Do you think the United States is truly a meritocracy?

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Assignment 1: Meritocracy

Explain how the United States compares to other countries with regards to social mobility rates.   Are there differences between the United States and other countries? Why? Which group in the society has the opportunity for upward social mobility and why?  Do you think the United States is truly a meritocracy? Why or why not? Give relevant examples to support your decision. Apply your decision of attending college to the concept of meritocracy.

Be sure to support your answer with references to the textbook, appropriate outside resources, and your own personal experiences.

Explain how people view work as a part of their lives and the lives of others.

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Career Development and Counseling PSYG 542

Career Information, Career Counseling and Career Development,

Duane Brown, (2016)

Chapter 1

Objectives

Articulate an understanding of the impact of the global economy on work in the U. S.

Explain how people view work as a part of their lives and the lives of others.

Form a personal view of their own career development.

Show familiarity with the basic terminology used in career development.

Demonstrate the role career development programs can play in the drive for social justice in the U. S.

Demonstrate knowledge of the historical roots of career development.

Brown adopts Sears’s (1982) definition of Career development: a lifelong process involving psychological, sociological, educational, economic, and physical factors as well as chance factors that interact to influence the career of an individual. Brown also adds culture to Sears’s list of factor that influence career development

Career Interventions Defined

Career intervention is the broadest term and subsumes individual, small group, large group and organizational career development instruments. It’s a deliberate act aimed at enhancing some aspects of a person’s career development.

Career Guidance –organized, systematic efforts designed to influence various aspects of the career development of a client group such as high school or college students.

Career Education is a systematic attempt to influence the career development of students and adults through various types of educational strategies.

Career counseling occurs both individually and in groups and may deal both with personal issues and specific career problem. Career counseling is more likely to be regulated by codes of ethics and legislation at the state level.

Career information is sometimes referred to as labor market information (ONet – online system developed by the U.S. Department of Labor).

Career coaching is, usually a one on one intervention and is often initiated by managers to improve individual employees functioning and for the business to identify the talent it needs to be successful.

Chapter 2

Ethical and Legal Guidelines and the Competencies Needed for Career Development Practice

Learning Objectives

 

 

Identify ethical principles that govern career development practitioners’ work

 

Outline the requirements for the Master Career Counselor, Master Career Development Professional, and Career Development Facilitator credentials

 

Identify the major competencies needed by career development professionals.

NACE’s Principles for Ethical Professional Practice

Are designed to provide everyone involved in the career development and employment process with two basic precepts on which to base their efforts: maintain a recruitment process that is fair and equitable; support informed and responsible decision making by candidates.

1. Practice reasonable, responsible, and transparent behavior

2. Act without bias …

3. Ensure equitable access …

4. Comply with laws …

5. Protect confidentiality of …

National Career Development Association (NCDA)

The fundamental principles of professional ethical behavior include:

• Autonomy, or fostering the right to control the direction of one’s life;

• Non-maleficence, or avoiding actions that cause harm;

• Beneficence, or working for the good of the individual and society by promoting mental health and well being;

• Objectivity, or treating individuals equitably;

• Accountability, or honoring commitments and keeping promises, including fulfilling one’s responsibilities of trust in professional relationships; and

• Veracity, or dealing truthfully with individuals with whom career development professionals come into contact.

NCDA Competencies

Career Development Theory

Individual and Group Counseling Skills

Individual/Group Assessment

Information/Resources

Program Management and Implementation

Coaching, Consultation and Performance Improvement

Diverse Populations

Supervision

Ethical/Legal Issues

Technology

Master Career Counselor Criteria

Member of NCDA for 2 years

Master’s Degree in Counseling or related field from accredited institution

3 years of post Master’s experience in career counseling

NCC credential or state-level license as a counselor or psychologist

3 credits in each of 6 NCDA competencies

Supervised practicum or 2 years of post master’s experience under a certified supervisor

Document that at least 50% of current job duties are directly related to career counseling

Master Career Development Professional Criteria

Member of NCDA for 2 years

Master’s Degree in Counseling or related field from accredited institution

Complete 3 years of post-master’s experience in career development experience, training, teaching, program development or materials development

Document that at least 50% of current job duties are directly related to career counseling

Career Development Facilitator

Complete 120 hours of training in a specified course of study

Possess one of the following:

graduate degree plus 1 year of career development work experience

Bachelor’s degree plus 2 years of career development work experience

High school diploma plus approximately 4 years of career development work experience

ACA Code of Ethics

Principle 1: Above All, Do No Harm

Principle 2: Be Competent

Principle 3: Respect Clients’ Rights to Chose Their Own Directions

Principle 4: Honor Your Responsibilities.

Principle 5: Make Accurate Public Statements

Principle 6: Respect Counselors and Practitioners from other professions

Principle 7: Advocate for Clients in Need

Chapter 3

Person-Environment Congruence (PEC) Theories: Frank Parson, Theory of Work Adjustment, John Holland, a Values-Based Approach, and their Applications

The theories in this chapter are traditional theories

Once characterized as trait and factor theories because needs, values and personality types were derived via statistical techniques know as factor analysis.

Theories of career choice and development serve 3 functions:

Facilitate the understanding of the forces that influence career choice and development

Stimulate research that will help to better clarify career choice and the development process

Provide a guide to practice in the absence of empirical guidelines

John Holland created a hexagonal model that shows the relationship between the personality types and environments

Those whose career concerns appear to be limited to identifying a major, an occupation, a job, or leisure activities

Those who do not appear to have barriers to exploration and decision making, such as irrational beliefs, poor self-efficacy, poor self-concept or ineffective decision-making styles

Those who are in need of assistance at specific choice points (such as needing to declare a major, get a new job, or choose an occupation) but not long-term, developmental work

Holland’s approach is most appropriate for:

According to Holland, personality develops as a result of the interaction of

inherited characteristics

the activities to which the individual is exposed

and the interests and competencies that grow out of the activity

Holland posits the following personality types:

Realistic people deal with the environment in an objective, concrete and physically manipulative manner

Investigative people deal with the environment by using intellect—manipulating ideas, words and symbols.

Artistic individuals deal with the environment by creating art forms and products.

Social people deal with the environment by using skills to interact with and relate to others.

Enterprising people cope with the environment by expressing adventurous, dominant, enthusiastic and impulsive qualities.

Conventional people deal with the environment by choosing goals and activities that carry social approval.

Holland’s Theory of Types

Step 1

Gaining Self – Understanding

Assess a person’s ability, interests, values, and personality by examining six types.

Step 2

Obtaining Knowledge about the World of Work

Holland’s six categories provide a means for classifying and learning about occupations (the environment).

