A model test on career indecision in gifted adolescents and investigation of the effect of career indecision psychoeducation program

The purpose of the current study is to investigate the mediator role of career adaptability in the relationship between self-efficacy, hope, cognitive flexibility and career indecision in gifted adolescents. Moreover, it is aimed to examine the effects of a career indecision psychoeducation program prepared by using the developed structural model on the career indecision levels of gifted adolescents. In the study, the descriptive survey model and a 2x3 split plot experimental model with pre-test, post-test and retention test and control group were used. The study group is comprised of 349 gifted high school students attending Science and Art Centres in the 2021-2022 school year. The second study group, in which the effect of the career indecision psychoeducation program was examined, consists of 18 gifted high school students. The data of the study were collected by using the "Professional Decision Making Inventory", "Career Adaptability Scale", "Children's Self-Efficacy Scale", "State Hope Scale" and "Cognitive Flexibility Scale". The mediator role of career adaptability in the relationship between self-efficacy, hope, cognitive flexibility and career indecision was examined using the structural equation model. In the analysis of the data obtained from the experimental measurements, Mann-Whitney U Test was used to test the difference between two means (experimental-control) and Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test was used to examine the difference within the same group (experimental or control). All the analyses conducted within the scope of the current study were carried out by using SPSS v25 and AMOS v24 statistical programs. As a result of the structural equation model, it was found that career adaptability had a full mediator role in the relationship between self-efficacy, hope, cognitive flexibility and career indecision. In addition, self-efficacy, hope, and cognitive flexibility were found to predict career adaptability and career indecision. The results of the analysis of the experimental process showed that the psychoeducation program applied had a positive effect on the career indecision of the students and this effect was found to persist as a result of the retention test performed 4 weeks later.