The Role of Parental Influences on Young Adolescents' Career Development

The relationship between specific parental behaviors and the career development of young adolescents was assessed. Regression analyses revealed that parental behaviors did relate to the career development of middle school students, after controlling for student grade level and gender. Parental behaviors tended to relate more to career decision-making self-efficacy (CDMSE) than to career maturity, and general psychosocial parenting behaviors appeared to be more salient than career-focused parent behaviors. Five specific behaviors were found to be predictive of participants' career development. The discrepancy between adolescents' and parents' views of family relationships was also shown to relate to the adolescents' career decision-making self-efficacy. The results from the current study further expand on the results from other studies in this area by providing insight into the effects of specific parental behaviors. Implications for research and practice are discussed.