Step 3

Integrating Information about Self and the World of Work

Differentiation

Some people may resemble one Holland Type, whereas others may be quite

undifferentiated and have interests and competencies across all 6 types

Consistency

The closer the types are to each other on the chart, the more consistent their

characteristics

Theory of Work Adjustment (TWA) (Dawis and colleagues)

This model first describes the person’s (worker’s) characteristics followed by a description of the work environment’s characteristics. The third part deals with the result of the interaction between the person and work environment

The major value of TWA for career practitioners is to gain a better understanding of the interaction between workers and their place of employment

Not widely practiced because of its complexity

Person Characteristics

Three types of abilities:

Visual acuity—speed and perception of detail

Cognitive –comprehension, memory and reasoning with words and numbers

3. Motor or psychomotor—dexterity, speed, eye-hand coordination.

Maintenance and Adjustment

Once person takes job, correspondence between work and the work environment begins. The worker responds to demands of workplace with what Dawis terms:

Celerity (quickness of responding)

Pace (intensity of response)

Rhythm (pattern of response)

Endurance (duration of response)

The result of this process is varying degrees of job satisfaction

Basic Assumptions of TWA

People have 2 types of needs

Biological (or survival)

Psychological (social acceptance)

2nd assumption is that work environments have “requirements” that are analogous to the needs of individuals.

When the needs of individuals in an environment (work) and those of the environment are satisfied, correspondence exists.

WORK ADJUSTMENT THEORY

ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENTS

Minnesota Importance Questionnaire

Minnesota Job Description Questionnaire

Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire

Minnesota Satisfactoriness Scales

Values

Beliefs that are experienced by the individual as standards of how he or she should function

2 types of values:

Cultural and role related

Norms are a group’s counterpart of an individual’s values. Work groups develop norms (standards of behavior)

Norms have 2 dimensions: public and private

Some research has indicated that cultural values seem to be more prevalent in some racial and ethnic groups than in others.

Contrast the impact of culture, family, and neighborhood on career choices of the following groups:

a. Average middle class, American family

b. Urban single parent, low income family

c. Recent Asian American immigrant family

d. Wealthy suburban professional family

e. African American youth (middle class)

f. Native American woman (rural)

g. Recent Mexican American immigrant (undocumented)

Chapter 4

Developmental Theories and Their Applications: Donald Super and Linda Gottfredson

Focus on the biological, psychological, sociological and cultural factors that influence career choice

https://oitecareersblog.wordpress.com/2016/01/25/career-development-theory-review-supers-life-span-life-space-theory/

Donald Super

Super’s Five Life and Career Development Stages

1. Growth (Age: birth – 14) Characteristics: development of self-concept attitudes, and general world of work

2. Exploration (Age 15 – 24) Trying out classes, work, hobbies; tentative choice and skill development

3. Establishment (Age 25 – 44) Entry-level skill building and stabilizing work experience

4. Maintenance (Age 45 –64) Continual adjustment process to improve position

5. Decline (Age 65+) Reduced output, preparation for retirement

Super’s Propositions

People differ in their abilities and personalities, needs, values, interests, traits and self concepts

People are qualified, by virtue of their characteristics, for a number of occupations.

Each occupation requires a characteristic pattern of abilities and personality traits

Vocational preferences and competencies, the situations in which people live and work and their self-concepts change with time and experience.

5. This process of change may be summed up in a series of life stages:

Growth, exploration, establishment, maintenance and decline

The nature of the career pattern is determined by the individual’s parental socioeconomic level, mental ability, education, skills, personality characteristics, career maturity and by the opportunities to which he or she is exposed.

Success in coping with the demands of the environment depends on the individual’s career maturity.

Career maturity is a hypothetical construct.

Development through the life stages can be guided.

The process of career development is that of developing and implementing occupational self-concepts

The process of compromise is one of role playing and learning from feedback.

Work and life satisfactions depend on the extent to which the individual finds adequate outlets for abilities, needs, values, interests and personality traits.

The degree of satisfaction people attain from work is proportional to the degree to which they have been able to implement self-concepts.

Work and occupation provide a focus. If peripheral or nonexistent, leisure activities ad homemaking may be central.

Gottfredson

Theory of Circumscription and Compromise

This theory is concerned with how career aspirations develop

Predicated on 4 basic assumptions:

Career development process begins in childhood

Career aspirations are attempts to implement one’s self-concept

Career satisfaction depends on the degree to which career in congruent with self-perceptions

People develop occupational stereotypes that guide them in the selection process

According to Gottfredson people develop cognitive maps of occupations that are organized along 3 dimensions:

Masculinity/femininity of the occupation

Prestige of the occupation

Fields of work

GOTTFREDSON’S VIEW OF FACTORS AFFECTING

CAREER DEVELOPMENT

Circumscription – Ideas about gender and prestige influence and limit career choices.

Compromise – Career choices are modified due to environmental and other factors. Individuals give up interests, prestige, and sex type when compromising.

FACTORS AFFECTING THE PROCESS OF COMPROMISE

Not knowing how behavior of individuals affects their access to occupational or educational information

Need to know which factors young people are most and least willing to give up when they can’t get their first choice

Not knowing enough about how to enter an occupation or get educational information

Gottfredson identified

4 developmental stages:

Ages 3 to 5: Orientation of size and power

Ages 6 to 8: Orientation to sex roles

Ages 9 to 13: Orientation to social valuation

Ages 14+: Choices explored

Chapter 5

Career Choice Theories Based in Learning Theory

Krumboltz

Theory of Happenstance

Unplanned and unexpected events that have influenced the course of your life

Krumboltz’s approach to career counseling has considerable merit, particularly for disenfranchised and marginalized groups in our society.

Krumboltz identified 4 factors that influence individual development and ultimately the career decision-making process and choice:

Genetic endowment and special abilities

Environmental conditions and events

Learning experiences

Task approach skills

HAPPENSTANCE LEARNING THEORY

FUNDAMENTAL GOALS FOR CAREER COUNSELING

1. To help clients learn to take actions to achieve more satisfying and career and personal lives – not to make one decision.

