764 - DOCTORAL STUDENTS' PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY PROFILES AND THEIR RELATIONS WITH COPING STRATEGIES AND LIFE SATISFACTION

Session: D17S002 - Professional Well-Being & Career Sustainability 1
AUTHORS:
Chen Siyao (The University of Hong Kong ~ Hong Kong ~ China)
Abstract text:
This study investigated the professional identity profiles of doctoral students and examined how students with different profiles differ in their coping strategies and life satisfaction. Five hundred and fifty-two Chinese doctoral students (58.88% females; Mage = 27.34; SDage = 3.29) participated in the study. Latent profile analysis produced three professional identity profiles: Professionally undeveloped (21.01%), Moderate (46.74%), and Professionally developed (32.25%). Moreover, gender and academic discipline influenced the membership of doctoral students' profiles. Furthermore, doctoral students' professional identity profile membership was associated with their coping strategies and life satisfaction. Overall, doctoral students with stronger professional identity scored higher on adaptive coping strategies and higher levels of life satisfaction. The implications for different stakeholders (i.e., doctoral students, their supervisors, and senior university managers) and doctoral education practices are considered in light of these results.