The goal of the present study was to investigate the distinctions between career indecision and indecisiveness. The different patterns of the associations between career indecision and indecisiveness, on one hand, and personality traits, career decision-making self-efficacy, perceived social support, and emotional intelligence, on the other, were studied in a sample of 361 university students. The results showed that career indecision, as measured by the Career Decision-making Difficulties Questionnaire, is most highly associated with emotional intelligence, whereas career indecisiveness, as measured by the Indecisiveness scale, is most highly associated with personality traits, and in particular with emotional stability. This pattern of results was obtained for both women and men; however, the prediction was stronger for indecision (R2 = .76 and .55, for women and men, respectively) than indecisiveness (R2 = .35 and .28, for women than for men, respectively). Possible explanations of these differences are discussed.
BeswickG.RothblumE. D.MannL. (1988). Psychological antecedents to student procrastination. Australian Psychologist, 23, 207–217. doi:10.1080/00050068808255605
3.
BetzN. E.KleinK. L.TaylorK. M. (1996). Evaluation of a short form of the Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy scale. Journal of Career Assessment, 4, 47–57. doi: 10.1177/106907279600400103
4.
BetzN. E.TaylorK. M. (2000). Manual for the Career Decision Making Self-Efficacy scale (CDMSES) and CDMSES–Short Form. Unpublished manuscript, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH.
5.
BlusteinD. L.PreziosoM. S.SchultheissD. P. (1995). Attachment theory and career development: Current status and future directions. The Counseling Psychologist, 23, 416–432. doi: 10.1177/0011000095233002
6.
BlusteinD. L.WalbridgeM. M.FriedlanderM. L.PalladinoD. E. (1991). Contributions of psychological separation and parental attachment to the career development process. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 38, 39–50. doi:10.1037/0022-0167.38.1.39
7.
BorgesN. J.SavickasM. L. (2002). Personality and medical specialty choice: A literature review and integration. Journal of Career Assessment, 10, 362–380. doi:10.1177/10672702010003006
8.
BrownC.George-CurranR.SmithM. L. (2003). The role of emotional intelligence in the career commitment and decision-making process. Journal of Career Assessment, 11, 379–392. doi: 10.1177/1069072703255834
9.
BrownS. D.RectorC. C. (2008). Conceptualizing and diagnosing problems in vocational decision-making. In BrownS.D.LentR. W. (Eds.), Handbook of counseling psychology (4th ed., pp. 392–407). New York, NY: Wiley.
10.
BurkaJ. B.YuenL. M. (1983). Procrastination: Why do you do it and what to do about it. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
11.
CapraraG. V.BarbaranelliC.BorgogniL. (1993). BFQ: Big five questionnaire. Manual (2nd ed.). Firenze, Italy: O.S. Organizzazioni Speciali.
12.
ConstantineM. G.WallaceB. C.KindaichiM. M. (2005). Examining contextual factors in the career decision status of African American adolescents. Journal of Career Assessment, 13, 307–319. doi: 10.1177/1069072705274960
13.
CostaP. T.McCraeR. R. (1992). NEO PI-R professional manual. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
14.
CreedP.PattonW.BartrumD. (2004). Internal and external barriers, cognitive style, and the career development variables of focus and indecision. Journal of Career Development, 30, 277–294. doi:10.1023/B: JOCD.0000025116.17855.ea
15.
CreedP. A.YinW. O. (2006). Reliability and validity of a Chinese version of the career decision-making difficulties questionnaire. International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, 6, 47–63. doi:10.1007/s10775-006-0003-3
16.
Di FabioA.BusoniL. (2008). Misurare il supporto sociale percepito: Proprietà psicometriche della Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) in un campione di studenti universitari [Measuring perceived social support: Psychometric properties of the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) in a sample of university students]. Risorsa Uomo, 14, 339–350.
17.
Di FabioA.BusoniL.PalazzeschiL. (2011). Indecisiveness scale (IS): Proprietà psicometriche della versione italiana [Indecisiveness Scale (IS): Psychometric properties of the Italian version]. Counseling. Giornale Italiano di Ricerca e Applicazioni, 4, 13–24.
18.
Di FabioA.KennyM. E. (2011). Promoting emotional intelligence and career decision making among Italian high school students. Journal of Career Assessment, 19, 21–34. doi:10.1177/1069072710382530
19.
Di FabioA.PalazzeschiL. (2008). Indecision vocationelle et intelligence émotionnelle: quelques données empiriques sur un échantillon d’apprentis italiens [Career decision difficulties and emotional intelligence: Some empirical facts on a sample of Italian apprentices]. Pratiques Psychologiques, 14, 213–222. doi:10.1016/j.prps.2007.11.006
20.