2. Career assessments are used to stimulate learning, not to match traits with occupational characteristics.

3. Clients learn to engage in exploratory actions to develop beneficial unplanned events.

4. Counseling goals are measured by the client’s accomplishments outside the counseling session.

APPLYING HAPPENSTANCE LEARNING

THEORY TO CAREER COUNSELING

Skills needed to deal with opportunities that arise by chance:

Curiosity – Explore opportunities resulting from chance events

Persistence – Learn when there are setbacks

Flexibility – Change attitude to deal with chance events

Optimism – Pursue new events; find that actions can pay off

Risk taking – Responding to new events

APPLYING HAPPENSTANCE LEARNING

THEORY TO CAREER COUNSELING

Four counseling steps:

1. Normalize planned happenstance in client’s background.

2. Help transform curiosity into learning and exploration opportunities.

3. Teach clients to produce desirable chance events.

4. Teach clients to overcome blocks to action.

Social Cognitive Perspective on Careers

Based in the sociocognitive theory of Albert Bandura

Central propositions of Social Cognitive Theory:

Interactions between people and their environments is highly dynamic

Career-related interests and behavior are influenced by several aspects of the person: gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disabilities, behavior, self-efficacy beliefs, outcome expectations, goals and genetically determined characteristics.

Self-efficacy beliefs and expectations of outcomes interact directly to influence interest development.

Gender, race, physical health, disabilities, and environmental variables influence self-efficacy development, as well as expectations of outcomes and ultimately goals and performance.

Actual career choice and implementation are influence by a number of direct and indirect variables.

Performance in educational activities and occupations is the result of the interactions among ability, self-efficacy beliefs, outcome expectations and the goals that have been established.

Social cognitive career theory (SCCT) was first published by Lent, Brown and Hackett in 1994.

The results of reviews and research studies suggest that SCCT-based career counseling is useful with a variety of client groups ranging from adolescents to the disabled.

Self-efficacy and interests are linked and that interests can be developed or strengthened using modeling, encouragement and most powerfully performance enactments.

Lent and colleagues (2002) recommend 2 career counseling applications of SCCT.

The first begins with gathering traditional test data regarding needs, values and aptitudes similar to that proposed by Dawis (1996)

The second application involves the use of a modified vocational card sorting of occupations representative of the occupational structure.

Career Information Processing (CIP)Model of Career Choice

(Peterson and colleagues)

First presented in 1991

Revised in 2002

Relied on branch of learning theory that focuses on information processing

Understanding CIP Theory

Development of self knowledge involves the interpretation of past events and a cognitive reconstruction of those events.

The decision making process (deciding) can be subsumed under the acronym CASVE—communication, analysis, synthesis, valuing and execution.

Of greatest concern to career counselors and counseling psychologists is the client who is not a good decision maker. The Career Thoughts Inventory (CTI) was developed to diagnose various aspects of decision-making problems.

CTI has items relating to each compartment included in a pyramid:

Apex: Thinking About My Decisions

Mid-Level: Knowing How I Make Decisions

Base of Pyramid: Knowing Myself and Knowing My Options

Peterson and colleagues outline a 7 step model for career counseling

Conduct initial interview

Conduct preliminary assessment

Mutually define problem and analyze causes

Formulate goals

Develop individual learning plan

Implement individual learning plan

Evaluate goal attainment

Chapter 6

Contextualist and Chaos Theories and Their Applications: Young and Associates, Savickas and Bloch

Learning Objectives

Identify and describe the philosophical basis (postmodernism) of the theories in this chapter.

Articulate each theory presented in this chapter and describe its applications.

Basic Tenets of postmodern thinking:

Post modern thinking, often referred to as constructivist theories, are a relatively new addition to the theories of career choice

These theories depart radically from the assumptions of the theories based on positivist philosophy

Assumptions that underpin these theories:

Human behavior is nonlinear and thus cannot be studied objectively

Cause and effect relationships cannot be determined

Individuals cannot be studied outside of the context in which they function

Research data cannot be generalized to other people or groups

Research is not a value-free process

The stories (or narratives) that students tell are legitimate sources of data

Research is goal-free

Career counselors focus on the stories, use qualitative assessment procedures and help clients construct career goals

The self develops in continuous interaction between the individual and her or his contexts

Some postmodern theorists accept the idea of the objective self; others reject the idea

Young, Vallach and Collin (2002) A contextualist theory of career

Contextualism for these theorists is the process of weaving parts of one’s context (environment, reference groups, etc.) into the structure of self.

Career-related behaviors are goal-directed results of the individual’s construction of the context in which he or she functions.

Goal oriented series of behaviors

Young et al break action into 3 parts:

Observable behavior

The internal processes that cannot be observed

The meaning or results as interpreted by the individuals and others who observe the action

Joint actions, such as those in career counseling, occur between people

Actions take place in a series of sequential steps that occur in a social contact from which the actor cannot separated.

Young and colleagues indicated that an essential aspect of career counseling is interpretation, which involves making sense of the client’s experiences.

Savickas’ Career Construction Theory (1995, 2002, 2013)

Incorporates portions of Holland’s and Super’s theories giving them a constructivist interpretation.

Acknowledges the influence of Alfred Adler

Believes that the construction of self occurs primarily through a reflective process

Savickas’ 5 step approach to career counseling

Construction

Deconstruction

Reconstruction

Co-construction

Action

Chaos Theory of Career Development and Spirituality

Although chaos theory is a field of mathematics, psychologists and counselors may rely upon this theory to suggest approaches to dealing with families, work groups and organizations.

Assumptions of Chaos Theory

Small effects can cause large reactions

Complex open systems are unpredictable, primarily because we cannot know the initial conditions from which these systems evolved

Open systems are characterized by turbulence which adds to their unpredictable nature

Feedback about the system to the participants in a open system makes it more unpredictable.

Fractals are complex patterns that repeat themselves recursively—that is, the new pattern grows out of the old.

Bloch’s (2005) ideas to illustrate chaos theory –elaborated by listing the characteristics of adaptive entities (clients)

Have the ability to maintain themselves even though their shapes (life spaces) may change

Are open systems taking energy from the environment

Are parts of networks

Are parts of other entities

Are dynamic and ever-changing

Go through transitions

Behave in non-linear ways

React so that small changes may bring about large effects

Move through transitions

Chaos Theory and Career Counseling

Bloch and Richmond (2007) identify 7 themes that clients may manifest during the counseling process.

They are change, balance, energy, community, calling, harmony and unity

Brief Solution-Focused Career Counseling (BSFCC)

Relationship development – counselors may describe themselves as coaches or facilitators

Client presentation of issue

Search for exceptions

Client identifies personal strengths and past successes

In follow-up sessions, revisit the goal and develop a plan to move toward resolution

Ask second order questions

Chapter 7

Gender as an Issue in Career Counseling

Issues that negatively impact the career development of women

Pregnancy – planned or unplanned

Inequities in salary, sexual harassment and various forms of discrimination

Time spent away from job because of child bearing

Willingness to sacrifice advancement so that a spouse can advance

Tradition and sex-role stereotyping may have persuaded women to stay away from STEM fields

This is information is helpful to remind career counselors of 2 types of obligations:

Make clients aware of what lies ahead in the work environment and help them develop coping skills

Assert ourselves to ameliorate oppressive forces in organizations

Sociological Perspective (Women)

Occupational sociologists have long recognized the influence of scholastic ability, family status and community variables in occupational success.

