A crucial educational decision in adolescence is whether to continue attending secondary school or to start an apprenticeship. The aim of this study was to assess the associations of ability, personality, and interest with this decision of adolescents. We examined 358 eighth grade students. Path analysis was used to model the direct and indirect relationships of ability, personality, and interest with the decision between secondary school vs. apprenticeship. A high correlation could be found between school achievement and the decision: the higher the adolescents' school achievement, the more they tended to continue attending secondary school. Furthermore, school achievement mediated the relationships of intelligence (moderate effect) and conscientiousness (small effect) with the decision. The effects of vocational interests were both gender specific as well as direct and indirect. We conclude that ability, personality, and interest should be considered for this important educational decision. © 2016 Hogrefe.
Author Keywords
Index Keywords
