Abstract
Objectives : The purpose of this study was to examine the self-esteem and job-seeking efficacy of dental hygiene students in an attempt to provide some information on career guidance, counseling and the development of employment programs by colleges, as self-esteem seemed to be one of integral variables to affect job-seeking efficacy. Methods : The subjects in this study were the dental hygiene students in three different colleges in South and North Jeolla Provinces. After a self-administered survey was conducted, the answer sheets from 562 respondents were analyzed by the SPSS(Statistical Package for the Social Science) WIN 12.0. Results : 1. The students investigated got a mean of 2.43 in self-esteem, which was not a high score. The sophomores had a better self-esteem than the freshmen and juniors, and the gaps among the respondents in each subfactor of self-esteem were significant($p^*$ <0.01, $p^{**}$ <0.05). 2. The students got a mean of 3.12 in overall job-seeking efficacy, and there were significant differences among them in each subfactor of job-seeking efficacy($p^*$ <0.01). 3. The freshmen were ahead of the sophomores and juniors in job-seeking efficacy, and the gaps between the former and the latter were significant($p^*$ <0.01). 4. There was a significant relationship between the self-perceived self-esteem and job-seeking efficacy of the students. A higher self-esteem led to a better job-seeking efficacy(p<0.01). Conclusions : The above-mentioned findings illustrated that a higher self-esteem had a more positive effect on job-seeking efficacy. Therefore the development of programs geared toward boosting the self-esteem of dental hygiene students is required, and educational institutions should provide quality self-esteem programs for students to plan and prepare for their future, to make the right career choice, to improve their vocational adjustment, to keep pursuing self-development and to build the right values.