Since 1982 women earn more college degrees than men. In general, women are now better educated than men.

Family roles impact the career development of both men and women but have a greater impact on women than men

Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Individuals

Barriers placed on these individuals by mainstream society

Coping with discrimination may result in lower self-esteem

Virtually ignored in the literature

Career counselors should begin with soul searching about their own beliefs

21 states plus the District of Columbia have laws that prohibit sexual orientation discrimination in both public and private jobs.

Pope and colleagues suggest that career counselors need to become advocates for the GLBT clients

Pope and colleagues point out that “coming out” in a 2-pronged process

First accepting one’s own sexuality

Second coming out to others

Career Counseling: Models and Methods

Most counselors tend to be eclectic borrowing from several theories

Brown believes that the age of the clients, nature of the clients served, the number of people to be served and the context (large group vs. individual), will influence your choice of an approach to career development

Spokane, Luchetta and Richwine (2002)

Does the approach allow for the development of the social support needed to move forward into the future?

Social support is important in shaping career aspirations and may be more important for clients from groups marginalized by societal bias

Does the approach allow individuals to gain information about themselves and their work environment?

When working with children, Gottfredson’s theory of circumscription and compromise should be incorporated to make children aware that they may have eliminated some occupations from their thinking prematurely based on sex-role stereotypes, social status and other factors.

Does the approach provide a framework for decision making?

Cognitive Information Processing Approach (Peterson, et al)

Super

Holland

Does the approach allow for crystallizing and cognitive rehearsal of vocational aspirations?

Does the approach mobilize the individual to move ahead in a constructive manner?

Chapter 8

A Values-Based, Multicultural Approach to Career Counseling and Advocacy

“In a diverse culture such as ours, all counselors, regardless of race, ethnicity, or worldview need a multicultural approach to career counseling” (Brown, p. 143)

Gysbers, Heppner and Johnson (2003) developed a taxonomy of tasks that occur within career counseling simultaneously with the process of developing a working alliance.

Identifying the presenting problem

Structuring the counseling relationship

Developing a counselor-client bond

Gathering information about the client including information about personal and contextual restraints

Goal setting

Intervention selection

Action taking

Evaluation of outcomes

Foundations of the values-based approach

3 aspects of culture

Universal dimension – refers to similarities among all groups

General cultural dimension – refers to the characteristics of a particular group and typically refers to ethnicity

Personal dimension – reflected in the individual’s worldview and is based on the extent to which the general cultural values and worldview have been adopted by the individual. The process by which this occurs in called enculturation.

Some leading researchers (Fouad and Kantamnemi, 2013) have concluded that cultural values may be a greater source of influence in the decision-making process than traditional career planning variables.

8 Steps of Values Based Multicultural Career Counseling (VBMCC)

Step 1: Assessing Cultural Variables

Step 2: Communication style and establishing the relationship

SOLER approach in counseling – non verbal behavior has different implications across cultures

5 basic cultural values: importance of self-control, time, activity, social relationships ad relationships in nature

Step 3: Selecting a Decision-Making model – who will make the decision?

Step 4: The identification of Career Issues (Assessment)

Pattern identification -focus on an activity from one life role (enjoyable or not)

Achievement profiling

Lifeline –ask clients to chart their future from present to retirement

Ask questions regarding limitations due to diverse background

Steps 5 and 6: The establishment of cultural appropriate goals and the selection of culturally appropriate interventions

Step 7: The implementation and evaluation of the interventions used

Step 8: Advocacy

Application of VBMCC to Group Career Counseling

Can be used in a group setting as long as counselors accommodate the cultural values and preferred communication style of clients and consider the impact of both of these variables on group dynamics.

Screening groups is the first step in the group leadership process.

The screening process is also the best time to determine whether group members have biases that will preclude them from interacting in a positive manner with other group members.

Chapter 9

Career Counseling for Clients with Unique Concerns

Disabled workers

Displaced workers

Economically disadvantaged workers

Delayed entrance to workforce (retirees, military, ex-offenders)

Older Workers

Individuals with Disabilities

Over 80% of disabled people are either not in the workforce or are underemployed

Vocational rehabilitation has been referred to as the process of returning a disabled worker to a state of re-employability

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) passed initially in 1975 and last amended in 2004—school counselors/students in special education

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination against disabled clients in the hiring and worker-retention processes.

Other legislation – Workforce Investment Act and Ticket to Work program

Rehabilitation services are provided by a number of professions: psychology, counseling, medical, nursing, social work and others.

Kosciulek (2003) suggests that effective career counselors can empower clients with disabilities by fostering inclusion in the broader workforce and in society.

Career Counseling for Individuals with Disabilities

Process of career counseling should begin before the clients arrives in the counselor’s office by arranging the office to meet the physical, mental and psychological needs of the clients.

Traditional assessment devices may be useful with many disabled clients, but counselors should proceed with great caution and possibly conducted by a person with unique assessment skills.

Qualitative assessment devices may be more useful than traditional instruments.

Work samples and job tryouts may be much more significant indicators of the client’s potential than many assessment devices.

Effective career counselors can empower clients with disabilities by fostering inclusion in the broader workforce and in society.

Appropriate information and experiences such as work-based assessment, internships, job shadowing and sheltered workshop can do much to offset some of the experiential deficits of the disabled.

Displaced workers

Millions of workers have been displaced throughout time due to technological innovations and the relocation of businesses outside the U.S

The U.S. economy has been undergoing its second structural change, the first being from agriculture and farming to manufacturing the second structural change began in the middle of the 20th century as an emphasis on manufacturing goods shifted to one based in offering services. Now we are in the information age.

Career counseling:

Displaced workers may experience depression and loss of self-esteem.

Locating suitable educational and training programs that prepares displaced workers for employment often becomes an important priority.

Economically Disadvantaged

Chronically poor

Unemployed or new disadvantaged

Underemployed

Immigrant (undocumented)

Disadvantaged people need career development programs that address both short-term and long-term goals. Many career-related problems can be confronted with this 4 part program:

Access to basic adult education and specific vocational training

Personal and/or career counseling

Information about the world of work along with the skills to use this information in decision-making

Placement

Career Counseling

Counselors should be prepared to deal with low self-esteem and depression.

Jacobs and Blustein (2008) suggested that clients may be benefit from mindfulness.

Atypical Time of Entrance to the Labor Force

Former Military Personnel

Ex-offenders

Older Workers

Former Military Personnel

Can be divided into 3 groups:

Those who serve 20 to 30 years before retiring from military duty and drawing a pension

Those who incur a service-related disability that prevents them from continuing in the military service

Those who leave after a relatively brief period (3 to 6 years)

Many military occupations have equivalent counterparts and can transfer with little difficulty from military to civilian jobs.

