ISSN: 2222-6990
Open access
Education and career planning are vital to improving the quality of life for Malaysia's Orang Asli community, who face challenges rooted in socioeconomic disparities. Despite their resilience, Orang Asli students often lack motivation and guidance for planning their future, underscoring the need to address career self-efficacy. This study evaluated a career development program's impact on career self-efficacy among 48 upper secondary students from the Temiar and Semai subgroups. A quasi-experimental single-group design was used, employing the Career Self-Efficacy Test (UEKK) to measure self-awareness, job information, goal-setting, planning, and problem-solving. The intervention included sessions on self-awareness, career interest exploration using Holland’s Self-Directed Search (SDS), and a SWOT-based self-potential analysis, supplemented with career-related games and simulations. Findings revealed significant improvement in career self-efficacy, with the mean score rising from 3.31 to 3.50, t(47) = 2.83, p < .05. The results suggest that structured, culturally sensitive programs can enhance Orang Asli students’ confidence, goal-setting abilities, and decision-making skills. Regular initiatives tailored to their unique needs are crucial for fostering long-term benefits. Future research should adopt experimental designs comparing intervention and control groups to strengthen evidence and support broader implementation of such programs.
Anderson, K., Elder-Robinson, E., Gall, A., Ngampromwongse, K., Connolly, M., Letendre, A., Willing, E., Akuhata-Huntington, Z., Howard, K., Dickson, M., & Garvey, G. (2022). Aspects of wellbeing for indigenous youth in CANZUS countries: A systematic review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19, 13688.
Khir, A. (2019). Kemiskinan dari perspektif orang asli. In Gill, S. S. & Mohd Roslan Rosnon (Eds.), Pembangunan kontemporari orang asli. (pp. 190-210). UPM Press.
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215.
Betz, N. E. (1992). Counseling uses of career self- efficacy theory. The Career Development Quarterly, 41, 22-26.
Betz, N. E., & Luzzo, D. A. (1996). Career assessment and the career decision-making self-efficacy scale. Journal of Career Assessment, 4(4), 413-428.
Betz, N. E., Klein, K. L., & Taylor, K. M. (1996). Evaluation of a short form of the Career Decision Making Self-Efficacy Scale. Journal of Career Assessment, 4(1), 47–57.
Chakma, E. (2024). Challenges of indigenous children’s primary education in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh: Insights from individuals working in education. International Journal of Educational Management and Development Studies, 5 (1), 148-171. https://doi.org/10.53378/353050
Chung, Y. B. (2002). Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy and Career Commitment: Gender and Ethnic Differences Among College Students. Journal of Career Development, 28(4), 277-284. https://doi.org/10.1177/089484530202800404
Carey, I. (1976). Orang Asli: The Aboriginal Tribes of Peninsular Malaysia. Oxford University Press.
Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical Power Analysis for The Behavioral Sciences (2nd ed.). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.
Cohen, R. J., Schneider, W. J., & Tobin R. M. (2022). Psychological testing and assessment: An introduction to tests and measurement. (10th ed.). McGraw Hill LLC.
Damodar, P., Shetty, A., Prakash, A., & Dsouza, K. J. (2024). Transformative career maturity training for rural adolescents: An exploratory approach. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 29(1), 2398044.
Department of Orang Asli Development. (2023, 24 Jun). Demografi orang asli Kampung Kenang, Kuala Kangsar, Perak. Malaysia’s Official Open Data Portal. https://data.gov.my/ms-MY/dashboard/orang-asli/kampung-kenang-kuala-kangsar-perak. Accessed
Department of Statistics Malaysia. (2024, 31 July). Demografi Populasi Penduduk Malaysia. Jabatan Perangkaan Malaysia (DOSM). https://open.dosm.gov.my/ms-MY/dashboard/population Accessed
Earl, A. (2017). Inclusion or Interculturalidad: Attaining Equity in Higher Education for Indigenous Peoples in Mexico. In Cortina, R. (eds) Indigenous Education Policy, Equity, and Intercultural Understanding in Latin America. (pp.73-99). Palgrave Macmillan.
