a direct effect of Courage (β = .25; p < 0.001) and Proactive Personality (β = .26; p < 0.001), on College Satisfaction (see Figure 1). Our hypothesis 1 was confirmed.

Figure 2.

Structural model ***p < 0.001, ** p < 0.01, and * p < 0.05.

The Multimediation Effect of Courage and Proactive Personality

To verify the existence of indirect effects in our study, we used the procedure of Hayes and Scharkow (2013). Bootstrapping was used to construct two-sided BC 95% CIs to evaluate indirect effects. As presented in Table 3, the bootstrap CIs do not cross zero.

Table 3.

Standardized indirect effects from career adaptability to college satisfaction through courage and proactive personality.

Independent variables	Mediator	Dependent variables	Estimate	SE	BC 95% CI
Independent variables	Mediator	Dependent variables	Estimate	SE	LL	UL
Control	Courage	College Satisfaction	.06**	.03	0.087	0.298
Confidence	Courage	College Satisfaction	.07***	.04	0.173	0.239
Control	Proactive Personality	College Satisfaction	.08***	.03	0.185	0.413
Curiosity	Proactive Personality	College Satisfaction	.06**	.03	0.084	0.251
Confidence	Proactive Personality	College Satisfaction	.08***	.03	0.096	0.411

Results indicated that Courage mediated the effects of Control on College satisfaction (β = 0.06, p < 0.01, 95% CI [0.087–0.298]), and Confidence (β = .07, p < 0.001, 95% CI [0.173–0.239]. Moreover, the results showed that the Proactive personality mediated the effects of Control (β = .08, p < 0.001, 95% CI [0.185–0.413]) Curiosity (β = .06, p < 0.01, 95%, CI [0.084–0.251]), and Confidence (β = .08, p < 0.001, 95%, CI [0.096–0.411], on College Satisfaction (Hypothesis 2 was confirmed, see Table 3).

Multigroup Analysis

In order to test whether there were differences in our structural model between Italian and Spanish students, we conducted a multigroup analysis which allowed us to verify the moderating effect of the variable between groups. To verify these group differences, it must establish that differences exist between these groups and that these differences are derived from structural differences in the path coefficients across the group. Specifically, before any evidence bearing on the equality of the structural paths was evaluated (i.e., a test of structural invariance), it is important to check whether the measurement parameters operate in the same way for both groups (test of measurement invariance) (Cheung & Rensvold, 2002; De Pasquale et al., 2022; Platania, Gruttadauria, et al., 2022; Platania, Morando, et al., 2022).

The first step of data analysis was testing the invariance of the measurement model across the two groups by comparing the unconstrained model (i.e., with all parameters free) with the model with measurement weights (all Factor loadings are constrained) with Structural Covariances model all Factor loadings + factor variances and covariances are constrained) to Measurement Errors (all Factor loadings + factor variances + factor covariances + error variances are constrained) (Tan & Pektaş, 2020). The results indicated that the structural model presented adequate fit indices in the multigroup (Table 4).

Table 4.

Multigroup analysis: Testing for measurement invariance across Italian students (n = 336) and Spanish students (n = 321).

Measurement model	χ²	df	Δχ²	Δdf	NFI	CFI	RMSEA
Multigroup model for the total sample	385.823	208	-		.92	.94	.054
Unconstrained model (Configural)	396.374	213	10.55	5	.92	.94	.051
Measurement Weights	469.518	224	83.70	16	.92	.94	.051
Structural Covariances	515.367	239	129.54	31	.92	.94	.051
Measurement Errors	564.268	258	178.44**	50	.92	.93	.051

***p < 0.001.

Note: NFI = Normed fit index; CFI = Comparative fit index; RMSE = Root mean square error of approximation.

The test reveals a good fit of the model for both observed groups, however, a significant increase in chi-square in the structural model indicates that there is a moderating effect of the variable defining the groups [Δχ²(Δdf = 50) = 178.44, p < 0.001].

Subsequently, in order to verify whether there were substantial differences in their structural relationships we had to estimate separate structural models for each group. The fit indices of both models showed identical or nearly equivalent values, the results are shown in Table 5.

Table 5.

Multigroup analysis: Testing for path coefficients invariance across Italian and Spanish students groups (n = 657).

Structural model	χ²	df	Δχ²	Δdf
Model 1: Baseline model	472.26	234	-	-
Model 2: Factor loadings and all path coefficients invariant	519.62	265	47.37**	31
Model 3: Path coefficient Concern Courage	521.17	266	1.55	1
Model 4: Path coefficient Concern PP	522.05	266	2.43	1
Model 5: Path coefficient Concern CS	525.77	266	6.15*	1
Model 6: Path coefficient Control Courage	527.58	266	7.96**	1
Model 7: Path coefficient Control PP	515.66	266	3.96*	1
Model 8: Path coefficient Control CS	514.26	266	5.36*	1
Model 9: Path coefficient Curiosity Courage	517.83	266	1.79	1
Model 10: Path coefficient Curiosity PP	526.84	266	7.22**	1
Model 11: Path coefficient Curiosity CS	528.47	266	8.85**	1
Model 12: Path coefficient Confidence Courage	521.42	266	1.8	1
Model 13: Path coefficient Confidence PP	524.49	266	4.87*	1
Model 14: Path coefficient Confidence CS	527.61	266	7.99**	1

Note: PP = Proactive Personality; CS = College Satisfaction; **p < 0.001 and *p < 0.05.

