Abstract：Along with the popularization of higher education as well as the diversification of employment options, postgraduates confront increasingly severe challenges in the labor market. During the process of making career decisions, the perception of potential career barriers and corresponding psychological dilemmas make it difficult for postgraduates to achieve long-term career development. This paper constructs an integrated three-dimensional analysis model of career barrier perception, while introducing the diagnostic instrument for depression (PHQ-9), so as to comprehensively assess the composition, impact, and specific impact mechanisms of postgraduates’ career barrier perception.Building upon data from a survey of postgraduates’ psychological status, this research examines how career barrier perception influences postgraduates’ depressive tendency with the application of ordered Logit regression, inter-group regression coefficient difference test, and mediation effect test. The results indicate that the three sources of career barriers perception, namely low self-efficacy, weak expectations of future development, and insufficient support from the school environment, are all significantly positively correlated to the probability of postgraduates experiencing depression. Comparing the influence of three diverse sources, the analysis suggests that the impact of long-term expectations over future development is significantly higher than that of current self-efficacy and environmental assistance factors. The above-mentioned effects also reveal remarkable differences across different training models, majors, and genders. In addition, the results of the mechanism analysis reveal that mentor guidance and peer support exert significant influence on moderating the negative impact of career barriers perception and shaping the positive psychological resilience of postgraduates. Especially when support from the school environment is limited, the perception of career barriers is significantly amplified, which increases the likelihood of depressive symptoms among postgraduates. However, with the presence of mentor guidance and peer support, the negative impact of career barrier perception on depressive tendencies can be effectively alleviated.In the theoretical aspects, this paper has three main contributions as follows. First, it constructs an integrated analytical model for understanding career barrier perception and reveals how diverse sources of perception exert heterogeneous effects on postgraduates’ depressive tendency. Although the discussion on career barrier perception has drawn attention from scholars over recent years, there exists no general consensus on its measurement. On the basis of the existing research, this paper proposes a three-dimensional analytical framework that takes into account the interactions across individuals and environment, which goes beyond the traditional binary perspectives of “subjective-objective” or “structural-initiative”. Second, by introducing clinical diagnostic instruments for depression to portray postgraduates’ psychological status, it overcomes the deficiencies of the existing research in terms of measurement methods and index selections. Accordingly, specific impact mechanisms of career barriers perception are further examined, revealing the moderating role of social interaction factors represented by mentors’ and peers’ support. Third, an empirical analysis based on large-sample data remedies existing research’s limitations in solely stressing theoretical discourses and ignoring the heterogeneities between diverse student groups, providing empirical evidence as well as targeted references for promoting the career development of highly educated talents.From the practical perspective, the empirical findings of this paper further clarify the main challenges for postgraduates in achieving long-term career development and facilitate the tasks of higher education in terms of employment training.
张晓洁, 杨程越. 生涯阻碍知觉对研究生抑郁倾向的影响研究[J]. 浙江大学学报(人文社会科学版), 2025, 55(8): 106-119.
Zhang Xiaojie, Yang Chengyue. Impact of Career Barrier Perception on Postgraduates’ Depressive Tendency: Moderating Effect of Mentor Guidance and Peer Support. JOURNAL OF ZHEJIANG UNIVERSITY, 2025, 55(8): 106-119.
