TPC-Journal-V2-Issue1

18 The Professional Counselor \Volume 2, Issue 1 In the model, the social support latent variable accounted for 17% of the variance in the negative career thoughts latent variable. The social support latent variable accounted for the majority of the variance in the subscales of acceptance- belonging ( R ² = .70), appraisal-coping assistance ( R ² = .87), behavioral-cognitive guidance ( R ² = .79), tangible assistance- material aid ( R ² = .41), and modeling ( R ² = .52). The negative career thoughts latent variable accounted for the majority of the variance in the subscales of decision-making confusion ( R ² = .85), commitment anxiety ( R ² = .76), and external conflict ( R ² = .61). In summary, these analyses make it apparent that social support is associated with career thoughts as observed by the significant correlation between the latent variable of social support as measured by the SSI-SS and the latent variable of negative career thoughts as measured by the CTI. Z-Score Analyses Z-score analyses were performed to determine any significant differences between sample populations based on athletic status, gender, and academic class status in the relationship between social support and career thoughts. Regarding athletic status, a significant difference ( p < .01) was found between athletes and non-athletes in the relationship between the social support type of appraisal-coping assistance and the career thoughts variable of commitment anxiety ( z = 1.95), with that relationship being stronger in the non-athlete population. Also regarding athletic status, a significant difference ( p < .01) was found between athletes and non-athletes in the relationship between the social support type of modeling and the career thoughts’ variable commitment anxiety ( z = 2.02), with that relationship also being stronger in the non-athlete population. No significant differences were found between the male and female genders in the relationship between social support and career thoughts. Regarding academic class status, upperclassmen had a significantly stronger relationship ( p < .01) between total social support and the social support types of appraisal-coping assistance and behavioral-cognitive guidance and the career thoughts’ variable commitment anxiety ( z = 2.08; 2.30; 2.15; respectively). In summary, several significant differences were found between sample populations. Discussion Results revealed that social support accounts for about 17% of the variance in career thoughts. This suggests that social support has a moderate relationship with career thoughts. These results also support the literature on the positive effect of social support on the career planning process (Blustein, 1992; DeFrank & Ivancevich, 1986; Quimby & O’Brien, 2004). The person environment fit model (Dawis, 2002) provided an important framework in the present study as satisfaction with social support was found to have a moderate relationship with career thoughts. However, the strong relationships between the five types of social support made it difficult to examine the unique relationship of each to career thoughts. The results infer that the five types of social support identified by Brown et al. (1988) may not be independent. The bivariate correlations indicated that all social support types had significant relationships with the career thoughts variables. When all variables were controlled, there were no significant relationships between any of the five types of social support and career thoughts. Instrumental support, as defined by Blustein (1992) and DeFrank and Ivancevich (1986), relates to Brown et al.’s (1988) social support types of behavioral-cognitive guidance and tangible assistance- material aid. The results of the present study show that both social support types had moderate relationships with career thoughts. Emotional support, as defined by DeFrank and Ivancevich (1986), relates to Brown et al.’s (1988) social support type of acceptance-belonging. This type of social support also was found to have a negative, moderate relationship with career thoughts. These results reinforce those found in Blustein (1992) and DeFrank and Ivancevich (1986) in that social support is an important component in the career planning process. It was found that the sociocultural context in which the social support is provided has an effect on the perception of the social support by the recipient. The significant difference between the athlete and non-athlete and upperclassmen and underclassmen populations in the present study may be due to their different sociocultural contexts. The results of this study suggest that the appraisal-coping assistance and modeling social support types may be better provided to the non- student-athlete population who are experiencing anxiety related to the career decision-making process. In addition, the appraisal-coping assistance and behavioral-cognitive guidance social support types may be more influential in reducing