Vocational psychology and new challenges.

A discussion group composed of vocational psychologists, guidance professionals, and career development specialists from around the world identified and discussed new challenges in understanding work and providing relevant career services. Four major themes emerged: What revisions are necessary in the profession's theory and practice to address changes in the nature of work and be more inclusive? How is culture to be addressed? What will help in the advancement from social justice rhetoric to meaningful practice? How can research continue to advance the field?

This year the profession celebrates the centenary of the publication of the first major book that established the field of vocational psychology. As we who are professionals in the field reflect on our rich history, let us continue to examine the efficacy of our theories and interventions in present conditions while planning for and anticipating future directions. For example, how are people experiencing and making meaning out of work today? Do current theories reflect economic, social, and demographic changes in labor markets, organizations, and employment? Do current vocational strategies address the needs of all people, including those who work to survive and have little choice in selecting and implementing their vocational aspirations? No doubt practitioners will encounter many challenges as they explore the person in relation to career and address changes in the world of work.

The 2007 joint International Association for Educational and Vocational Guidance, Society for Vocational Psychology, and National Career Development Association symposium provided a forum for vocational psychologists, guidance professionals, and career development specialists from around the world to grapple with contemporary issues that will have an impact on the future of the profession. Thematic discussion groups were created to impose a framework for theoretical and empirical presentations and focus subsequent group discussion. Participants in Group 1 explored some of the challenges that practitioners face as they address technological development and globalization, move toward a social justice agenda, and take a closer look at the meaning of work in people's fives. Four major challenges arose from nine presentations and subsequent group discussion, including initial suggestions for directing the future of vocational psychology.

Challenge 1: What Revisions Are Necessary in the Profession's Theory and Practice?

To help individuals navigate the postmodern information age, revisions to current career theories and vocational strategies will be necessary (Savickas, 2000). More specifically, this author proposed that the notion of career should become more personal and self-directed. In responding to societal changes and a drive toward a more inclusive vocational psychology, some have garnered support from constructivist metatheory (Blustein, 2006; Dauwalder, 2004; Guichard, 2005; Krieshok, Black, & McKay, 2005; Reid, 2004; Reynaert, 2004; Richardson, 2004; Savickas, 2005; Young, 2004). These approaches broaden the scope of the field by viewing work as a context for development.

In her paper, Richardson (2007) argued for a paradigm shift from the practice of career planning through matching individuals with jobs, to meaning making and the self-construction of a person's life through work and relationships. She suggested that instead of emphasizing objective individual characteristics (e.g., traits, interest patterns) and external measures of occupational success, career practitioners should focus on intentional responses that individuals make to their social contexts and internal measures of success. Furthermore, this author highlighted numerous advantages to embracing a social constructivist approach. In addition to being holistic, person centered, and time sensitive, social constructivist approaches advance a social justice agenda by including those who do not fit the middle-class notion of career. Moreover, constructivist approaches advance the discipline by helping career practitioners to understand the meaning of work in people's lives while attending to cultural, economic, and social influences.

Richardson (2007) noted that a paradigm shift to constructivism will radically alter research and intervention practices. Given the focus on life design, constructivism may also change the traditional definition of vocational psychology. For example, Crites (1969) defined vocational psychology as "the study of vocational behavior and development" (p. 16), describing vocational behavior as "all responses the individual makes in choosing and adjusting to an occupation" (p. 16). Some participants in the symposium discussion group wondered if such a complete transformation of the field is necessary and alternatively suggested revisions to more traditional, objectivist models and methods. It seems that the debate between constructivist approaches and more traditional approaches will persist as career practitioners reexamine their roles, values, and objectives. Sampson (2007) recommended continuing the use of labor market analysis to maintain the validity of occupational data and to disseminate this data efficiently. In his paper, he criticized popular assertions that occupations have changed in fundamental ways and presented labor market information to suggest that they have actually remained relatively stable over time. He acknowledged that changes are evident in terms of the number of individuals employed in specific occupations and the way in which work tasks are completed, but essential work behaviors such as problem solving, written and oral communication, relationship development, manual dexterity, and creativity have remained constant. Furthermore, Sampson (2007) noted that there is no evidence to suggest that career interventions designed in the 1970s are ineffective today: "Practice that is old is not out of date unless there is evidence that another practice is more effective" (p. 4).

There was no consensus among group participants on how to revise current vocational psychology theory and practice to address changes in the nature of work. Group discussion addressed particular situations or clients for which constructivist approaches could be used. In her presentation, Reid (2007) identified several reasons for exploring constructivist approaches in career guidance in the United Kingdom: (a) the limitation of established approaches within multidisciplinary and eclectic practice; (b) the need to foreground personal meaning; (c) the power of individual voices; (d) greater multicultural understanding; and (e) the relative influence of family and community on perceived roles, identity, and career aspirations. This author presented preliminary results of a pilot study examining the relative efficacy of narrative career counseling, solution-focused techniques, and a combination of the two. This research and other studies examining constructivist strategies may provide a springboard for future discussion on how this epistemologieal position can be used without abandoning the empirical strength on which the field resides.

Challenge 2: How Do We Address Culture?

Young's (2007) paper provided the basis for a group discussion on how we, as professionals, address culture in career guidance and vocational psychology. For example, when we speak of culture, are we referring to a group of people with a fixed and stable set of beliefs, attitudes, and artifacts or are we describing an ongoing, fluid process of meaning making? When culture is reified, we are able to ascribe an objective, static, external reality. We are then able to describe a group sample; validate instruments cross-culturally; and examine group differences by gender, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and so forth. Furthermore, we can define cross-cultural counseling and discuss multicultural perspectives and intervention strategies.

When culture is viewed more subjectively, as a process, we as practitioners can attend to within-group differences, give voice to subjective experiences, prevent inaccurate generalizations, and embrace qualitative inquiry. Young (2007) suggested that culture is dynamic in nature; it represents our fluctuating engagement with the world. For example, we continuously create and experience culture within all of our social contexts (e.g., families, work environments, communities.) At the same time, this author recognized that viewing culture as a process resists a more objective view. Subsequently, he elected to address the concept of culture by speaking of cultural sensitivity. He explained, "Interpreting this phrase as sensitivity to process and sensitivity to relationship allows me to unpack what is involved in being culturally sensitive" (Young, 2007, p. 7). From this perspective, culture is not something that can be learned by reading about a particular group; it emerges through intentional actions of the client and the counselor (Young, 2007).

Group discussion explored the challenges of viewing culture from both perspectives. For example, when we as practitioners reify culture by ascribing an objective reality to our clients, we may be doing a disservice by minimizing or ignoring personal experiences. At the same time, viewing culture as a process may move us away from a political agenda. For example, when we attend to the individual, do we depoliticize real disadvantages people face with respect to their group membership? If we move away from labels such as "single mother," might it cause us to move away from labels that lend support to real experiences?

Discussion group participants contemplated ways in which career practitioners could attend to group membership and he mindful of personal experience. One suggestion was to explore how clients construct their own culture and then deconstruct this process. For example, asking the client, "What does it mean for you to be a single mother?" It the client feels disempowered, then it is important to discuss how single mothers are disempowered and how this client participates within the structure of disempowerment. Conversely, the client may feel empowered as a single mother. In this case, the career practitioner can build on the client's strengths as a single mother.

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