Social skills and occupational identity situations of students taking sports education

The main purpose of the study is to evaluate the relationship between the social skill levels Dec professional identity status of university students who have received sports education. Another purpose of the research is to examine the independent variables reflecting the gender, department, class and sports background status of the students according to their social skill levels and professional identity status. The research was designed according to the quantitative research model and a method for descriptive and relational screening was preferred. The universe of the research is composed of students who are active athletes studying at the departments of the Faculty of Sports Sciences and the School of Sports of Physical Education of universities located in Istanbul Province. The sample of the study consists of (n= 650) participants. Participants' incomplete or incorrect answers to the scales were evaluated and (n=627) participants were included in the study. In order to determine the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants,; gender, department, class and sports history questions, as well as the social skills scale and the professional identity scale were used as data collection tools. The data obtained were entered into the SPSS 25.0 package program and the analyses were performed through this program. Independent Sample T-test and Oneway ANOVA analysis were used as statistical analysis. A p value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. As a result, it was determined that men's social skill level was at a better level than women's, and gender affected social control, emotional expression, and social skill level. It is understood that women are better at horizontal and vertical career exploration and perceive career planning in accordance with their abilities and skills better than men. It has been found that men are more open to future career changes. The social skills of the department variable; it has been determined that the dimensions of social expression, social sensitivity and emotional expression are decisive. It is understood that the students of the department of exercise and sports sciences have better knowledge about horizontal/vertical career discoveries related to their professional identity and focusing on a career that suits them than other departments. As the class level increased, it was observed that the level of social expression and social sensitivity increased, while the level of social skills, on the contrary, decreased. It was found that there was a difference in the total score of horizontal career exploration, vertical career exploration, career commitment creation, identification with career commitment and professional identity for professional identity according to the class variable. 4.it is understood that the students of the class are aware of their abilities, skills, knowledge and competencies and show a career orientation towards this. It has been determined that sports background is not a determining variable in the perception of social skills. It has been determined that students who are new to sports (1-2 years) tend to search for a career goal in accordance with their own skills and abilities that they are in the process of career discovery.