Differences in Career Decision Self-Efficacy according to the Motives for Major Selection among Dental Hygiene Students

Background: The purpose of this study was to confirm the major motivation for and self-efficacy of career decisions among dental hygiene students and to analyze differences in career decision self-efficacy according to the major motivation. Methods: An online survey was conducted among 194 dental hygiene students. To investigate career decision self-efficacy, 18 questions were posed, including 5 questions on future planning, 4 questions on self-evaluation, 4 questions on job information collection, 3 questions on goal setting, and 2 questions on problem solving. The survey was conducted using a 5-point scale. Results: The motives for choosing a major were a high employment rate (68.6%), a desire to become a professional (36.1%), according to aptitude (27.8%), recommendations by others (26.3%), and according to grades (12.9%). The career decision self-efficacy of the study participants was in the order of self-evaluation factors (3.75 points), problem solving factors a (3.62 points), job information collection factors (3.59 points), future planning factors (3.46 points), goal setting factors (3.44 points) score was high. The career decision self-efficacy scores were higher when the major motivation was "because I want to become a professional" and "because I think I have an aptitude for it." Conclusion: It is necessary to give students who wish to major in dental hygiene an opportunity to consider whether they have an aptitude for it by providing information on not only major subjects but also the duties and roles of dental hygienists. In addition, it is necessary to develop a career education program to help dental hygiene students set their career goals.