Self-Efficacy and Degree Aspiration for Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Community College Students: A Structural Equation Model

• In Event: Roundtable Session 3
  In Roundtable Session: Enhancing Community College Student Success: Influence of Psychosocial Factors in Achievement, Persistence, and Degree Pursuit

Abstract

Hispanic students have become the largest group of underrepresented minority students in community colleges (American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), 2015). Among all Hispanic undergraduate students, 57% are enrolled in community colleges (AACC, 2015). Despite the increased research and focus on Hispanic students in community colleges, there is a dearth of studies that specifically examine self-efficacy among this population. A plethora of empirical studies have validated positive influences of self-efficacy on educational aspiration and academic outcomes (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994; Porter & Umbach, 2006; Wang, 2013). However, only a few studies have discussed community college students’ self-efficacy (Starobin & Laanan, 2005; Starobin, Chen, Kollasch, Baul, & Laanan, 2014); even fewer studies have focused on self-efficacy’s role in influencing Hispanic students’ degree aspiration.

Utilizing structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques, we examined how general self-efficacy functions as a psychosocial predictor of student’s degree aspiration via interactions with various factors (i.e., social capital, personal input, transfer readiness). We then further uncovered variations between Hispanic and non-Hispanic students in the structural models. Our theoretical framework was informed by Lent’s Social Cognitive Career Theory (Lent et al., 1994; 2003), which posits how self-efficacy interacts with personal inputs and environments and eventually affects one’s performance and vocational pursuits. In this study, we emphasized general self-efficacy instead of domain-specific self-efficacy. We further added to the model the effect of social capital that students acquire from their home cultures. Also, we considered the effect of community college students’ transfer readiness, operationalized as students’ interaction with administrators and academic counselors regarding successful transfer. Additionally, we measured degree aspiration using a 7-point scale from no degree (1) to doctoral degree (7).

The participating college was a multi-campus, urban, two-year degree granting institution located in Florida with a large proportion of Hispanic enrollment (31%). In Spring 2013, participating students (N=2,169) responded to the online STEM Student Success Literacy (SSSL) survey. A multi-phase data analysis including descriptive analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, SEM and invariance testing was conducted. To ensure comparable model results, we compared the model results between the entire Hispanic student sample (n=587) and a randomly selected non-Hispanic student sample (n=604).

The data analysis revealed some important findings. For example, for the non-Hispanic student group, the general self-efficacy construct “initiative,” the willingness to initiate behavior, directly influenced degree aspiration. However, for the Hispanic group, none of the general self-efficacy constructs were found to directly affect degree aspiration. Rather, this relationship was mediated by students’ transfer readiness; Hispanic students’ sense of self-efficacy directly impacted their level of transfer readiness, which in turn, indirectly enhanced degree aspiration.

These findings may inform the discourse around racial gaps in higher education, particularly around topics of educational access and success. For example, our results underscored the importance of promoting Hispanic students’ interaction with institutional agents and practitioners at community colleges to increase their transfer readiness. Specifically, Hispanic students may need additional guidance and validation from administrators, counselors, and faculty. Otherwise, Hispanic students may remain underprepared, regardless of their self-efficacy level, for pursuing their dreams.

Authors

• Yu Chen, Iowa State University

• Soko S. Starobin, Iowa State University