1 谢义忠、何俊萍：《大学毕业生就业能力、求职认知评价、就业不安全感对心理健康预测作用的追踪研究》，《心理科学》2015年第6期，第1432-1437页。 2 俞国良、王学振：《我国研究生心理健康问题的基本状况与教育对策》，《中国高教研究》2024年第7期，第80-87页。 3 张平、张兰鸽、张旭然等：《导学关系冲突与研究生抑郁：沟通有效性的中介效应和个人主动性的调节作用》，《中国临床心理学杂志》2023年第6期，第1353-1358页。 4 孙俊华、汪霞：《博士研究生心理压力状况、压力源及影响因素研究——基于江苏五所高校的调查数据》，《学位与研究生教育》2021年第7期，第50-58页。 5 Swanson J. L. & Tokar D. M.， “Development and initial validation of the Career Barriers Inventory，” Journal of Vocational Behavior， Vol. 39， No. 3 （1991）， pp. 344-361. 6 Crites J. O.， Vocational Psychology： The Study of Vocational Behavior and Development， New York： McGraw-Hill， 1969. 7 Farmer H. S.， “What inhibits achievement and career motivation in women？” The Counseling Psychologist， Vol. 6， No. 2 （1976）， pp. 12-15. 8 Swanson J. L. & Tokar D. M.， “College students’ perceptions of barriers to career development，” Journal of Vocational Behavior， Vol. 38， No. 1 （1991）， pp. 92-106. 9 Lent R. W.， Brown S. D. & Hackett G.， “Toward a unifying social cognitive theory of career and academic interest， choice， and performance，” Journal of Vocational Behavior， Vol. 45， No. 1 （1994）， pp. 79-122. 10 Albert K. A. & Luzzo D. A.， “The role of perceived barriers in career development： a social cognitive perspective，” Journal of Counseling & Development， Vol. 77， No. 4 （1999）， pp. 431-436. 11 Lindley L. D.， “Perceived barriers to career development in the context of social cognitive career theory，” Journal of Career Assessment， Vol. 13， No. 3 （2005）， pp. 271-287. 12 Prilleltensky I. & Stead G. B.， “Critical psychology and career development： unpacking the adjust-challenge dilemma，” Journal of Career Development， Vol. 39， No. 4 （2012）， pp. 321-340. 13 Seibert S. E.， Kraimer M. L. & Heslin P. A.， “Developing career resilience and adaptability，” Organizational Dynamics， Vol. 45， No. 3 （2016）， pp. 245-257. 14 Swanson J. L. & Woitke M. B.， “Theory into practice in career assessment for women： assessment and interventions regarding perceived career barriers，” Journal of Career Assessment， Vol. 5， No. 4 （1997）， pp. 443-462. 15 Raque-Bogdan T. L.， Klingaman E. A. & Martin H. M. et al.， “Career-related parent support and career barriers： an investigation of contextual variables，” The Career Development Quarterly， Vol. 61， No. 4 （2013）， pp. 339-353. 16 Luzzo D. A.， “Exploring the relationship between the perception of occupational barriers and career development，” Journal of Career Development， Vol. 22， No. 4 （1996）， pp. 239-248. 17 王鹏、张利会、朱新立等：《大学生生涯阻碍知觉与职业生涯规划水平：心理资本的作用》，《人类工效学》2017年第4期，第18-23，37页。 18 London M.， “Overcoming career barriers： a model of cognitive and emotional processes for realistic appraisal and constructive coping，” Journal of Career Development， Vol. 24， No. 1 （1997）， pp. 25-38. 19 Luzzo D. A.， “Gender differences in college students’ career maturity and perceived barriers in career development，” Journal of Counseling & Development， Vol. 73， No. 3 （1995）， pp. 319-322. 20 刘慧：《大学生职业生涯阻碍因素之比较研究》，《河北师范大学学报（教育科学版）》2008年第4期，第105-108页。 21 Watts L. L.， Frame M. C. & Moffett R. G. et al.， “The relationship between gender， perceived career barriers， and occupational aspirations，” Journal of Applied Social Psychology， Vol. 45， No. 1 （2015）， pp. 10-22. 22 Mcwhirter E. H.， “Perceived barriers to education and career： ethnic and gender differences，” Journal of Vocational Behavior， Vol. 50， No. 1 （1997）， pp. 124-140. 23 Santos G. G.， “Career barriers influencing career success： a focus on academics’ perceptions and experiences，” Career Development International， Vol. 21， No. 1 （2016）， pp. 60-84. 24 赵小云、薛桂英：《当代大学生生涯阻碍知觉的现状调查》，《淮北师范大学学报（哲学社会科学版）》2013年第5期，第158-161页。 