Those who elect not to reenlist or are not eligible to do so and had military assignments that provided no opportunity to develop transferable skills are most like to need career counseling.

The downside for some enlistees many need help learning how to make their own decisions as a result of having lived in a tightly structured environment.

Career Counseling for Former Military Personnel

Be prepared to deal with the same range of problems encountered with any client such as low self-esteem, lack of self-understanding, etc.

Veterans who have been in combat positions may also be suffering form PTSD or depression.

Suicide rates are on the rise and should be a concern for career counselors helping this group.

Psychological problems may be exacerbated by the veteran’s inability to secure employment.

Added complications may be encountered because of stressors in the family and simply returning to the routine of civilian life.

Stein-McCormick and her colleagues (2013) suggest that career counseling draw heavily on the Career Information Processing (CIP) model.

Ex-offenders

State and federal penal institutions vary widely in fundamental philosophy with respect to the goal of rehabilitation versus custodial care.

We must conclude that very few inmates acquire significant occupational training during their imprisonment.

Career Counseling

Many prior offenders need extensive personal counseling before effective career counseling can be initiated.

California Log Model: Evidence-Based Rehabilitation for Offender Success:

Assess risk and target offenders who pose highest risk of reoffending

Assess need by examining factors that are the best predictors of reoffending

Develop a behavior-management program

Deliver cognitive behavioral programs that target offenders’ needs

Conduct periodic measures of progress toward the objectives

Prepare offender for reentry

Reintegrate offender in collaboration with community agency

Follow-up and collect outcome data

Older Workers

Based on a number of surveys and discussions the number of persons older than 60 will continue to increase (the first cohort of baby boomers turned 64 in 2010)

The recession that began in 2007 diminished the funds that many workers approaching retirement planned to use during their retirement years.

Many older retired workers have reentered or are attempting to reenter the labor force. Many of them have discovered that retirement is an unsatisfactory experience.

Changes in Social Security and Medicare are making it mandatory that more workers stay in the work force to protect their economic well-being.

The decision to stay in the workforce is not purely economic—desire to improve the quality of their lives and others, fellowship with other workers, social status, desire to make a contribution to society, maintaining a sense of self worth or simply having something to do are all factors that contribute to people staying in the workforce beyond retirement.

Career Counseling for Older Workers

Career counselors need to help clients dispel the myths surrounding older workers (health issues, inflexibility, less productive, diminished strength and learning capacity)

First task is to help older clients identify and eliminate some of their own beliefs about themselves.

Older workers may require assistance with the development of employability skills.

They need to develop interviewing skills that can help them counteract the misconceptions about older workers.

Chapter 10

Assessment in Career Counseling and Development

Personal-Psychological Characteristics

Most researchers call these traits

Aptitude- defined as specific capacities and abilities required of an individual to learn or adequately perform a task or job duty

9 abilities identified by the O*Net development team

Verbal ability

Arithmetic reasoning

Computation

Spatial ability

Form perception

Clerical perception

Motor coordination

Finger dexterity

Manual dexterity

Interests

Likes or preferences or the things people enjoy

Super described 4 types of interests:

Expressed interests: verbal statements or claims of interest

Manifest interests: Interests exhibited through actions and participation

Inventoried interests: estimates of interests based on responses to a set of questions concerning likes and dislikes (e.g., the Strong Interest Inventory)

Tested interests: Interests revealed under controlled situations

Personality

Typically defined as the sum total of an individual’s beliefs, perceptions, emotions and attitudes

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator appears to be the personality inventory most often chosen by career centers on college campuses

MBTI yields 4 bipolar scales:

Extroversion________________Introversion

Sensing____________________Intuition

Thinking___________________Feeling

Judging____________________Perceiving

Contains 16 personality types

Assessment and Career Counseling

Has long been a part of the career counseling process

Arguments for and against the use of traditional and nontraditional assessment procedures falls along theoretical and philosophical lines

Hansen (2013) asserts use of traditional interest inventories can be of assistance in developing self-understanding and as one guide to occupational selection

Hansen suggests that assessment should provide a partial guide to decision making

Expected outcomes of Career Assessment

Develop a readiness to make a career decision

Develop confidence (self-efficacy) that she or he can make a wise decision

Develop self-awareness (interests, values, abilities, etc.)

Develop a future orientation

Assess clients decision-making approach

Assess client’s satisfaction wit the career counseling process and the career counselor’s effectiveness

Clinical, Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches to Assessment

Clinical Assessment

occurs whenever a career counselor applies information gathered through training and experience to classify, diagnose or predict a client’s behavior or problem (Gregory, 2006)

is at best an adjunct for use with other types of assessment

Quantitative Assessment

Most familiar to clients because they have taken achievement battery tests as they’ve progressed through school

Qualitative Assessment

Bound by less rigid parameters

Scoring is more subjective

Tend to involve clients more actively than standardized or objective tests and inventories

Examples of qualitative assessment devices according to Goldman (1990) including card sorts, values clarification exercises, simulations such as the use of work samples and observations.

Qualitative Assessment and Constructivist Theory

Major difference between logical positivists (Holland) and constructivists (Savickas)

Positivists rely heavily on traditional measurement devices such as interest and personality inventories.

Postmodernists, such as constructivists, believe that each individual constructs his or her own unique reality. They use assessments designed to elicit the individual’s perspective.

Positivists search for fit and postmodernists search for meaning.

Examples of post modern assessment strategies: Career-O-Grams, role play, card sorts and genograms.

Qualitative and Objective Assessment Devices

Some assessment devices can serve as either qualitative or objective assessment devices although most are used as one or the other.

Self efficacy assessment measurements can serve in either capacity. Self efficacy has traditionally be measured by

First, identifying a task to be performed

Second, asking clients to estimate the degree of difficulty of the task and the extent of the confidence to perform the task

Third, estimating their performance in related situations

An interesting trends is assessment in the past decade is away from assessing self-efficacy qualitatively and toward quantitative measure of perceived self-efficacy.

Pairing self-efficacy data with information about interests provides a better predictor of occupational choice than using either assessment alone.

Values Inventories

Values are learned or may row out of needs and are assumed to be a basic source of human motivation.

4 inventories:

Super’s Work Values Inventory

Work Importance Locator and Work Importance Profiler

Life Values Inventory

Career Orientations Placement and Evaluation Survey

Interest Inventories

Hundreds of thousands of interest inventories are administered each year. Typically inventories that are used in career development programs to promote awareness use either the normative or the raw score approach.

