Contributions of proactive personality to career decision self-efficacy: mediating effect of positive affect and moderating roles of social class and gender

While the benefits of proactive personality to college students’ self-efficacy have been recognized, college students with relatively high proactive personality may not always exhibit higher levels of career decision self-efficacy (CDSE). To address this gap, this study examined the mediation effect of positive affect in the relationship between proactive personality and CDSE, and the moderated effects of social class and gender in the mediating model among 371 Chinese college students (229 females). Results showed that proactive personality was positively contributed to CDSE via positive affect. Furthermore, the positive effects of proactive personality on positive affect were stronger in the group with a higher subjective social class and among female students, respectively. The study contributed to the knowledge of how and when proactive personality affected Chinese college students’ self-efficacy in career development, and provided practical career guidance for improving their CDSE.