This article discusses what the author views as exemplary work illustrating important directions in research on the applications of Bandura's self-efficacy theory to career theory, assessment, and counseling. The author begins with research on measuring career self-efficacy, following which research testing the postulated behavioral consequences…

Summarizes Bandura's self-efficacy theory. Reviews occupational, scientific-technical, and mathematics self-efficacy, Holland's hexagonal model, the Occupational Self-Efficacy Scale, and the relationship of self-efficacy to vocational interests. Considers the applicability of these concepts to women's career development and assessment. (SK)

Interests and self-efficacy are related constructs that contribute to a better understanding of career goals. The correlation between interests and self-efficacy as measured by the Skills Confidence Inventory and Strong Interest Inventory are very stable; concurrent administration yields a comparison of levels of interest and confidence from…

The basic confidence scales of the Expanded Skills Confidence Inventory for 715 college students were correlated with confidence for Holland's six themes and basic interest scales of the Strong Interest Inventory. Discriminant analysis indicated that using both interest and confidence measures led to additional predictive power. (Contains 37…

A series of studies refined 17 scales of the Expanded Skills Confidence Inventory (n=934) and validated it with an adult sample (n=972). Scales were internally consistent, showed predictable patterns of gender differences, and were highly related to predicted Holland confidence themes. Discriminant analyses across 8 largest occupational groups…

College women (n=24) with moderate Realistic career interests and low Realistic confidence took part in an intervention focused on building, repair, and construction activities. Compared with 30 controls, the treatment group had a statistically significant increase in confidence regarding Realistic occupations. (SK)

Reviews the trend toward integrating vocational interest measurement with self-efficacy and personal styles measures. States that parallel measures of interests and self-efficacy can improve prediction of vocational choice behavior; personal styles and interests can be useful in choosing occupational settings and building career paths. Contains 53…

This study examined the relationships of vocational interests and self-efficacy expectations, or confidence, to personality, as measured by the Personal Styles scales of the Strong Interest Inventory. The study also examined the extent to which confidence and personality measures contributed incrementally to the prediction of occupational group…

The studies presented in this article resulted in the findings that gender differences in self-efficacy for the Holland themes are consistent with previous findings regarding gender differences in Holland interest patterns, although the gender differences are less pronounced in employed adults than in college students. Discusses other findings.…

This study examined the test-retest reliability and the concurrent validity of the 17-scale Expanded Skills Confidence Inventory in samples of 321 and 175 college students. Retest values over a 3-week interval ranged from .77 to .89, with a median of .85. Using Brown and Gore's C-index, evidence for the concurrent validity of confidence score…

Discusses issues involved in the measurement of occupational, math, and career decision-making self-efficacy. Addresses the relationship of self-efficacy to vocational interests and to the career development of women and minority groups. (Contains 97 references.) (SK)

Examined vocational interests of counseling psychology trainees and the concurrent validity of the Strong-Campbell Interest Inventory (SCII) for this group. Results generally supported the concurrent validity of the SCII in a group of counseling trainees. Found relationships between certain SCII scores and students' preferences concerning…

Results indicated that both husbands and wives reported relatively high levels of marital adjustment, relatively profeminist attitudes toward women, and moderate levels of career salience. Both husbands and wives ranked family as first and career as second in importance. Women reported more profeminist attitudes than men. (Author)

Investigated the relationships of self-efficacy (via the Holland themes) to dimensions of personal style and personality. Examined correlations (1) Skills Confidence Inventory (SCI); (2) Myers-Briggs Type Indicator; and (3) Strong Interest Inventory. Findings support the validity of the SCI and, therefore, of all three instruments. (Author/EMK)

Examined utility of gender, traditionality of choice, and gender role identification as moderators of interest-field congruence and ability-level realism of academic major and occupational preferences in college students (N=592). Found traditionality of choice and gender role unrelated to interest-field congruence. (Author/NB)