Some examples:

Career Occupational Preference System; Self-Directed Search; Career Decision Making System; Strong Interest Inventory and Skills Confidence Inventory; Kuder Occupational Interest Survey; O*Net Interest Profiler

Research supports the continued use of these inventories.

Personality Inventories

Few personality inventories have captured the interest of career counselors perhaps because many were developed to measure abnormal behavior

Two examples: Myers Briggs Type Indicator; Sixteen P.F. Personal Career Development Profile For other options consult A Counselor’s Guide to Career Assessment Instruments (Wood & Hays, 2013)

Multiple Aptitude Test Batteries

These test measure what has already been learned which is an indicator of future performance. When taken as one indicator of potential aptitude, tests can be of assistance to clients attempting to make career plans or can simply be one way of promoting self-awareness.

Some examples: Differential Aptitude Test (DAT); Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB); O*Net Ability Profiler

Diagnostic Inventories

Have been developed to measure certain career development “problems”.

Some examples: Career Decision Scale; My Vocational Situation; Career Beliefs Inventory; Career Thoughts Inventory

Multi-Purpose Tests and Inventories

Measure more than one construct (e.g., interests and aptitudes)

They have been developed for specific purposes, typically for use with special populations.

Some examples: McCarron-Dial System; PESCO 2001/Online

Selecting Assessment Devices

Once the client’s needs and the purpose of the instrument are aligned, the technical characteristics of the instrument should be examined.

Reliability and validity issues and the representativeness of the norm groups deserve special consideration and are of the utmost importance in the selection of tests and inventories.

The ethical principles developed by the American Counseling Association (2005) and American Psychological Association (2010) should guide these considerations.

Counselors must be competent in the use of the any assessment device selected and the welfare of the client must be maintained.

Gender and Cultural bias

It is probably fair to say that tests and inventories are biased to come degree, but that most counselors attempt to use these products in a nondiscriminatory fashion.

Many of the bias issues can be summed up in a single word: language.

Other issues: the time needed to take the test or inventory; the cost; the reading level; the availability of computerized or hand scoring and the counselors preference are all factors to take into consideration when selecting tests or inventories.

Interpreting Test and Inventory Results

The interpretation of test results, along with selection and administration is one of the most important steps in the assessment process.

5 approaches to interpretation of quantitative assessment devices may be used:

Computerized interpretations

Self-interpretation using materials provided by the publisher

Interactive approaches in which the client leads

Interactive approaches in which the counselor leads

Combinations of these approaches

Steps in the interpretation process:

Counselor becomes thoroughly familiar with all aspects of the instrument

Review the results of the tests and inventories prior to meeting with the client

Interpreting the results of tests and inventories is to consider the clients involved

General steps in the interpretation process (Prince and Heiser (2000)

Check to see if any unusual factors influenced the client during the administration of the test.

Check to see if the client was motivated during the test.

Provide an overview of the instrument to be interpreted.

Give a brief description of the scale and what they mean.

Check for understanding.

Explain how scores are presented (e.g., percentiles) and present scores.

Check for agreement with the results.

Interpret the scores or allow the client to make his or her own interpretation.

Compare assessment results with information gained qualitatively in the interview. Are the results consistent with real-life events?

Troubleshoot as necessary (flat, low interest inventory profile; too many options; conflicts in the family or group; bad news).

Complete interpretation with a summary of the results and by providing self-interpretation material that can be used for future reference by the client.

Chapter 11

Using Information to Facilitate Career Development

Occupational and educational information is an essential ingredient in a comprehensive career development program and as a tool in career counseling.

Importance of occupational information

Approximately 22 percent of the occupations in this country require a bachelor’s degree.

Occupational information has a more extensive use than facilitating individual choice. It is an essential ingredient in a comprehensive career development program.

Occupational information is an invaluable tool for facilitating the career development of children, adolescents and adults.

Important uses by category:

Children

To develop an awareness of the diversity of the occupational structure

To develop an awareness of their parents’ occupational and the nature of works in their community and beyond

To break down racial and sex-role stereotypes about people with disabilities

To develop an appreciation for the link between education and work

To develop economic awareness of the relationship of occupation to lifestyle

Adolescents

To sharpen their focus on personal identity as it relates to work

To help provide motivation to complete high school and enroll in post-secondary education and training programs

To begin reality testing by contacting and observing workers

To provide a basis for lifestyle planning

To eliminate stereotypes

To compare career opportunities in the provide and public sectors as well as in the military

Adults

To provide information about training opportunities that will enhance their current occupational performance

To provide information that allows them to evaluate their earnings related to others with similar jobs

To enhance skills that will allow them to conduct job searches across the nation and the world

To develop employability skills that will allow them to apply and interview for other jobs

To provide information about the rights workers who are disabled, older, female or minorities and how to lodge grievances when those rights are abridged

Retirees

To identify part-time or full-time job opportunities if they decide to return to work

To help them use the skills they have developed as workers or as volunteers

To assist them to continue lifetime planning

Occupational and Labor Market Information

Occupational information includes educational, occupational and psychological facts related to work.

This type of information comes almost entirely from governmental sources and for the most part focuses on individual jobs.

Labor market information includes data about the occupational structure and the trends that shape it.

The first comprehensive database of jobs in the U.S., The Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT), was published in 1939. The information was developed using observational strategies known as job analysis. DOT was last published by the U.S. Department of Labor in 1991.

O*NET, the replacement for DOT, asked workers in the jobs to rate the nature of work they perform, the abilities needed to perform the job and the nature of the work environment.

The content model of O*NET contains 6 domains of information:

Worker characteristics—individuals’ enduring characteristics that influence their motivation and capacity to function in an occupation. Three types included in O*NET: (abilities; occupational values and interests; work styles).

Worker requirements—individuals’ attributes that influence occupational performance across a range of activities (basic skills; cross-functional skills; knowledge; education).

Experience requirements—pre-requisite experiences in various types of jobs, specific job preparation, on-the-job training and certification and licensure requirements.

Occupational requirements—job requirements established for individuals across domains of work: (generalized work activities; organizational context; work conditions).

Occupation-specific requirements (occupational knowledge; occupational skills; tasks; duties; machines, tools and equipment).

Occupation characteristics (labor market information; occupational outlook; wages

Examples of Using O*NET

Not developed for use in print form, but print copies of 3 of the online assessment inventories used in conjunction with O*NET are available for sale from U.S. Government Printing Office (the Ability Profiler, Interest Profiler and Work Importance Locator)

Students and adults may view summary reports that include the most important characteristics of the workers in various jobs and the requirements of a particular job.

Can be used by an employer who wishes to write job descriptions

High school or college students can either type in an occupation of interest in the search box or complete the profiles.

