Evaluating Career Self-Efficacy of African American College Students With Disabilities: A Factor-Analytic Approach

Background: Enhancing career self-efficacy and social cognitive career theory factors will improve goal persistence and job place of African American college students with disabilities. Objective: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Career Self-Efficacy Scale (CSES) in a sample of African American college students with disabilities. Method: Participants were recruited from a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in a Southern state. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were used to investigate the measurement structure of the CSES. Results/Findings:Three-factor solution accounted for 66.85% of the total variance. The three CSES factors were labeled as (a) job performance efficacy, (b) job seeking efficacy, and (c) emotional efficacy. The Cronbach's alpha coefficients for these three factors were high ranging from .82 to .91. Career self-efficacy was positively and significantly associated with career outcome expectations and goal persistence. These findings provide support for the construct validity of the CSES. Conclusion:The CSES is a psychometrically sound instrument that can be used to assess career self-efficacy, an important construct of the Social Cognitive Career Theory, to help African American college students with disabilities to persist in college and find gainful employment.