Pre-service Teachers’ Career Values as Determinants of Career Choice Satisfaction: A Hierarchical Regression Analysis

• Published in: The Asia-Pacific education researcher Vol. 30; no. 5; pp. 431 - 442
• Main Authors: An, Min, Zhang, Xiao, Ching, Fiona N. Y.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Singapore Springer Singapore 01-10-2021; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Associate Degrees; Career Choice; Careers; Education; Educational Policy and Politics; Foreign Countries; Gender Differences; International and Comparative Education; Learning and Instruction; Motivation; Occupational choice; Predictor Variables; Preservice Teachers; Regression analysis; Regular Article; Satisfaction; Sociology of Education; Student Characteristics; Student Motivation; Teacher education; Values; China; Teacher education; Career choice satisfaction; Pre-service teachers; Motivation to teach; Hierarchical regression analysis
• ISSN: 0119-5646; 2243-7908
• DOI: 10.1007/s40299-020-00529-7

This study examined the relationships among pre-service teachers’ demographics, motivational factors, and career choice satisfaction in the Chinese context. A sample of 503 pre-service teachers at three education universities from East China was investigated. Informed by the Fit-Choice framework, a hierarchical multiple regression analysis was implemented. Female pre-service teachers had higher levels of career choice satisfaction than their male counterparts, and pre-service teachers with an associate degree had higher levels of career choice satisfaction than those without such a degree. Motivational factors jointly explained 67% of variance in pre-service teachers’ career choice satisfaction, among which intrinsic career value was the strongest predictor. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.