Di FabioA.PalazzeschiL. (2009). Emotional intelligence, personality traits, and career decision difficulties. International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, 9, 135–146. doi:10.1007/s10775-009-9162-3
21.
Di FabioA.PalazzeschiL. (2010). Career decision-making difficulties questionnaire: Proprietà psicometriche nel contesto italiano [Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire: Psychometric properties in the Italian context]. Counseling: Giornale Italiano di Ricerca e Applicazioni, 3, 351–364.
22.
EffertB.FerrariJ. R. (1989). Decisional procrastination: Examining personality correlates. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 4, 151–156.
23.
EmmerlingR. J.ChernissC. (2003). Emotional intelligence and career choice process. Journal of Career Assessment, 11, 153–167. doi:10.1177/1069072703011002003
24.
FeldmanD. C. (2003). The antecedents and consequences of early career indecision among young adults. Human Resource Management Review, 13, 499–531. doi:10.1016/S1053-4822%2803%2900048-2
25.
FerrariJ. R. (1991). Compulsive procrastination: Some self-reported characteristics. Psychological Reports, 68, 455–458. doi:10.2466/PR0.68.2.455-458
26.
FerrariJ. R. (1992). Psychometric validation of two procrastination inventories: Arousal and avoidance measures. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 14, 97–110. doi:10.1007/BF00965170
27.
FerrariJ. R.DovidioJ. F. (2000). Examining behavioral processes in indecision: Decisional procrastination and decision-making style. Journal of Research in Personality, 34, 127–137. doi:10.1006/jrpe.1999.2247
28.
FerrariJ. R.DovidioJ. F. (2001). Behavioral information search by indecisiveness. Personality and Individual Differences, 30, 1113–1123. doi:10.1016/S0191-8869(00)00094-5
29.
FouadN.CotterW. E.KantamneniN. (2009). The effectiveness of a career decision-making course. Journal of Career Assessment, 17, 338–347. doi: 10.1177/1069072708330678
30.
FrancoM.TappatàL. (2009). EQ-iTM Emotional Quotient Inventory. Validazione italiana[ EQ-iTM Emotional Quotient Inventory. Italian validation]. Firenze, Italy: Giunti O. S.
31.
FrostR. O.ShowsD. L. (1993). The nature and measurement of compulsive indecisiveness. Behavior Research Therapy, 31, 683–692. doi:10.1016/0005-7967(93)90121-A
32.
GaffnerD. C.HazlerR. J. (2002). Factors related to indecisiveness and career indecision in undecided college students. Journal of College Student Development, 43, 317–326.
33.
GatiI. (1986). Making career decisions: A sequential elimination approach. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 33, 408–417. doi: 10.1037/0022-0167.33.4.408
34.
GatiI.Asulin-PeretzL.FisherA. (2012). Emotional and personality-related career decision-making difficulties: A three-year follow-up. The Counseling Psychologist, 40(1), 6–27.
35.
GatiI.GadassiR.Mashiah-CohenR. (2012). Career Decision-Making Profiles vs. Styles: Convergent and incremental validity. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 81, 2–16.
36.
GatiI.GadassiR.SakaN.HadadiY.AnsenbergN.FriedmanR.Asulin-PeretzL. (2011). Emotional and personality-related aspects of career decision-making difficulties: Facets of career indecisiveness. Journal of Career Assessment, 19, 3–20. doi:10.1177/1069072710382525
37.
GatiI.KrauszM.OsipowS. H. (1996). A taxonomy of difficulties in career decision making. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 43, 510–526. doi:10.1037/0022-0167.43.4.510
38.
GatiI.LandmanS.DavidovitchS.Asulin-PeretzL.GadassiR. (2010). From career decision-making styles to career decision-making profiles: A multidimensional approach. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 76, 277–291. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2009.11.001
39.
GatiI.LevinN. (2012). The stability and structure of Career Decision-Making Profiles: A one-year follow-up. Journal of Career Assessment, 20(4), 390–403.
40.
GatiI.OsipowS. H.KrauszM.SakaN. (2000). Validity of the career decision-making difficulties questionnaire: Counselees' versus career counselors' perceptions. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 56, 99–113. doi:10.1006/jvbe.1999.1710
41.
GatiI.SakaN. (2001). High school students’ career-related decision-making difficulties. Journal of Counseling and Development, 79, 331–340.
42.
GatiI.SakaN.KrauszM. (2001). “Should I use a computer-assisted career guidance system?” It depends on where our career decision-making difficulties lie. British Journal of Guidance and Counselling, 29, 301–321. doi:10.1080/03069880120073021
43.
GaytonW. F.ClavinR. H.ClavinS. L.BroidaJ. (1994). Further validation of the indecisiveness scale. Psychological Reports, 75, 1631–1634. doi:10.2466/pr0.1994.75.3f.1631
44.
