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Abstract
The purpose of this investigation was to examine the cultural and motivational perspectives associated with the occupational or vocational decision-related processes of senior high school students. Two theoretical frameworks were developed to guide the investigation by integrating theories from the culture, motivation, decision-making, and vocational decision-making literatures. One theoretical framework investigated the roles of culture and motivation in the vocational decisions made by senior high school students, while the other examined the vocational decision-related processes of senior high school students in terms of the extent to which they may be amotivated about choosing a future occupation. A mixed methods approach (incorporating a cross-sectional and correlational research design for the quantitative component) was implemented using a specially developed questionnaire. In the first phase of the investigation, the questionnaire was administered to 492 Year 11 students attending a stratified random sample of six Independent high schools located in the Sydney metropolitan area. In the second and main phase, a refined version of the questionnaire was administered to 566 Year 11 students attending a stratified random sample of 16 government high schools located in the Sydney metropolitan area. Structural equation modelling, discriminant analyses, and qualitative techniques were used to analyse the data collected in the two phases. The major findings of the investigation included the development and confirmation (after modifications) of two new theoretically-justifiable models of vocational decision-related processes. One model provided empirical support for relationships between cultural orientation, values, and attitudes/intentions toward occupations, while the other identified relationships between amotivation, indecision toward occupations, expectancy-value variables, and influences from the family. Multiple themes that were identified in the qualitative data analyses supplemented and partially supported elements of the two empirical models, and enabled a richer understanding of the issues surrounding the vocational decision. The findings of the investigation may be used by career advisors, psychologists, educators, and families to advise and assist senior high school students faced with the vocational decision. The investigation may contribute to reducing the gap in the literature on the roles of culture and motivation in the vocational decision-related processes of senior high school students.