The influence of self-efficacy beliefs for student parents attending university

Student parents (i.e., students who have their own dependent children) are a specific sub-population of adult learners. This study investigated the impact of self-efficacy beliefs on student parents’ perceived capacity to manage multiple roles and their satisfaction with family, school, and life. Survey data collected from 398 student parents enroled at four Canadian universities were analysed. Latent variable analysis was conducted using maximum likelihood estimation with robust standard errors (MLR) using Mplus. Self-efficacy beliefs were found to influence student parents’ perceptions of satisfaction at school, in the family, and with life in general. Perceptions of one’s capacity to manage multiple roles (i.e., school-family balance) were found to mediate the relationship between academic self-efficacy and school satisfaction as well as parental self-efficacy and family satisfaction. Furthermore, preliminary evidence is provided of unique subgroups within the student parent population based on children’s ages, partner status, and enrolment status (i.e., full/part-time studies).