ABSTRACTDrawing on survey data from 634 Chinese high school students, this study investigated the mechanisms of career decision‐making through the lens of career construction theory. The findings revealed two key insights. First, career adaptability significantly mediated the relationship between students' need satisfaction and career decision‐making difficulties. Second, while career exploration alone did not exhibit a direct mediating effect, it formed a chain mediation mechanism with career adaptability between need satisfaction and career decision‐making difficulties. Additionally, the study identified a moderating role of career exploration in the relationship between need satisfaction and career decision‐making difficulties. However, only high levels of career adaptability were found to effectively reduce such difficulties and enhance need satisfaction.