Rehabilitation counselors can search for occupational options based on physical characteristics.

Educational policy makers may look at the skills and knowledges to set standards for jobs in their institutions

Business leaders can look at the data on work and organizational context to ascertain information about high-performance workplaces.

Additional Occupational Resources

The Occupational Outlook Handbook

Is available in print and online

Provides predictions about the future of both occupational clusters and individual occupations

Also includes brief descriptions of the duties performed on the job, working conditions, average salary data and information of how to prepare for each job listed.

Information about the Military

The Department of Defense has developed a website that provides an overview of jobs available in all four branches of the military (http://www.military.com/join-armed-forces/military-jobs)

Computer Assisted Career Guidance Systems

State Systems

Other Types of Occupational Information

Simulations – range from simple role-playing exercises (client assumes role of the worker )to the use of highly sophisticated programs (training of airline pilots)

Games

Interviews with Experts

Direct Observation

Job Shadowing

Career Days

Career Conferences

Work Experience Programs

Career Fairs

Children’s Materials

Educational Information

Educational Institutions

Apprenticeships

Post-High School Opportunity Programs

Chapter 12

Virtual and Brick and Mortar Career Centers

Design and Implementation

One-Stop Career Centers

In 1994, The Department of Labor Employment and Training Agency (DOLETA) responded to the criticism that their services overlapped and in some instances were difficult to access by developing the One-Stop Career Centers

They are located throughout the country in U.S. Employment Services offices as well as online.

The provide a full range of virtual resources and face-to-face services to job seekers

Brick and Mortar Career Centers

Have been established in community colleges, vocational technical schools four-year institutions, U.S. Employment Security offices, libraries and businesses.

117

Establishing a Career Center (CC)

Basic Criteria for Locating and Designing a CC

Accessibility

For people with visual disabilities (well lighted areas, tactile directions, signs and elevators, closed caption videos, alternatives to keyboard and mouse use, audio versions of graphics)

For people with hearing disabilities (rooms equipped with alternative emergency notices, available telecommunications devices for the deaf [TDD])

For people with mobility issues (wheelchair accessible entrances, registrations desks telephone and restrooms; easy access to buildings)

Attractiveness

Ease of operation

Covers a variety of areas including the filing system used, storage and display of material, policies about checking out materials and nature of assistance provided to users of the CC

Responsiveness

Reflect diversity

Renovating or developing a CC

The first step is to select a coordinator who understands technology and it application

Enlist the support of organization’s leadership

Establish a steering committee that can assist in setting objectives and designing the program that will be offered to client groups

Basic Technological Competencies

Use available software to develop web pages

Use web-based systems to provide outreach and education programs

Identify and evaluate web-based career decision-making programs and assessment packages that can be used in the CC

Help clients search for career-related information via the Internet

Help clients prepare and post online resumes and conduct virtual job interviews

Apply the legal standards and ethical codes that relate to career services on the Internet

Design social networking support groups that support job hunters

Design and deliver ethically and legally sound web-based career counseling programs

Evaluate the quality of a web-based career center

Evaluate the efficacy of Internet-based job listing and placement programs

Criteria for Collecting Materials

The group that will make major use of the materials

The nature of the community

The staff who will use the materials

How the materials will be used

Auxiliary local resources

Critical CC resources

Who Can Benefit from Self-Directed Online Offerings (virtual CC’s)?

CC’s need to establish procedure for screening potential users of web-based tools to ascertain who can take advantage of self-directed experiences and who cannot

Users should have the verbal ability necessary to use the systems in the CC

Students with goal instability or low self-efficacy may not benefit from the system and may need to engage in traditional career counseling

Poorly motivated clients are unlikely to benefit

Students (clients with low self-esteem or negative thinking) are unlikely to benefit

Anxiety and depression are barriers

Lack of information or misconceptions about web-based tools

People who have significant should not rely solely on web-based tools.

Using the Internet to Provide Career Counseling and Assessment

Two major factors dominate the decision of whether to offer web counseling

Meeting students and counselor comfort with the process

Several options available to counselors

May use email to correspond with their clients

May use chat rooms

Webcams open the possibility of “face-to-face”

Guidelines to guide practitioners who provide web counseling

Obtain parental permission when providing services to minors

Make sure information obtained from clients is stored in a secure place

Ensuring quality of services is the same quality provided in person

Getting permission from clients when releasing information

Making clients aware that technical difficulties may interrupt the service from time to time

Informing clients that miscommunication can occur when nonverbal cues are not available

Finding out whether clients can contact the service provider at times other than when services are being provided

Providing clients with hyperlinks to licensing boards and professional associations so that ethical complaints can be lodged if necessary

Maintaining a list of referral sources in the client’s locale in the event that the online counseling becomes inappropriate or nonproductive

Discussing cultural or language differences that might impact the counseling process

Utilizing Websites as Adjuncts to Web Counseling

Before linking the CC website to another website, a careful evaluation of the site should occur by answering the following questions:

When was the site last updated? Useful sites are updates regularly

Who developed and maintains the site? Can this person or agency be contacted via email to answer questions?

Are the sources of the information on the website reputable?

Is the reading level of the material appropriate for your clients?

Can the material on the website be accessed easily?

Chapter 13

Preparing for Work

Phase 1 of Preparing for work begins with

Choosing a job that suits the individual’s talents

Followed by getting the best possible education or training for that job

Phase 2 of the path to employment

Requires the development of job acquisition skills

Locating, contacting, interviewing for and negotiating for the best offer

Occupational choice is the beginning

Accepting a job is a midpoint

Continuing to improve one’s skills and continuing in a lifelong search completes the process

Two tasks to perform as a career counselor

First: familiarize yourself with the educational opportunities that are available to your clients and teach them how to negotiate the system to prepare themselves for a high-quality occupation

Second: advocate for better schools, colleges and training programs for the adolescents and adults in this country.

TRAINING TIME – can be divided into 2 broad types: general education and specific vocational preparation.

General education includes all the general academic preparation that develops reasoning and adaptability, decision-making skills, the ability to understand and follow directions and the ability to work cooperatively with others.

Also includes the development of basic educational skills, such as math, language usage, reading and writing as well as foreign language skills.

Vocational preparation is training directed toward learning techniques, knowledge and skills need for a specific job and situation.

Every occupation requires some combination of these 2 types of preparation

High School and Preparation for Work

Some legislative efforts:

School to Work Opportunities Act of 1994

Individuals with Disabilities Act of 2004

The Goals 2000: Educate America Act

No Child Left Behind Act of 2001

The National Skills Standards Act of 1994

Every Child Succeeds Act, December, 2015 (significantly shrinks the footprint of the federal government and hands over much of the decision-making power to states and school districts.)

