Vocational Motivation and Career Intentions in Chinese Tourism Vocational Students-The Roles of Social Perception and Talent Strategies

Background and Aims: In the context of China’s vocational education reform and the evolving demands of the tourism industry, understanding the factors influencing tourism students’ career choice intentions has become increasingly important. Vocational motivation—both intrinsic and extrinsic—plays a central role in shaping these intentions, yet its effectiveness may be influenced by students’ perceptions of the tourism labor environment and the supportiveness of institutional talent cultivation strategies. Thus, this study aims to: (1) examine the effect of vocational motivation on career choice intention among tourism major students; (2) explore the mediating role of social environment perception in this relationship; and (3) assess the moderating impact of talent cultivation strategies on the indirect effect of motivation through perception. Methodology: A structured questionnaire was distributed to 512 tourism students across higher vocational colleges in six Chinese provinces. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, structural equation modeling, and moderated mediation analysis with SPSS and AMOS. Constructs measured included vocational motivation, social environment perception, career choice intention, and perceived talent cultivation strategies. Results: The analysis revealed that both intrinsic and extrinsic vocational motivation significantly predicted career choice intention. Social environment perception partially mediated this relationship, accounting for 29.4% of the total effect. Furthermore, talent cultivation strategies moderated the indirect effect: the mediation pathway was significantly stronger under conditions of high institutional support. When perceived talent strategy support was high, the indirect effect rose to 0.214 compared to 0.122 under low support conditions. Conclusion: This study confirms that vocational motivation directly and indirectly shapes tourism students’ career intentions, with the process significantly influenced by perceptions of the tourism sector and educational support systems. The findings underscore the importance of fostering student motivation, enhancing the public image of tourism careers, and strengthening talent cultivation practices to improve employability outcomes in China’s tourism vocational education.