Finally, to identify the nature of the interactions, we ran a two-level regression model against the moderator variable (i.e., one standard deviation above and one standard deviation below the mean). The results shown in Figure 3 suggest that there are statistically significant differences between the two groups in individual pathways (RQ1). In particular, Italian students are courageous, and have a more proactive personality, but are worried and not confident about their future. Spanish students have more confidence and control, they also have a strong proactive personality but show less courage.

Figure 3.

Multigroup analysis for Italian students and Spanish students ***p < 0.001, ** p < 0.01, and * p < 0.05; ns = not significant; (1) Italian students (N = 336); and (2) Spanish students (N = 321).

Discussion

The present study aimed to compare two different cultural contexts (Italy vs. Spain) in relation to the way in which for final-year Psychology students, different factors of career adaptability could be correlated with student satisfaction. The study also investigated the possible mediating role that courage and proactive personality could have in the relationship between career adaptability and satisfaction.

The results are highly relevant. Career adaptability indeed has emerged as an important and significant determinant of academic satisfaction, in line with some of the main and recent studies in the literature (Almeida & Teixeira, 2018; Ramos & Lopez, 2018; Urbanaviciute et al., 2019). Each of the career adaptability factors (Concern, Control, Curiosity, and Confidence) significantly influences college satisfaction. This implies that an optimistic and positive view of the future, adequate control of the career decision-making process, propensity to explore, and perceived self-efficacy increase the perceived college students’ satisfaction.

These results are stimulating, as they demonstrate the protective and motivational role that those factors could have on university students and their professional future and career transition.

The construct of college satisfaction has historically been related to personal success and the ability to progress and achieve specific academic goals. Experiencing well-being at university often implies possessing personal characteristics designed to cope effectively with educational challenges, adapt properly to university life, and suitably apply goal-setting strategies aimed at both the motivational process and the achievement of learning objectives. Having positive experiences on the university path, matters both for the specific academic performance and for the possible impact on future post-university performance (Friedlander et al., 2007; Santisi et al., 2018; York et al., 2015). The effect of academic satisfaction on personal future is also evidenced in studies involving adolescents (Akkermans et al., 2018). The study conducted by Akkermans et al. (2018) highlighted that the more adolescents could think about and shape their future career intentions, the more curious and self-efficient they were, the more likely they were to identify different possible future options. Owning these skills motivates adolescents toward important professional and educational futures because it stimulates their imaginative capacity for goals to be achieved and possible strategies to reach them. Similarly, senior university students (such as the final-year Psychology students in the present study) are stimulated to imagine future work scenarios of a positive and negative nature. Imagining a positive professional future stimulates the intention and action of behaviors aimed at achieving and realizing that possible scenario, as it possible future satisfaction and well-being (Goodman et al., 2011). Hence, it implies a proactive and courageous attitude of the senior students in the proactive job search and in general in the transition between the academic career and the labor market.

The findings of the present study are in line with the considerations in the literature. For the present sample examined, as well, given the good average scores obtained for college satisfaction and for each of the factors connected with career adaptability, it would seem that there are the proper conditions for a successful and satisfying transition from university student to a skilled worker. In fact, the degree of satisfaction with the academic pathway provides information on both the possible proactive role in the job search and identification with the subsequent profession, relative satisfaction, and professional engagement (Blanch & Aluja, 2010; Santisi et al., 2018).

This outcome is also supported by the impact and mediating role of the proactivity and courage constructs. Indeed, analyses showed that courage and proactivity are correlates with college satisfaction, influencing its values in a positive sense. This implies that a greater courageous attitude and a proactive personality contribute to an improved perception of well-being and college satisfaction. However, the positive effects of these variables are not only reduced to direct effects but interesting indirect effects also emerged.

More specifically, on the mediating role of courage in the relationship between the four dimensions of career adaptability and college satisfaction, it was observed that courage partially mediated the relationship between Control and Satisfaction and between Confidence and College Satisfaction.

In relation to the partial mediation between Control and College Satisfaction, the results suggested that feeling successful in handling a career transition and the decision-making process, coupled with the controlling attitude resulting from taking responsibility for personal choices, had an impact on how courage was used in thought and action. The use of courage then has a consequential effect on perceived well-being and in particular on college satisfaction. The results of the present study do not differ much from the literature on the topic, actually contributing to the consolidation of the relationship and the important contribution that courage has in the relationship between career adaptability and satisfaction. Previous studies confirmed that courage could be described as an adaptive strategy that students implement to deal successfully with professional development tasks and perceived threatening career conditions (Ginevra et al., 2018; Magnano et al., 2021).

