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Theories of Career Development

Although the dominant theories of career development bring together individual psychology and sociology--the individual's career is a principal method of defining his or her place in society and in life--there are certain features of these theories that expose their deficiencies as both sociology and psychology. Consider the recourse that both Zunker (1997) and Lowman (1991) have to the Holland six-factor typology, also called the Holland Occupational Classification System, in organizing their explanation of hands-on, utilitarian, practical application of career-development theory to counseling of would-be employees and consultation for would-be employers. It sounds so simple and straightforward to explain career development by way of a range of discrete--though sometimes overlapping and converging--attributes of those who have careers. Accordingly, individual careerists are said by the Holland typology to have orientations or interests that are more or less (or as it were more and less) artistic, investigative, realistic, conventional, enterprising, or social (Zunker, 1997, p. 118).

Two things must be noted about the foregoing typology. The first is that it appears to have been adopted by the US government in its guide to occupational experience. Individuals who exhibit interest in occupations that are classified according to Holland's scheme are meant to help counselors "aid individuals in determining occupational goals" (Zunker, 1997, p. 119). This would appear to be a helpful starting point for developing satisfactory career objectives and psychologically appropriate work experiences for virtually any person. But that is where a second thing is to be noted about the foregoing typology: its arbitrariness. If that seems an inappropriate characterization of the Holland system, it may be useful to explore features of the system that point to such an evaluation. It comprises adjectives that characterize human attributes, and its meth...

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Theories of Career Development. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 01:36, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1683149.html