Developing qualitative career assessment processes. (Articles).

It has been suggested that qualitative assessment tends to be more labor intensive than quantitative assessment (Goldman, 1992). For example, the counselor has an extensive role in setting the scene for and supervising the qualitative assessment activity (Goldman, 1992). In addition, deriving meaning, insight, and learning from the activity necessitates that the activity is processed or debriefed. Thus, qualitative assessment requires the counselor to be actively involved in the process from beginning to end (Brott, 2001; Goldman, 1990). Peavy (1997) claimed that career counselors "have the privilege of hearing many stories and scripts and then joining the storytellers in the task of reauthoring them toward more preferred futures" (p. 30). Therefore, counselors who listen for life themes and stories act more as "biographers who interpret lives in progress rather than as actuaries who count interests and abilities" (Savickas, 1992, p. 338).

Developing Qualitative Career Assessment Processes

It has been suggested that the development of qualitative career assessment processes lends itself to creativity (McMahon & Patton, 2002) and that career counselors can develop their own assessment processes (Goldman, 1992). However, unlike quantitative assessment, there is little to guide practitioners in the development of qualitative career assessment processes, and the issue of psychometric adequacy has been raised (Neimeyer & Neimeyer, 1993b). Whereas the criteria for adequacy of assessment developed under the logical positivist worldview are "normative and statistical," under the constructivist worldview, the criteria are "primarily interpretive and phenomenological" (Neimeyer & Neimeyer, 1993b, p. 23). Despite these vastly different criteria for adequacy, developers of qualitative career assessment processes may use concepts from both worldviews, as reflected in the following suggestions.

Ground the Assessment Process in Theory

Qualitative career assessment does not imply a lack of rigor. Just as many quantitative assessment processes are grounded in theory (e.g., Holland's, 1985, 1992, Self-Directed Search; Super, Thompson, & Lindeman's, 1988, Adult Career Concerns Inventory), so too may qualitative career assessment instruments be grounded in theory. For example, Viljamaa (1998), Peavy (1996), and Amundson (1998) based their assessment processes broadly in constructivist theory, and Stevens (1998) consulted with experts on emerging work settings when developing his Occupational Work Settings Card Sort. The genogram, a commonly used qualitative career assessment instrument, and its more recent adaptation, the Career-O-Gram (Thorngren & Feit, 2001), are grounded in systems theory and family therapy. Time lines and lifelines are grounded in developmental career theory, such as that of Super (1990). The links with theory may be made explicit to clients as a background and rationale for engaging in a qualitative career assessment proce ss. For example, a counselor may provide the client with a theoretical overview of a particular qualitative process (see Brown & Brooks, 1991; Viljamaa, 1998).

Test the Career Assessment Process

In the development of well-designed standardized psychological tests or inventories, established procedures for test development must be followed, such as developing items for the inventory, testing the items on adequate samples, and analyzing results (Hood & Johnson, 1997). Similarly, these procedures could be followed in the development of qualitative career assessment processes, particularly those that are commercially produced. For example, Stevens (1997, 1998) stated that his card sort activities have been "extensively tested before publication in many contrasting career counseling and career training environments" (Stevens, 1998, p. 5). On the basis of this testing, Stevens recommended client groups for whom different assessment processes are appropriate.

At a practice level, counselors may also test the career assessment process in relation to its relevance and usefulness to the client and his or her role in the facilitation of the process. For example, throughout the administration of a qualitative assessment process, career counselors may seek feedback from clients and monitor their responses. Such testing facilitates counselor responsiveness to client needs by making modifications to or discontinuing the process. In addition, career counselors may seek feedback on their role in the qualitative assessment process. Unlike quantitative career assessment processes that have a standardized procedure, qualitative career assessment processes give the client and the counselor a degree of flexibility and spontaneity.

