Assignment: Theories of career choices

Assignment: Theories of career choices
Assignment: Theories of career choices
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Assignment: Functions of Theories of career choice and development
Person-Environment Congruence (PEC) Theories: Frank Parson, Theory of Work Adjustment, John Holland, a Values-Based Approach, and their Applications
The theories in this chapter are traditional theories
Once characterized as trait and factor theories because needs, values and personality types were derived via statistical techniques know as factor analysis.
Theories of career choice and development serve 3 functions:
Facilitate the understanding of the forces that influence career choice and development
Stimulate research that will help to better clarify career choice and the development process
Provide a guide to practice in the absence of empirical guidelines
John Holland created a hexagonal model that shows the relationship between the personality types and environments
Those whose career concerns appear to be limited to identifying a major, an occupation, a job, or leisure activities
Those who do not appear to have barriers to exploration and decision making, such as irrational beliefs, poor self-efficacy, poor self-concept or ineffective decision-making styles
Those who are in need of assistance at specific choice points (such as needing to declare a major, get a new job, or choose an occupation) but not long-term, developmental work
Holland’s approach is most appropriate for:
According to Holland, personality develops as a result of the interaction of
inherited characteristics
the activities to which the individual is exposed
and the interests and competencies that grow out of the activity
Holland posits the following personality types:
Realistic people deal with the environment in an objective, concrete and physically manipulative manner
Investigative people deal with the environment by using intellect—manipulating ideas, words and symbols.
Artistic individuals deal with the environment by creating art forms and products.
Social people deal with the environment by using skills to interact with and relate to others.
Enterprising people cope with the environment by expressing adventurous, dominant, enthusiastic and impulsive qualities.
Conventional people deal with the environment by choosing goals and activities that carry social approval.
Holland’s Theory of Types
Step 1
Gaining Self – Understanding
Assess a person’s ability, interests, values, and personality by examining six types.
Step 2
Obtaining Knowledge about the World of Work
Holland’s six categories provide a means for classifying and learning about occupations (the environment).
Step 3
Integrating Information about Self and the World of Work
Differentiation
Some people may resemble one Holland Type, whereas others may be quite
undifferentiated and have interests and competencies across all 6 types
Consistency
The closer the types are to each other on the chart, the more consistent their
characteristics
Theory of Work Adjustment (TWA) (Dawis and colleagues)
This model first describes the person’s (worker’s) characteristics followed by a description of the work environment’s characteristics. The third part deals with the result of the interaction between the person and work environment
The major value of TWA for career practitioners is to gain a better understanding of the interaction between workers and their place of employment
Not widely practiced because of its complexity
Person Characteristics
Three types of abilities:
Visual acuity—speed and perception of detail
Cognitive –comprehension, memory and reasoning with words and numbers
3. Motor or psychomotor—dexterity, speed, eye-hand coordination.
Maintenance and Adjustment
Once person takes job, correspondence between work and the work environment begins. The worker responds to demands of workplace with what Dawis terms:
Celerity (quickness of responding)
Pace (intensity of response)
Rhythm (pattern of response)
Endurance (duration of response)
The result of this process is varying degrees of job satisfaction
Basic Assumptions of TWA
People have 2 types of needs
Biological (or survival)
Psychological (social acceptance)
2nd assumption is that work environments have “requirements” that are analogous to the needs of individuals.
When the needs of individuals in an environment (work) and those of the environment are satisfied, correspondence exists.
WORK ADJUSTMENT THEORY
ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENTS
Minnesota Importance Questionnaire
Minnesota Job Description Questionnaire
Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire
Minnesota Satisfactoriness Scales
Values
Beliefs that are experienced by the individual as standards of how he or she should function
2 types of values:
Cultural and role related
Norms are a group’s counterpart of an individual’s values. Work groups develop norms (standards of behavior)
Norms have 2 dimensions: public and private
Some research has indicated that cultural values seem to be more prevalent in some racial and ethnic groups than in others.
Contrast the impact of culture, family, and neighborhood on career choices of the following groups:
a. Average middle class, American family
b. Urban single parent, low income family
c. Recent Asian American immigrant family
d. Wealthy suburban professional family
e. African American youth (middle class)
f. Native American woman (rural)
g. Recent Mexican American immigrant (undocumented)