GermeijsV.De BoeckP. (2002). A measurement scale for indecisiveness and its relationship to career indecision and other types of indecision. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 18, 113–122. doi:10.1027//1015-5759.18.2.113
45.
GermeijsV.VerschuerenK. (2007). Educational choices in adolescence: The decision-making process, antecedents, and consequences. In SkorikovV. B.PattonW. (Eds.), Career development in childhood and adolescence (pp. 203–219). Rotterdam, the Netherlands: Sense.
46.
GianakosI. (1999). Patterns of career choice and career decision-making self-efficacy. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 54, 244–258. doi:10.1006/jvbe.1998.1668
47.
GuayF.RatelleC. F.SenécalC.LaroseS.DeschěnesA. (2006). Distinguishing developmental from chronic career indecision: Self-efficacy, autonomy, and social support. Journal of Career Assessment, 42(2), 235–251. doi:10.1177/1069072705283975
48.
GuichardJ.HuteauM. (2001). Psychologie de l’orientation[Vocational psychology]. Paris, France: Dunod.
49.
HackettG.BetzN. E. (1995). Self-efficacy and career choice and development. In MadduxJ. E. (Ed.), Self-efficacy, adaptation, and adjustment (pp. 249–280). New York, NY: Plenum Press.
50.
HageS. M.RomanoJ. L.ConayneR. K.KennyM.MattewsC.SchwartzJ. P.WaldoM. (2007). Best practice guidelines on prevention practice, research, training, and social advocacy for psychologists. The Counseling Psychologist, 35, 493–566. doi:10.1177/0011000006291411
51.
HarrenV. A. (1979). A model of career decision making for college students. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 14, 119–133. doi:10.1016/0001-8791(79)90065-4
52.
HijaziY.TatarM.GatiI. (2004). Career decision-making difficulties among Israeli and Palestinian Arab high-school seniors. Professional School Counseling, 8, 64–72.
53.
HollandJ. L. (1997). Making vocational choices (3rd ed.). Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
54.
JacksonC. J.FurnhamA.Lawty-JonesM. (1999). Relationship between indecisiveness and neuroticism: The moderating effect of a tough-minded culture. Personality and Individual Differences, 27, 789–800. doi:10.1016/S0191-8869(99)00027-6
55.
KellyK. R.ShinY. J. (2009). Relation of neuroticism and negative career thoughts and feelings to lack of information. Journal of Career Assessment, 17, 201–213. doi: 10.1177/1069072708329029
56.
KennyM. E.BledsoeM. (2005). Contributions of the relational context to career adaptability among urban adolescents. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 66, 257–272. doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2004.10.002
57.
KennyM. E.HorneA. M.OrpinasP.ReeseL. E. (2009). Social justice and the challenge of preventive interventions: An introduction. In KennyM. E.HorneA. M.OrpinasP.ReeseL. E. (Eds.), Realizing social justice: The challenge of preventive interventions (pp. 3–14). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
58.
LancasterP. L.RudolphC.PerkinsS.PattenT. (1999). The reliability and validity of the career decision difficulties questionnaire. Journal of Career Assessment, 7, 393–413. doi:10.1177/106907279900700405
59.
LounsburyJ. W.HutchensT.LovelandJ. M. (2005). An investigation of big five personality traits and career decidedness among early and middle adolescents. Journal of Career Assessment, 13, 25–39. doi:10.1177/106907270427027
60.
LuzzoD. A. (1993). Value of career-decision-making self-efficacy in predicting career-decision-making attitudes and skills. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 40, 194–199. doi:10.1037/0022-0167.40.2.194
61.
MannL.BurnettP.RadfordM.FordS. (1997). The Melbourne Decision Making Inventory: An instrument for measuring patterns for coping with decisional conflict. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 10, 1–19. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0771(199703)10:1<1:: AID-BDM242>3.0.CO;2-X
62.
MauW. C. (2000). Cultural differences in career decision-making styles and self-efficacy. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 57, 365–378. doi:10.1006/jvbe.1999.1745.
63.
MauW. C. (2001). Assessing career decision-making difficulties: A cross-cultural study. Journal of Career Assessment, 9, 353–364. doi:10.1177/106907270100900403
64.
MayerJ. D.SaloveyP.CarusoD. R. (2002). Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT): User's manualToronto, Canada: Multi-Health Systems.
65.
NilssonJ. E.FloresL. Y.BerkelL. V.SchaleC. L.LinnemeyerR. M.SummerI. (2007). International career articles: A content analysis of four journals across 34 years. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 70, 602–613. doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2007.01.003
66.
NotaL.PaceF.FerrariL. (2008). Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale–Short Form: Uno studio per l’adattamento italiano [Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale–Short Form: A study for Italian adaptation]. GIPO Giornale Italiano di Psicologia dell’Orientamento, 9, 23–35.