Ensure That the Process Can Be Completed in a Reasonable Time Frame

As discussed previously, it has been suggested that qualitative career assessment processes may be time-consuming (Brown & Brooks, 1991; Goldman, 1992). Given the proliferation or Web-based assessment processes (Chartrand & Walsh, 2001) and a tendency for clients to expect single sessions with career counselors, it is desirable for clients to know how long an assessment process will take. When a process is necessarily long, it may be possible to divide it into sections from which the client can choose or return to at a later stage (see Viljamaa, 1998). For example, Gareerstorm (Viljamaa, 1998) allows clients to choose from a number of sections and informs them of the amount of time required to complete each one.

Design a Process That Fosters Holism How should I go to police station

Holism is fundamental to the constructivist worldview and, as such, needs to be reflected in the development of qualitative career assessment instruments. Thus an exploration of a client's values may result in the construction of a genogram and an exploration of the relationship of past family influences and present occupational values. More recently, an adaptation of the genogram, the Career-O-Gram, has been used to explore career histories and assess the multiple influences on an individual's career development (Thorngren & Feit, 2001). Alternatively, clients who are unsure about occupational goals may examine other facets of their lives, such as their use of leisure time, to discover skills and values (see Amundson, 1998).

Write the Instructions for the Client They ere there come

Constructivism promotes a collaborative client-counselor relationship. The position of the client is elevated in that he or she has more involvement in and control of the assessment. Traditionally, assessment manuals have been written for counselors who have had the responsibility of administering the assessment instrument. However, constructivism opens the possibility for instructions to be directed to and shared with the client. For example, in their assessment instruments, Viljamaa (1998) and Stevens (1997, 1998) both include phrases such as "you may like," "your values," and "after you have," which personalize the assessment process for the client and promote his or her involvement in and responsibility for the assessment process. In addition, such instructions encourage counselors to be less directive.

Write Readable and Easily Understood Instructions

When instructions are to be read by clients, it is important for them to be readable and easily understood. This is not meant to be derogatory to clients but rather respectful of their lack of familiarity with psychological and counseling jargon that could be contained in the instructions. User friendly instructions are respectful of clients and promote cooperation and collaboration. For example, although the instruction to "draw a time line" is readable, it may not be easily understood by a client and may be better divided into a series of steps including, for example, "draw a line down the middle of your page"; also, a genogram could be explained in everyday language that includes "sometimes it helps us to understand where we get our ideas about work from if we think about the family we grew up in."

Sequence Logical, Simple, Small, Achievable Steps

Small steps that flow logically from one to the next provide a sense of direction when the qualitative career assessment process is used. In addition, small tasks that are achievable can promote a sense of hope in clients. Clients may work through the assessment process on their own or in collaboration with a counselor. Again, flexibility is desirable if the client wants to include other information or to explore more meaningful areas.

Provide a Focused and Flexible Process

Although this point may sound like a contradiction, it represents a critical difference between assessment that is conducted using the traditional worldview and assessment that is conducted using the constructivist worldview. Within the traditional worldview, there is no opportunity to deviate from the process outlined in the assessment manual. When the constructivist worldview is used, clients may spend a longer time on meaningful elements of the assessment, or they may choose to move tangentially into meaningful areas. In other words, clients need to be able to choose to move on or not complete the assessment if they do not find that it is personally meaningful.

Encourage Cooperative involvement of Counselor and Client

The emphasis of the constructivist worldview on the counseling relationship is the active involvement of the counselor and the client in the assessment process (see Brott, 2001). The boundaries between assessment and counseling are less clearly defined (Dowd, 1995; Goldman, 1990). The successful use of constructivist assessment, as with other interventions in counseling, requires that the assessment process is designed to be sensitive to the needs of the client and to be appropriately timed (Neimeyer & Neimeyer, 1993b). Furthermore, these authors suggested that a "seamless blend" of constructivist assessment with counseling skills can "augment, deepen, and direct" (Neimeyer & Neimeyer, 1993a, p. 222) counseling practice.

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