The Relationship Between Perceived Social Support and Career Adaptability of Early-Career Teachers

This study investigates whether self-efficacy mediates the relationship between perceived social support and career adaptability among early-career teachers. Drawing on career construction theory and social cognitive career theory, the study aims to provide a deeper understanding of how environmental and psychological factors interact to shape adaptive career outcomes in the early stages of professional development. The sample consisted of 596 early-career teachers with fewer than five years of teaching experience working in primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary schools in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and analyzed through structural equation modeling (SEM) with bias-corrected bootstrap procedures (5,000 resamples). The results indicate significant positive relationships among perceived social support, self-efficacy, and career adaptability. Furthermore, perceived social support exerts a significant indirect effect on career adaptability and its core dimensions through the mediating role of self-efficacy. The 95% confidence intervals for the indirect effects did not include zero, confirming the robustness of the mediation model. These findings provide empirical evidence supporting the role of self-efficacy as a key psychological mechanism linking perceived social support and career adaptability. The study contributes to the literature by extending these theoretical frameworks into the context of early-career teachers in Vietnam and highlights the importance of fostering supportive professional environments and enhancing self-efficacy to promote sustainable career development.