Week 6/ Bloch Article Blog

        In class, we discussed Gottfredson's Theory of Circumscription and Compromise.  People eliminate possible careers due to their gender or social class.  I have seen this occur.  Females refuse to go into math-related careers or construction careers because they are male-driven careers.  Whereas, males refuse to become teachers or nurses because they are female-driven careers.  However, I know people can enjoy and be satisfied in these careers no matter what gender they are.  This reminds me of how we talked about men making more money than women in the same career.  I wonder if all careers were considered equally good for males and females then would males and females make the same amount of money for the same career?

        I think the seven connectors mentioned in the article that link spirituality and work help define a person's life meaning (Bloch, 2005).  Career development is a search for meaning (Guindon & Hanna, 2002, p. 196).  Calling and harmony are two connectors that include using a person's talents, interests, and values to find a satisfying career (Bloch, 2005, p. 202).  This makes me think of the self-assessment FOCUS-2 that the career development services of Millersville University offers to its students.  This helps students to clarify what their values are so they can choose a major and a career that matches those values in order to enjoy and be satisfied in a career.  I agree with how the article says that the seven counselors help people to feel a sense of connection or spirituality (Bloch, 2005, p. 202).  This leads to work being life and life being work.

        I identify with the principle of complex adaptive entities called phase transitions between order and chaos (Bloch, 2005, p. 199).  I think every person goes through this phase transition several times in life.  The economic recession has caused millions of people to be unemployed, which throws them into a state of chaos.  They had a steady job with a steady income and then they were thrown into chaos with no job and no source of income.

        Reading the case analysis of Marion's calling helped me to understand complexity theory (Bloch, 2005, p. 202-203).  Marion had a torus attractor where she was in an endless cycle of dealing with problems of financial issues of the company and high client volume (Bloch, 2005, p. 203).  Marion had a high sensitive dependence or a high potential for small changes to give large effects (Bloch, 2005, p. 203).  She could have quit her job but she heard a younger counselor talk about having a calling.  Marion realized she had a calling to be a counselor, or her personal strange attractor, and she just needed to have a job where she could provide counseling to clients (Bloch, 2005, p. 203). 

References

Bloch, D. P. (2005).  Complexity, chaos, and nonlinear dynamics: A new perspective on career development theory.  The Career Development Quarterly, 53, 194-207.

Guindon, M. H., & Hanna, F. J. (2002).  Coincidence, happenstance, serendipity, fate, or the hands of God: Case studies in synchronicity.  The Career Development Quarterly, 50, 195-208.