Gaudron, J.-P. (2011). A psychometric evaluation of the Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale–Short Form among French university students. Journal of Career Assessment, 19(4), 420–430. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072711409713
Hutchings, J. L., Breingan, S., Hikaka, J., Clark, T., Fonua, S., & Aspden, T. (2023). “Wait, can I ask what do pharmacists do?” M?ori and Pacific youth perspectives of pharmacy as a career pathway. Pharmacy Education, 23 (1), 339 – 353.
Jin, L., Ye, S., & Watkins, D. (2012). The dimensionality of the Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale–Short Form among Chinese graduate students. Journal of Career Assessment, 20(4), 520–529.
Jung, Y. M., & Yoo, IY. (2022). Development and testing of the career decision-making self-efficacy scale for nursing students: a methodological study. BMC Nursing, 21 (231). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-022-01017-7
Juntunen, C. L., Ali, S. R., & Pietrantonio, K. R. (2021). Social class and poverty: A renewed focus in career development. In. Brown, S. D., & Lent, R. W. (Eds.), Career Development and Counseling Putting Theory and Research to Work. (3rd ed.). John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Kharkongor, G. C., & Albert, S. (2014). Career counseling among indigenous peoples. In G. Arulmani et al. (Eds.), Handbook of Career Development, International and Cultural Psychology. (pp. 539-554). Springer.
Langthaler, Margarita; Malik, Julia (2023) : Inequalities in education from a global perspective: Theoretical approaches, dimensions and policy discussions, ÖFSE Briefing Paper, No. 34, Austrian Foundation for Development Research (ÖFSE), Vienna, https://doi.org/10.60637/2023-bp34
Luzzo, D. A. (1996). Exploring the relationship between the perception of occupational barriers and career development. Journal of Career Development, 22(4), 239–248. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02259993
Marton?ik, M., Ka?márová, M., Hruš?ová, E., Žilková, I. M., & Kravcová, M. (2021). Factor structure and reliability of the Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form in Slovak adolescent sample. Current Psychology, 40, 1429–1438. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-018-0078-2
Ministry of Economy. (2024). Pelan Pembangunan Ekonomi Bumiputera 2035 (PuTERA35). https://putera35.ekonomi.gov.my/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Pelan-Transformasi-Ekonomi-Bumiputera-2035-PuTERA35_compressed.pdf Accessed
Ministry of Education. (2022, 21 September). 2021 Sekolah Murid Asli KPM. Data Terbuka Malaysia. https://archive.data.gov.my/data/ms_MY/dataset/bilangan-murid-asli-di-sekolah-kpm/resource/eb0d3fe9-0d82-4270-8c10-49de19886c6d Accessed
Ministry of Education. (2021, 24 November). Jawapan lisan, soalan no. 24. mesyuarat kedua, penggal keempat, parlimen keempat belas. Malaysia’s Parliament. JDR24112021.pdf (parlimen.gov.my) Accessed
Ministry of Higher Education. (2024, 28 Jun) Kenyataan Media - Seramai 159,027 Calon Lepasan SPM Ditawar Tempat Ke IPTA & ILKA. https://mohe.gov.my/hebahan/kenyataan-media/kenyataan-media-seramai-159-027-calon-lepasan-spm-ditawar-tempat-ke-ipta-ilka Accessed
Ministry of Rural and Regional Development. (2022). Pelajar orang asli di IPTA. Data Asas KKDW 2021. (pp. 108). https://www.rurallink.gov.my/data-asas-kkdw/ Accessed
Mahmud, M. I., & Khidir, N. S. A. (2023). The relationship between career self -efficacy and career adapt-ability among vocational college students. International Journal of Academic Research in Business & Social Sciences, 13(9), 1774-1785.
Mahmud, M. I., Bakar, A. Y., Amat, S., Mansor, A. N., & Amran, M. S. (2022). The effect of career intervention program on career self-efficacy among secondary school students. International Transaction Journal of Engineering, Management, & Applied Sciences & Technologies, 13(7), 13A7B, 1-8.
Awang, M. M., Khairuddin, K. F., Ahmad, A. R., Ghani, S. A., Wahab, J. L. A., & Mamat, R. M. S. R. (2022). Ketidakhadiran ke sekolah: Faktor penyebab, aktiviti ketika ponteng dan aspirasi budaya belajar pelajar Orang Asli. Malaysian Journal of Learning and Instruction, 19(1), 227-308.
