The formation of pre-service ECE teachers' professional identity: The roles of self-efficacy, learning motivation, and engagement

This study investigates the mechanisms underlying the development of professional identity (PI) among pre-service early childhood education (ECE) teachers in China, focusing on the mediating roles of learning motivation and engagement in the relationship between self-efficacy and PI. Data were collected from 411 pre-service teachers in Guangdong Province. Results indicate that self-efficacy significantly enhances both learning motivation (β = 0.909, 95% CI [0.887, 0.929], p < .05) and engagement (β = 0.686, 95% CI [0.594, 0.774], p < .05), which in turn foster PI. Engagement demonstrated a significant but weaker mediating effect (β = 0.195, 95% CI [0.084, 0.316], p < .05) compared to motivation (β = 0.241, 95% CI [0.124, 0.339], p < .05). Several demographic and background factors also played meaningful roles: student leadership experience positively predicted engagement (β = -0.279, 95% CI [-2.79, -2.78], p < .05), while educational background positively predicted engagement (β = 0.218, 95% CI [0.063, 0.376], p < .05) but negatively moderated the self-efficacy-engagement link (β = -0.191, 95% CI [0.000, 0.055], p < .05). Having siblings strengthened the engagement-PI relationship (β = 0.209, 95% CI [0.000, 0.037], p < .05), whereas parental or family employment in ECE was negatively associated with PI (β = -0.258, 95% CI [-0.428, -0.094], p < .05). The findings highlight the central role of self-efficacy and the differential mediating effects of motivation and engagement, offering theoretical and practical implications for teacher education programs.