Career Development Theories
Overview of Career Development Theories
Career Development is a “continuous lifelong process of developmental experiences that focuses on seeking, obtaining and processing information about self, occupational and educational alternatives, life styles and role options” (Hansen, 1976). Put another way, career development is the process through which people come to understand them as they relate to the world of work and their role in it.
This career development process is where an individual fashions a work identity. In America, we are what we do, thus it becomes a person’s identity. It is imperative when educating our young people that our school systems assist and consider the significance of this responsibility for our youth and their future. The influences on and outcomes of career development are one aspect of socialization as part of a broader process of human development.
Why Study Theory?
Theories and research describing career behavior provide the “conceptual glue” for as well as describe where, when and for what purpose career counseling, career education, career guidance and other career interventions should be implemented.
The process of career development theory comes from four disciplines:
Differential Psychology- interested in work and occupations
Personality- view individuals as an organizer of their own experiences
Sociology- focus on occupational mobility
Developmental Psychology- concerned with the “life course”
“Theory is a picture, an image, a description, a representation of reality. It is not reality itself. It is a way we can think about some part of reality so that we can comprehend it”
(Krumboltz)
Career Development Theories for the past 75 years fall into four categories:
1. Trait Factor - Matching personal traits to occupations-Frank Parson’s (1920’s)
2. Psychological - Personality types matching work environment- Holland (1980’s)
3. Decision - Situational or Sociological- Bandura ( Self Efficacy-1970’s)
4.
Career Development is a “continuous lifelong process of developmental experiences that focuses on seeking, obtaining and processing information about self, occupational and educational alternatives, life styles and role options” (Hansen, 1976). Put another way, career development is the process through which people come to understand them as they relate to the world of work and their role in it.
This career development process is where an individual fashions a work identity. In America, we are what we do, thus it becomes a person’s identity. It is imperative when educating our young people that our school systems assist and consider the significance of this responsibility for our youth and their future. The influences on and outcomes of career development are one aspect of socialization as part of a broader process of human development.
Why Study Theory?
Theories and research describing career behavior provide the “conceptual glue” for as well as describe where, when and for what purpose career counseling, career education, career guidance and other career interventions should be implemented.
The process of career development theory comes from four disciplines:
Differential Psychology- interested in work and occupations
Personality- view individuals as an organizer of their own experiences
Sociology- focus on occupational mobility
Developmental Psychology- concerned with the “life course”
“Theory is a picture, an image, a description, a representation of reality. It is not reality itself. It is a way we can think about some part of reality so that we can comprehend it”
(Krumboltz)
Career Development Theories for the past 75 years fall into four categories:
1. Trait Factor - Matching personal traits to occupations-Frank Parson’s (1920’s)
2. Psychological - Personality types matching work environment- Holland (1980’s)
3. Decision - Situational or Sociological- Bandura ( Self Efficacy-1970’s)
4.