Nor, M. M. M., Sukimi, M. F., & Nor, M. N. M. (2018). Kesedaran pendidikan dan minat kerja pelajar Orang Asli suku kaum Jakun di Rompin, Pahang. GEOGRAFIA: Malaysian Journal of Society and Space, 14(1), 72-86.
Hassan, M. S., Umar, K., & Razali, M. M. (2022). Pembangunan ekonomi Orang Asli di Semenanjung Malaysia: Pengajaran yang boleh dipelajari daripada masyarakat Maori di New Zealand. UUM Journal of Legal Studies, 13(1), 431-458.
Abdullah, M. F., Othman, A., & Jani, R. (2019). Pengukuran Kesejahteraan Hidup Orang Asli Menggunakan Indeks Kemiskinan Multidimensi. Akademika, 89(3), 155-165.
Nam, S. K., Yang, E., Lee, S. M., Lee, S. H., & Seol, H. (2011). A psychometric evaluation of the Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale with Korean students: A Rasch model approach. Journal of Career Development, 38(2), 147–166. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894845310371374
Nota, L., Soresi, S., Maggio, I., Santilli, S., & Ginevra, M. (2020). Sustainable Development, Career Counselling and Career Education. Springer.
Parsons, F. (2009). Choosing a vocation. Bibliolife. (Original work published 1909)
Parthiban S. Gopal, Nor Malina Malek, & Muhd Al Naufal Abdul Rahman. (2023). Penilaian terhadap pengukuran kemiskinan dari perspektif multidimensi: Kajian kes terhadap pelajar B40 di Universiti Sains Malaysia. Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (MJSSH), 8(12), e002616.
Payne, R. K. (2005). A framework for understanding poverty (4th revised ed.). aha! Process, Inc. (Original work published 1996)
Rojewski, J. W. (1994). Career indecision types for rural adolescents from disadvantaged and nondisadvantaged backgrounds. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 41, 356-363.
Sabates, R., Hossain, A., & Lewin, K. M. (2013). School drop out in Bangladesh: Insights using panel data. International Journal of Educational Development, 33(3), 225-232. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2012.09.007
Sanchez, E. (2024). Lack of access to quality education for rural indigenous communities in Chiapas, Mexico. Ballard Brief. https://ballardbrief.byu.edu/issue-briefs/lack-of-access-to-quality-education-for-rural-indigenous-communities-in-chiapas-mxico. Accessed on December 27, 2024.
Shafqat, D., Bibi, S., Shafqat, M., & Afridi, N. (2023). The effectiveness of career counselling among adolescents; An approach to promote career decision ability. International Journal of Contemporary Issues in Social Sciences, 2(4), 923-929.
Taylor, K. M., & Betz, N. E. (1983). Applications of self-efficacy theory to the understanding and treatment of career indecision. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 22(1), 63–81.
United Nations (2015). Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Resolution Adopted by the General Assembly on 25 September 2015, 42809, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13398-014-0173-7.2
Walliman, N. (2022). Research methods: The basics (3rd ed.). Routledge.
Wexler, L. M. (2006). Inupiat youth suicide and culture loss: Changing community conversations for prevention. Social Science & Medicine, 63, 2938–2948.
Aini, Z., Don, A. G., & Abdullah, M. Y. M. (2023). Pendidikan sebagai faktor pemilihan pekerjaan dalam kalangan remaja orang asli. Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (MJSSH), 8(4), 1-14.
Zickafoose, A., Ilesanmi, O., Diaz-Manrique, M., Adeyemi, A.E., Walumbe, B., Strong, R., Wingenbach,G., Rodriguez, M.T., Dooley, K. (2024). Barriers and challenges affecting quality education (Sustainable Development Goal #4) in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2030. Sustainability, 16, 2657. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16072657
Raub, N. F. A., Mahmud, M. I., & Bakar, A. Y. A. (2025). The Effectiveness of a Career Development Program on Career Self-Efficacy among Orang Asli Students in Sungai Siput, Perak. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 15(1), 1559–1572.
Copyright: © 2025 The Author(s)
Published by HRMARS (www.hrmars.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode