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Professional development perspectives across gender and age groups of under‐qualified rural NEETs
Author(s) -
Almeida Amanda Nunes,
Simões Francisco
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of community psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.585
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1520-6629
pISSN - 0090-4392
DOI - 10.1002/jcop.22356
Subject(s) - psychology , vocational education , perception , meaning (existential) , social psychology , professional development , self efficacy , pedagogy , neuroscience , psychotherapist
Our study explored how self‐efficacy perceptions are associated with Perceived Barriers (PB), meaning beliefs about constraints on current/future vocational development, and Professional Expectations (PE) among rural, under‐qualified youths Not in Employment, nor in Education or Training (NEET). We also analyzed how the connections between these factors varied across gender and age groups. One hundred and eighty‐eight NEETs participated in this study (58.20% female; ( M = 23.05; standard deviation = 1.96). Through linear regression analysis using PROCESS macros, we found that higher self‐efficacy was associated with stronger PB, after accounting for the effects of training offers and income. Moreover, men showing stronger self‐efficacy also displayed stronger PB, while men depicting weaker self‐efficacy presented weaker PB, compared with women in similar conditions. Being offered more training opportunities resulted in stronger perceptions of professional barriers for these NEETs. Thus, rural, under‐qualified NEETs require person‐centered approaches from employment services, to support their transition to employment/training.