How Children Choose High Schools: The Role of Career Self-Efficacy and Academic Performance / Kako učenici biraju srednje škole: Uloga samoučinkovitosti u odlučivanju o karijeri i školskog postignuća

Despite its relevance and potential long-term consequences for each individual, the process of students’ transition from elementary schools to high schools has still not been sufficiently explored nor understood. Therefore, the present study was conducted with the goals of describing how students make decisions regarding their future high schools and establishing the contribution of individuals’ earlier school achievement and own perception of such achievement for their career decision self-efficacy and expectations regarding high schools. In addition, the study aimed to determine the relevance of career decision self-efficacy for the explored decision-making process. The obtained results indicate the correlation between students’ evaluation of own academic performance, but not their objective school achievement, and their evaluation of personal efficacy in career decision-making. Perceived academic control, as well as students’ knowledge of potential occupations and the world of work in general, were revealed as significant predictors of their career decision self-efficacy. Furthermore, career decision self-efficacy and perceived academic control were identified as significant predictors of students’ high school expectations. The obtained results confirm the relevance of developing students’ career competencies that are crucial for the formulation of more positive expectations and a more active engagement in choosing their future high schools. Keywords: career decision self-efficacy; career management; decision-making; expectations; perceived academic control. --- Iako se radi o relevantnoj problematici koja za svakog pojedinca ima dalekosežne posljedice, dosada se relativno malen broj istraživanja bavio ispitivanjem procesa odabira srednjih skola. Stoga je provedeno istraživanje kojem je cilj bio detaljnije opisati nacin na koji ucenici donose odluke o srednjim skolama te utvrditi doprinos prijasnjeg skolskog postignuca i vlastitog doživljaja akademskih sposobnosti samoucinkovitosti u odlucivanju o karijeri i ocekivanjima od srednje skole. Također, istraživanjem se željela utvrditi važnost samoucinkovitosti u odlucivanju o karijeri u procesu odlucivanja o buducoj srednjoj skoli. Dobiveni rezultati pokazuju povezanost ucenickog doživljaja vlastite skolske ucinkovitosti, odnosno percipirane akademske kontrole, ali ne i objektivnog skolskog postignuca, s procjenom osobne samoucinkovitosti u podrucju donosenja profesionalnih odluka. Pritom su percipirana akademska kontrola, kao i ucenicka znanja o svijetu rada, izdvojeni kao znacajni prediktori njihove samoucinkovitosti u odlucivanju o karijeri, a samoucinkovitost u odlucivanju o karijeri i percipirana akademska kontrola kao prediktori ucenickih ocekivanja od srednje skole. Dobiveni rezultati upucuju na važnost razvoja ucenickih profesionalnih kompetencija koje su kljucne za postavljanje pozitivnijih ocekivanja i aktivniji pristup odabiru srednje skole. Kljucne rijeci: ocekivanja; odlucivanje; percipirana akademska kontrola; samoucinkovitost u odlucivanju o karijeri; upravljanje karijerom.