Career-related goal pursuit among post-high school youth: Relations between personal control beliefs and control strivings

The present research reveals the bi-directional relationship between career-related control beliefs and strivings, and their predictive relationship with hours of gainful employment. Three waves of data of a longitudinal study of 532 graduating high school seniors from four ethnically diverse schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results show individuals’ career-related personal control beliefs in effort and social connections, but not in ability or luck, were significantly predictive of career-related control strivings 1 year later. Thus, only personal control beliefs in causal factors that are contingent on an individual’s primary control strivings to enact effects are predictive of active motivational engagement in pursuit of career-related goals. Regarding the inverse direction of influence (i.e., strivings predict beliefs), career-related control strivings were significantly predictive of careerrelated personal control beliefs in ability, effort, and social connections, but not luck, 1 year later. These results support the idea that active goal engagement creates an implemental mindset that optimistically biases individuals’ beliefs in their personal control over causal factors relevant to attaining a pursued career-related goal. In addition, the results show that career-related control strivings, but not career-related personal control beliefs, are significantly positively associated with the number of hours of gainful employment worked 1-year later, supporting a beliefsstrivings-outcome sequential relationship.