67.
OsipowS. H. (1999). Assessing career indecision. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 55, 147–154. doi:10.1006/jvbe.1999.1704
68.
OsipowS. H.CarneyC. G.WinerJ.YanicoB.KoschierM. (1976). The Career Decision scale. Columbus: OH: Marathon Consulting Press.
69.
OsipowS. H.GatiI. (1998). Construct and concurrent validity of the career decision-making difficulties questionnaire. Journal of Career Assessment, 6, 345–364. doi:10.1177/106907279800600305
70.
PalazzeschiL.Di FabioA. (in press). Difficultés à prendre des décisions de carrière et variables individuelles: au-delà de la personnalité, du sentiment d’efficacité et du soutien social perçu, le rôle de l’intelligence émotionnelle [Career decision-making difficulties and individual variables: Behind personality, self-efficacy and perceived social support, the role of emotional intelligence]. Pratiques Psychologiques.
71.
PatalanoA. L.WengrovitzS. M. (2006). Cross-cultural exploration of the Indecisiveness scale: A comparison of Chinese and American men and women. Personality and Individual Differences, 41, 813–824. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2006.03.023
72.
PhillipsS. D.PazienzaN. J. (1988). History and theory of the assessment of career development and decision making. In W. B. Walsh & S. H. Osipow (Eds.), Career decision making(pp. 1-31). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
73.
RassinE.MurisP. (2005a). Indecisiveness and the interpretation of ambiguous situations. Personality and Individual Differences, 39, 1285–1291. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2005.06.006
74.
RassinE.MurisP. (2005b). To be or not to be . . . indecisive: Gender differences, correlations with obsessive-compulsive complaints, and behavioral manifestation. Personality and Individual Differences, 38, 1175–1181. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2004.07.014
75.
RassinE.MurisP.FrankenI.SmitS.WongM. (2007). Measuring general indecisiveness. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 29, 61–68. doi:10.1007/s10862-006-9023-z
76.
SakaN.GatiI. (2007). Applying decision theory to facilitating adolescent career choices. In SkorikovV. B.PattonW. (Eds.), Career development in childhood and adolescence (pp. 181–202). Rotterdam, the Netherlands: Sense.
77.
SakaN.GatiI.KellyK. R. (2008). Emotional and personality-related aspects of career decision-making difficulties. Journal of Career Assessment, 16, 403–424. doi:10.1177/1069072708318900.
78.
SavickasM. L. (1995). Constructivist counseling for career indecision. The Career Development Quarterly, 43, 363–373.
79.
SavickasM. L. (2004). Vocational psychology, overview. In SpielbergerC. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of applied psychology (pp. 655–667). Amsterdam, the Netherlands: Elsevier.
80.
SerlingD. A.BetzN. E. (1990). Development and evaluation of a measure of fear of commitment. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 37(1), 91–97.
81.
SkorikovV. B. (2007). Adolescent career development and adjustment. In SkorikovV. B.PattonW. (Eds.), Career development in childhood and adolescence (pp. 237–254). Rotterdam, the Netherlands: Sense.
82.
SkorikovV. B.PattonW. (2007). Future directions in research on career development during childhood and adolescence, In SkorikovV. B.PattonW. (Eds.), Career development in childhood and adolescence (pp. 325–336). Rotterdam, the Netherlands: Sense.
83.
SpielbergerC. D.GorsuchR. L.LusheneR. E. (1968). State-trait anxiety inventory, Form x. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychology Press.
84.
TokarD.FischerA.SubichL. M. (1998). Personality and vocational behavior: A selective review of the literature, 1993-1997. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 53, 147–179. doi:10.1006/jvbe.1998.1660
85.
WanbergC. R.MuchinskyP. M. (1992). A typology of career decision status: Validity extension of the vocational decision status model. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 39, 71–80. doi: 10.1037/0022-0167.39.1.71
86.
WechslerD. (1981). Manual for the Wechsler Adult Intelligence scale–Revisited. New York, NY: Psychological Corporation.
87.
WolfeJ. B.BetzN. E. (2004). The relationship of attachment variables to career decision-making self-efficacy and fear commitment. The Career Development Quarterly, 52, 363–369.
88.
YoungR. A.ValachL.BallJ.PaseluikhoM. A.WongY. S.DeVriesR. J.TurkelH. (2001). Career development in adolescence as a family project. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 48, 190–202. doi:10.1037/0022-0167.48.2.190
89.
ZimetG. D.DahlemN. W.ZimetS. G.FarleyG. K. (1988). The multidimensional scale of perceived social support. Journal of Personality Assessment, 52, 30–41. doi: 10.1207/s15327752jpa5201_2