25 Wollast R.， Aelenei C. & Chevalère J. et al.， “Facing the dropout crisis among PhD candidates： the role of supervisor support in emotional well-being and intended doctoral persistence among men and women，” Studies in Higher Education， Vol. 48， No. 6 （2023）， pp. 813-828. 26 Li T. T.， Tien H.-L. S. & Wang J. J.， “Academic satisfaction and meaning in life： the mediating roles of personal growth initiative and career adaptability，” Education Sciences， Vol. 14， No. 4 （2024）， pp. 436-444. 27 Liang W. Y.， Liu S. Y. & Zhao C. X.， “Impact of student-supervisor relationship on postgraduate students’ subjective well-being： a study based on longitudinal data in China，” Higher Education， Vol. 82， No. 2 （2021）， pp. 273-305. 28 Janssen S.， van Vuuren M. & de Jong M. D. T.， “Sensemaking in supervisor-doctoral student relationships： revealing schemas on the fulfillment of basic psychological needs，” Studies in Higher Education， Vol. 46， No. 12 （2021）， pp. 2738-2750. 29 刘平青、季小童、崔遵康等：《导师精神性指导行为对研究生职业生涯迷茫感的影响研究》，《学位与研究生教育》2022年第7期，第80-88页。 30 刘璐璐、刘娟娟、郭菲等：《研究共同体如何涵养博士生学术品格？——基于“双一流”建设高校博士生调查的实证研究》，《学位与研究生教育》2023年第10期，第54-62页。 31 Devenish R.， Dyer S. & Jefferson T. et al.， “Peer to peer support： the disappearing work in the doctoral student experience，” Higher Education Research & Development， Vol. 28， No. 1 （2009）， pp. 59-70. 32 胡保玲：《导师支持、同学支持对研究生创新行为的影响：积极情绪的中介作用》，《黑龙江高教研究》2017年第9期，第117-120页。 33 Salim R. M. A.， Istiasih M. R. & Rumalutur N. A. et al.， “The role of career decision self-efficacy as a mediator of peer support on students’ career adaptability，” Heliyon， Vol. 9， No. 4 （2023）， https：//doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14911. 34 Chaudhry S.， Tandon A. & Shinde S. et al.， “Student psychological well-being in higher education： the role of internal team environment， institutional， friends and family support and academic engagement，” Plos One， Vol. 19， No. 1 （2024）， https：//doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0297508. 35 Kroenke K.， Spitzer R. L. & Williams J. B.， “The PHQ-9： validity of a brief depression severity measure，” Journal of General Internal Medicine， Vol. 16， No. 9 （2001）， pp. 606-613. 36 白茹、侯志瑾、李文希：《中国大学生生涯阻碍因素量表的编制》，《中国临床心理学杂志》2010年第3期，第297-300页。 37 赵小云、谭顶良：《大学生生涯阻碍知觉问卷的编制》，《中国临床心理学杂志》2012年第5期，第600-602，622页。 38 Swanson J. L.， Daniels K. K. & Tokar D. M.， “Assessing perceptions of career-related barriers： the career barriers inventory，” Journal of Career Assessment， Vol. 4， No. 2 （1996）， pp. 219-244. 39 赵磊磊、姜蓓佳：《导师支持对学术型博士生学术适应的影响——基于江浙沪皖16所高校的调查研究》，《中国高教研究》2020年第8期，第56-61页。 40 何菲、朱志勇：《导师支持行为对博士生学术能力的影响》，《研究生教育研究》2023年第1期，第11-20页。 41 Zimet G. D.， Dahlem N. W. & Zimet S. G. et al.， “The multidimensional scale of perceived social support，” Journal of Personality Assessment， Vol. 52， No. 1 （1988）， pp. 30-41. 42 郭丛斌、王天骄、杨莉：《导师指导对学术型硕士研究生读博机会的影响研究——兼论科研论文发表与科研能力增值的中介作用》，《研究生教育研究》2023年第3期，第10-20页。 43 连玉君、廖俊平：《如何检验分组回归后的组间系数差异》，《郑州航空工业管理学院学报》2017年第6期，第97-109页。 44 温忠麟、侯杰泰、张雷：《调节效应与中介效应的比较和应用》，《心理学报》2005年第2期，第268-274页。 45 江艇：《因果推断经验研究中的中介效应与调节效应》，《中国工业经济》2022年第5期，第100-120页。 46 方杰、温忠麟、欧阳劲樱等：《国内调节效应的方法学研究》，《心理科学进展》2022年第8期，第1703-1714页。 47 Mcalpine L.， “Identity-trajectories： doctoral journeys from past to present to future，” Australian Universities’ Review， Vol. 54， No. 1 （2012）， pp. 38-46. 48 Park J. J. & Schallert D. L.， “Reciprocity between doctoral students’ emerging professional identity and their envisionment of a possible future self in real and imagined communities of practice，” Learning， Culture and Social Interaction， Vol. 26 （2020）， https：//doi.org/10.1016/j.lcsi.2020.100434.
2025, Vol. 55 
