Exploring the Moderation of Meaning in Life in Barriers and Coping Efficacy Among Women

Abstract

In this study, we sought to extend social cognitive career theory and examined the links among perceptions of career and educational barriers, coping self-efficacy, and meaning in life in a diverse sample of women. Five hundred and seventy-nine female participants were recruited using Amazon Mechanical Turk where they were asked to complete an online survey. Our analyses revealed a significant negative relationship between educational and career barriers and coping self-efficacy. When controlling for social class, a presence of and a search for meaning in life were not significant moderators of the association between educational and career barriers and coping self-efficacy. However, when not controlling for social class, a presence of a meaning for life did significantly moderate the association between educational barriers and coping self-efficacy. Implications of these findings for counselors working with women on their career development and for future research are discussed.