Chapter 6. Conclusion and Discussion
6.3 Limitation and Future Research
Freshmen and sophomores were excluded from this study, as they are still in the process of adapting themselves to the college life and learning. This study selected junior and senior students as the subjects, as they have lived school life for more than two years, and are preparing to enter workplaces. Moreover, students at in-service programs and further education programs were also excluded from this study, as their ages were widely varied and some had work experience, meaning that occupational choice intention was no longer the most important objective of career development. Consequently, this study only selected junior and senior students as the subjects, thus, the research results may not be extended to a larger scope. Regarding limitations of research variables, as this study investigated the relationships among college students’self-concept, social supports, academic performances, and occupational choice intentions, it did not probe into other variables affecting students’further education or employment intentions. Regarding the limitations of research methods, due to the limitations of time, financial resources, and manpower, this study used a quantitative questionnaire as a research tool to analyze and
interpret the results, and declined further investigation using qualitative approaches.
In terms of research methods, as this study only used a higher statistical analysis approach, SEM, for analysis and did not use any qualitative approach, the results may not be fully analyzed or interpreted. Therefore, future studies are advised to use qualitative interviews, observation methods, in-depth interviews, etc. to further understand the predictive power and status of college students’self-concept, social supports, and academic performances to occupational choice intention. Moreover, it is advised to use action research to assist students in developing mature decision-making skills and certainty in career choice.
In terms of research contents, this study simply investigated students’self-concept, social support, academic performance, and occupational choice intention. Therefore, the explanatory power of the overall self-concept, and its aspects regarding occupational choice intention, were not high, suggesting that many affecting factors remain to be investigated. Moreover, this study presumed that because self-concept covers various aspects, its effect on occupational choice intention may be lower. If the relationships between various aspects and occupational choice intentions are investigated, the explanatory power of occupational choice intention may be higher, which could be explored in future studies.
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