Development of an Internship Effect Measurement Scale for College Students: An Empirical Study Based on Text Mining and Panel Data Analysis

Abstract

This research aims to redefine and develop a measurement of internship as a form of career exploration. To achieve this purpose, we conducted three studies.

In study 1, a text analysis was performed to confirm the effects of recent internship experiences. We specifically asked university students （n = 1,179） to answer in free-form format questions about “changes that were made within yourself by participating in the internship” and quantitatively analyzed the contents by using KH Coder.

In study 2, we developed a measurement scale based on the results of the text analysis. From the results of exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis （n = 3,826）, five effects were extracted namely“ a clearer career vision,”“ a broadened career vision,”“ recognition of human network,”“ motivation to work,” and“ an enhanced self-understanding.” We also developed a 20-item “internship effect measurement scale” to measure these five effects.

In study 3, two analyses were conducted to verify the developed scale’s reliability, validity, and effectiveness. The first is a correlation analysis with the existing scale. From the results of this analysis, a significant correlation was confirmed between the internship measurement scale and career exploration scale, and the reliability and validity of the scale were confirmed. The second is the verification of the scale’s effectiveness by the t-test within the results of job-hunting. From this analysis, it was confirmed that there was a significant difference in the five effects of internship within the groups with and without job offers, and groups satisfied or dissatisfied with job offers.

There are four major contributions to this research. The first is to clarify the “effects” of the recent internship experience. The most distinctive feature is the positive correlation （r = .42） between “a clearer career vision” that narrows down one’s career vision and “a broadened career vision” that expands the possibility of one’s career. It was confirmed that both effects, which may be inconsistent, could be established simultaneously. In other words, the internship experience has various effects, such as “expanding while narrowing down” or “narrowing down while expanding” the future career.

Second, we developed an“ internship effect measurement scale” that measures the internship’s five effects. Various scales related to career exploration have been developed, but very few scales have been developed for internships. The features of this scale are that （1） the effects felt by university students from recent internship programs are directly reflected in the scale, （2） the correlation with the existing career exploration scale has been confirmed, and （3） the scale’s effectiveness was confirmed in“ with or without job offer” and“ with or without satisfaction with job offer”.

Third, we showed that each of the five effects of the internship affects outcome variables differently. From the results of the t-test, the factors that have a significant difference in “with or without job offer” and“ with or without satisfaction with job offer” are different. This result suggests that the factors making a difference in“ with or without job offer” and“ with or without satisfaction with job offer” are different. In other words, these five internship effects have different roles and influences on job-hunting results.

The fourth is the contribution to the theoretical aspect. Internships are considered a form of career exploration behavior, and we defined internship as “a form of career exploration with work experience conducted in adolescence.” In addition, career exploration is considered a concept consisting of two aspects, “self-search” and “environmental search.” However, the results of this research suggested that “recognition of human network” and “motivation to work” may be unique effects of the internship experience.