We will present two studies testing a social cognitive model of proactive career behavior among Turkish undergraduates. In the first study (N = 252 Turkish undergraduates), we adapted measures of proactive career behavior, self-efficacy, and outcome expectations, originally validated with workers, by framing them in the college context. Consistent with their prior use in worker samples, we found that each measure was well-represented with a higher order structure and four first order factors (career planning, skill development, career consultation, and network-building). In the second study, we used the adapted measures to test a social cognitive self-management model in predicting perceived employability in an independent sample of Turkish undergraduates (N = 499). Prior to model testing, we adapted a measure of perceived employability, finding that it produced a one-factor structure in an exploratory factor analysis with a sub-sample of Turkish undergraduates (n = 200); this structure was replicated in a confirmatory factor analysis in a second sub-sample (n = 299).


Structural path analysis results showed that engagement in proactive career behaviors was well predicted by self-efficacy, outcome expectations, career support, and proactive personality. Proactive career behavior engagement was, in turn, strongly predictive of perceived employability. We will discuss implications of our findings for future research and for practical efforts to promote the perceived employability of undergraduates.