Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To test the Social-Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) as a STEM career
interests and goal persistence model for minority college students with disabilities.
METHODS: A quantitative descriptive research design using path analysis.
Participants included 115 minority college students with disabilities from the
Minority Disability Alliance in Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Mathematics (MIND Alliance) project.
RESULTS: The results indicated that the SCCT causal model fits the data very
well, with χ
2/df = 1.15; CFI = 0.99; and RMSEA = 0.04. SCCT constructs
accounted for 16% of the variance in STEM career interest and 48% of the variance in STEM
goal persistence.
CONCLUSION: The SCCT model provides useful guidance for designing
postsecondary education interventions for minority students with disabilities in STEM
education to help crystalize their career interest and increase goal persistence.