Decision Making Characteristics and Decision Styles Predict Adolescents’ Career Choice Satisfaction

Abstract

Choosing one’s future career represents one of the most important decisions individuals face during their development. In the present study, Croatian college students recollected the process of choosing their future professional paths at the end of high school, and evaluated the outcome of this process. Specifically, students described how they chose between different career options, typically different college majors, available to them at that time. They specified the number and main characteristics of considered alternatives, the underlying motivation and timing of committing to a particular option, and reported how satisfied they were with the made choices. Next, the present study explored the influence of several identified decision making characteristics on participants’ immediate and delayed satisfaction with the chosen option. Additionally, the influence of several decision styles on individuals’ satisfaction was investigated. The obtained results indicate that, among decision making features, decision certainty represented the only significant predictor of participants’ immediate satisfaction with the made decision. The appeal of the preferred option and the number of considered options were revealed as additional significant predictors of delayed satisfaction with the chosen alternative. With regard to decision styles, regret and a distinct commitment factor predicted participants’ satisfaction with the made choice.