Similarly, a partial mediation of courage was found between the factor Confidence and College Satisfaction. Since Confidence refers to beliefs about personal abilities in relation to challenges and possible barriers, it is easy to imagine that this factor had an impact on courage. Courage likewise succeeds in enhancing the effect of confidence on perceived well-being and College Satisfaction in general. The construct of courage is closely related to the components of psychological capital (hope, optimism, resilience, and self-efficacy), which coincide in some traits with those of career adaptability (Bockorny, 2015; Ke et al., 2009). These dimensions contribute to reducing the feelings of fear and risk (also associated with the construction of career paths) and increase the possibility of taking action and behaving by enacting courageous conduct, which in turn promotes growth and improves quality of life and satisfaction in general. Several scholars have also confirmed the role of courage in achieving work-related goals and improving academic performance and academic satisfaction (Lodi et al., 2022; Martin, 2011; Palanski et al., 2015; Palazzeschi et al., 2021; Tkachenko et al., 2020).

Substantial findings are also observed in relation to the proactive personality construct. In line with previous studies, this construct appears to play a decisive role in career decision-making (Fang et al., 2017) and can correlate with college students’ decision-making difficulties significantly and negatively (He et al., 2021). Moreover, in our sample, proactive personality plays a mediating role in the relationship between Control and College Satisfaction, Confidence and College Satisfaction, and Curiosity and College Satisfaction. That means that university students with typically proactive personality traits are better at developing effective goals, looking for more suitable opportunities for change and anticipating problems, and preventing their occurrence in career decision-making (Di Fabio & Saklofske, 2014; Udayar et al., 2020). All of these often result in stronger and more meaningful academic satisfaction, which always has an important effect on future and career planning (Di Fabio et al., 2019; Rossier et al., 2020).

Among the purposes of this study, there was a comparison of two different universities and cultural contexts: Italy and Spain. The analyses performed compared the entire hypothesized model and the relationships between the constructs in the two samples of university students. From the data, it was possible to deduce differences between the two contexts. With regard to the comparison made by means of multigroup analysis between the two different groups of students, interesting and substantial differences in the variables examined emerge. More specifically, Italian students actually showed higher levels of courage and a strong proactive personality, which compensated for lower levels of concern and confidence about their professional future. Spanish students, on the other hand, showed higher levels of confidence and control among the factors of career adaptability, an adequate and strong proactive personality but significantly lower levels of courage.

These differences are probably explained by specific personal skills developed in the course of personal experience and culture, rather than by specific labor market conditions in the two different countries. Actually, as a result of the economic crisis, the unemployment rate of Italian and Spanish psychologists has increased over time, but at the same time, there has been a simultaneous growth in interest in the discipline and its degree courses. Data from 2020 show that there are 117,762 psychologists registered in Italy and 34,827 in Spain. These numbers could erroneously lead people to think that the situation of future Spanish psychologists is easier and with more employment possibilities, but actually considering the total number of inhabitants and the real opportunities offered, the situation is not very different from the Italian one.

Limitations and Future Research

The study presented has several strengths, such as the proper sample size and the robustness of the statistical analysis. However, the results should be considered within the limitations of this study, which also offer excellent opportunities for further development.

The design of the research is based on a cross-sectional survey. Although it served its purpose, the use of the cross-sectional approach has limitations, and problems like social biases may arise. Based on this, it would be interesting to carry out studies on longitudinal designs that could investigate the effect of career adaptability on college satisfaction and its effect on real career satisfaction and transition. A further limitation is then represented by having examined two countries that are quite similar culturally; future research could indeed focus on countries and students from the Eastern Culture or Northern European cultures and compare the results with these just collected. In the same way, considering the level of youth unemployment, the economic crisis, and the different perceptions that different professions and students may have, it would be appropriate to carry out an internal comparison within each country also in relation to the different educational paths, in order to identify similarities and differences. Therefore, it is advisable to continue research in this area to increase knowledge of the phenomenon and to contribute to providing indications on how the engagement and satisfaction of students first and workers later could be enhanced.

Conclusion and Practical Implications

The current labor market is marked by profound instability, which requires significant effort and the deployment of increasingly complex and developed resources and skills for both incoming workers and those already in employment. Despite the uncertainty and undeniable difficulty, senior students (in the final year of their university career) are faced with the challenge of choosing their professional future, actively adapting as best they can to this unstable framework. The results of our study provide suggestions for planning interventions to support students during the university-to-work transition. The universities should strengthen career counseling services, offering training based on the Life Design approach, by increasing, that is, career adaptability, proactivity, and courage. Training in the development and enhancement of personal skills (such as curiosity, self-efficacy, control, courage, or proactivity) can certainly support students in dealing with the uncertainty and frustration arising from the transition from study to work. In this sense, not only academic satisfaction will be promoted but also an active contribution to individuals’ well-being and their more mature growth. In fact, improving these psychological resources not only increases the satisfaction that students experience with the university experience, but can help them to face the current world of work and prevent the possible negative effects of discomfort that can be experienced during the transitions (Lodi et al., 2021).

Footnotes

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.

ORCID iDs

Silvia Platania

Martina Morando

Paola Magnano

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