Academic self-efficacy, technical skills and perceived employability of undergraduate business students
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22478/ufpb.2318-1001.2022v10n2.61030Abstract
Objective: Business education receives considerable emphasis in academia and in the job market, given the concern with employability and the search for qualified professionals. In this sense, the study aims to analyze the influence of academic self-efficacy and technical skills on the perceived employability of undergraduate business students. Complementarily, it checks whether students from different courses have the same perceptions regarding the proposed analyses.
Background: The study is based on literature on self-efficacy (academic), skills (technical) and perceived employability, in the context of business students.
Method: A survey was carried out with undergraduate students from the Administration and Accounting courses of a federal public higher education institution in southern Brazil, in which 204 answered questionnaires were returned. For the hypothesis test, structural equation modeling by partial least squares was used. Additionally, a permutation test and multigroup analysis were performed.
Results: The results revealed a positive and significant influence of academic self-efficacy on technical skills and the latter on perceived employability. They also evidenced the mediating role of technical skills in the relationship between academic self-efficacy and perceived employability. Further analysis demonstrated that the relationships remain constant regardless of the students' course.
Contributions: The study presents contributions to the literature, mainly by listing the role of the development of technical skills as a facilitator between academic self-efficacy and perceived employability. The study also provides insights for those involved in the educational context of the business field.
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