[[alternative]]Study on Relationship Between Career Development and Ego Identity Status for College Students in Taiwan

[[abstract]]The purpose of the study was to investigate: (1)the differences of ego identity status and career development status for college students in different gender and different grade; (2)the relationship between career development status and ego identity status for college students in Taiwan. The sample consisted of 514 college students from three colleges in Taipei City and Taipei County. Instruments used in this study include Career Exploration Scale, Career Decision Scale and the revised version of the Extended Objective Measure of Ego Identity Status. Data obtained in this study were analyzed by t-test and canonical correlation analysis. The primary findings are as follows: 1.Gender Difference and Grade Difference on Career Development Status and Ego Identity Status: (1)Neither significant gender difference nor significant grade difference were found in career exploration and career decidedness. (2)There were several significant difference in ego identity status between male and female subjects, including Ideology-Achievement, Interpersonal-Achievement, Interpersonal-Foreclosure, Ideology-Moratorium and Interpersonal-Moratorium subscales. (3)Freshmen's score was significantly higher than junior's on Interpersonal-Moratorium subscales. 2.The Relationship Between Career Development Status and Ego Identity Status: (1)The linear combination score of career exploratory activity, career exploratory attitude and career decidedness was significantly correlated with the linear combination score of eight scores of ego identity status. Two significant canonical correlation coefficients are .572,345. (2)The first canonical structure can be identified between left side canonical variate which is highly correlated with career exploratory activity and career decidedness, and the right side canonical variate which is highly correlated with the Ideology and Interpersonal aspects of Achievement, Moratorium and Diffusion status. (3)The second canonical structure can be identified between left side canonical variate which is highly correlated with career exploratory activity, career exploratory attitude and career decidedness, and the right side canonical variate which is highly correlated with Interpersonal-Achievement, Ideology-Moratorium, Interpersonal-Moratorium. (4)The canonical correlation structures of different gender and different grade students' are similar to the one from total group of subjects, except the follows: For the first canonical structure of male, the difference lies in that there is no relationship among career exploratory activity, career decidedness and Ideology-Moratorium, Interpersonal-Moratorium. For the second canonical structure, there are relationship among career exploratory activity, exploratory attitude, career decidedness and Ideology-Foreclosure, Interpersonal-Foreclosure. For the first canonical structure of female, the difference lies in that there is no significant relationship among career exploratory activity, career decidedness and Interpersonal-Achievement. For the second canonical structure, there are negative relationship among career exploratory activity, career exploratory attitude and Interpersonal-Diffusion. For the first canonical structure of freshmen, the difference lies in that there is no significant relationship among career exploratory activity, career decidedness and Ideology-Moratorium, Interpersonal-Moratorium. Based on the results, implications of the study for career counseling in school discussed and suggestions for future research were proposed as well.