Chapter 2

I never knew that career development would be so depressing. There is so much potential for people to find meaningful careers, but discussing the social justice aspect was really infuriating. I definitely want to be a positive influence in the lives of girls and minority students to help them to have meaningful careers.

This chapter really drew me into its content because I really enjoyed analyzing myself I thought it was fun to decide what each theorist would have said about me. Before I write about the theories, I believe that I tend to feel most comfortable with positivist theories. The difference between positivist and postmodern reminds me somewhat of the difference between quantitative versus qualitative research. While each is relevant and important, it is easier for me to analyze information when I can measure it.

In a previous class, I had read about Holland’s Theory of Vocation Choice so I already know that I am mostly a social person. Being a social type definitely fits well with a job in school counseling so Holland would probably encourage me to pursue this career. I find his categories helpful in terms of understanding people and I appreciate that there is the allowance for overlap of the top three characteristics. I think that as a student, I would feel at ease knowing that there are so many careers that could potentially match well with my personality.

The Theory of Work Adjustment is definitely logical and it makes perfect sense, but I find it difficult to think about how I could use it unless I was a person’s personal career counselor that assisted him or her over many years. It is very mechanical and many people, myself included, see career as a more fluid experience. It may be helpful, however, to help someone understand why a certain job is not fulfilling to him or her.

While there is certainly not a shortage of information in both the value-based theory and Super’s theory, I appreciated how thorough each of them was. The career process that individuals go through can be complicated and progresses through many different stages. As I read Super’s theory, I thought about how his stages could be useful to me when I interview someone about this or her career history.

Gibson’s (2005) article about genograms was interesting and something that I believe that many children would enjoy doing for a school project. I also like that the genogram allows for the facilitation of conversations within the home and gives guidance counselors useful information about what messages about careers may be conveyed in the home. I am glad that Gibson (2005) also noted that this could be given on a more personal basis because my initial thought was that some older children may be ashamed of their parent’s occupation or not feel comfortable talking about them. Accommodations should be made for children in these situations.

Brown, D. (2012).  Career information, career counseling, and career development

(10^th ed.). New York: Pearson Education, Inc.

Gibson, D. (2005). The use of genograms in career counseling with elementary,

            middle and high school students. The Career Development Quarterly, 53,

            353-362.