Self-control and meaning in life as chain mediators linking college students’ vocational self-concept to career goal management

Against the backdrop of the complex global economic environment and intensifying employment competition for university graduates, this study drew on Career Construction Theory (CCT) to examine the association between vocational self-concept and career goal management, as well as the serial mediating roles of self-control and meaning in life within this linkage. A total of 1,675 college students from three universities in Hunan Province, China, were recruited as the research sample. After verifying the reliability and validity of the questionnaire scales, structural equation modeling was adopted to test the hypothesized relational pathways. The results revealed that vocational self-concept was positively and significantly associated with college students’ career goal management. Both self-control and meaning in life functioned as independent partial mediators, and the two constructs collectively exerted a significant serial mediation effect on the focal relationship. The present findings empirically validate the core tenets of CCT. In practice, strengthening students’ vocational self-concept, self-control, and meaning in life might serve as viable approaches to improving their career goal management capabilities and overall vocational developmental competencies.