High School and Preparation for Work (continued)

Vocational Education – formally established in the US during World War I

Work Experience Programs — most secondary schools include in their curricula some opportunities for students to combine study in the classroom with experience in an employment situation

Academies – developed in response to initiatives from business and industry. One of the best known was developed Cisco. Health science academies have also been developed that provide specific vocational preparation and introduce students to the broad array of health science occupations.

Outside the Classroom No Diploma Required

About 20% of students fail to graduate according to the U.S. Department of Education (2013). This group is usually referred to as dropouts but might more importantly be labeled “pushouts” or “lostouts” .

Two possibilities are available for this group: on-the-job training and skill acquisition through programs such as Job Training Partnership Act.

Outside the Classroom No Diploma Required (cont’d)

On-the-job training

Job Training Partnership Act as Amended by STWOA of 1994—authorizes a wide range of training activities aimed at economically disadvantaged youth and adults to prepare them for unsubsidized employment. This act authorizes state-level officials to designate “service delivery areas”

Job Corps – no cost, residential program with more than 120 centers throughout the U.S.

Outside the Classroom High School Diploma Preferred or Required

Apprenticeship Programs

Date back to the Middle Ages

National Apprenticeship Program was established by Congress in 1937 with the support of both labor and management organizations. The agency is now known as the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training (BAT).

A basic tenet of the BAT has been that employers and employees should jointly develop programs for employment and training of apprentices to their mutual satisfaction.

They have established certain basic standards by which an apprenticeship program functions.

Nearly 35,000 programs are registered for apprenticeships in more than 1,000 occupations.

Post Secondary Schools: Associate’s Degrees or Certificates

Trade, Vocational and Technical Schools

Community Colleges and Junior Colleges

Offer full and part time programs that include:

Traditional college related program for students who plan to transfer to 4 year colleges

A technical, terminal program

Short courses needed locally for retraining

Adult basic education program

Colleges and Universities

Harvard College was the first private college to open its doors in the U.S. and University of North Carolina was the first public university to admit students.

There are currently tens of thousands of colleges and universities that offer a vast array of academic possibilities ranging from preparing students for specific careers to some that offer more general courses of study.

Factors to Consider When Choosing a College

Type and compatibility of program

School Environment

Admission Requirements

Type of school

Size

Type of Student Body

Expenses and Financial Aid

Chapter 14

Facilitating the Global Job Search in a Digital Age

Individuals need a variety of traditional and contemporary job hunting skills if they are to find suitable employment

The job search is fraught with anxiety for job seekers

Career development specialists engaged in facilitating the job search must attend to psychological issues and the emotional state of the job seeker.

Employability Skills

The task of developing the job-hunting skills needed in today’s labor market is daunting.

Ideas of how to get assistance:

One Stop Career Center websites (PA Career Link); state level Department of Labor sites and some proprietary sites as well as the Riley Guide

Job seekers need to decide on the best means of developing the skills needed to be successful in the job hunt—self help guides, internet publications and tips, classes or small groups

Some studies suggest that employability skills training cannot overcome other obstacles to employment such as substance abuse or inadequate preparation for the job.

Today’s job hunters need to locate jobs and prequalify themselves before submitting applications or resumes.

Another variable that is extremely critical is social support.

Job Search Clubs – provide support and encouragement but also help members improve their interview skills. Local labor market information is particularly useful to job clubs.

The process of placing people with mental and physical disabilities is essentially the same; however the specifics of the process vary considerably.

Executing the Job Search

Step 1:

Taking an Inventory of Self and Skills—take an inventory and establish what one has for sale.

Step 2: Identifying and Investigating the Job Market—First identify a geographic area and think about access to transportation, how long and far one is willing to travel and from work and if personal or family barriers exist.

Second identify information resources within that specified territory—the “hidden job market” – become known through networking activities and are never advertised unless they can’t be filled from within the company.

Step 3: Developing Employability Skills. The top 10 needs of job seekers, according to their own ratings are: (1) selling yourself, (2) preparing for a typical interview, (3) writing a resume, (4) self-assessment skills, (5) salary information, (6) budgeting until a job is found, (7) legal and illegal questions that may be posed by interviewers, (8) understanding the career-decision process, (9) how to use skills acquired in past jobs in a new occupation and (10) information about entry-level requirements of various jobs and finally technology skills needed.

Job Placement Services

Come in many forms ranging from virtual placement services (Monster, Indeed) to brick and mortar public or private agencies such as U.S. Employment Service offices.

Outplacement services – assist displaced workers in transitioning to the next job.

Public Employment Services – every state has a state employment security agency (SESA). The usually provide:

Placement

Counseling

Service to Veterans

Service to applicants with disabilities

Collection of Labor Market Information

Cooperation with Community Agencies

Private Employment Agencies

Secondary and Postsecondary School-Placement Services

On-Line Job Placement Centers

Chapter 15

Designing and Implementing Comprehensive K to 12 Career Development Programs within the Framework of the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) National Model

Marland (1974) describes 8 elements of career education identified by the Center for Research in Vocational Education at Ohio State University:

Career Awareness

Self-Awareness

Appreciations, Attitudes

Decision Making Skills

Economic Awareness

Skill Awareness and Beginning Competence

Employability Skills

Educational Awareness

A Brief History

By the mid-1980’s the remnants of the career education movement in the 1970’s had been swept from U.S. schools by the back-to-basics educational movement.

However the failure of career education in elementary school cannot be laid solely at the doorstep of the back-to-basics movement. Many mistakes were made in the design and implementation of those programs, including the following:

They were funded with monies external to the school district

They added to the workload of an already overloaded group—teachers

The term career education was negatively associated with vocational education by many middle-class parents who were concerned that their children might be diverted from the college-preparatory curriculum

Local political support among educators, parents and the business community was not carefully developed in many instances.

The ASCA* Model was originally published is 2003, revised in 2005 and 2008

Includes the national standards and describes the process for establishing a comprehensive school counseling program among many other components

*American School Counselor Association

The ASCA National Model contains 4 components:

Foundation—serves as the basis for the delivery and management systems

Delivery systems involved those strategies used by school counselors to deliver services to students and others

Accountability consists of the evaluation of the effectiveness of the delivery systems and the personnel and the dissemination of the data in the form of results reports to support the effectiveness of the program

Management system includes when, why and on whose authority various aspects of the program are implemented

Standards for school counseling programs were identified that are related to the 3 content areas

Standard A – Students will acquire the skills to investigate the world of work in relation to knowledge of self and to make informed career decisions: develop career awareness and develop employment readiness

Standard B – Students will employ strategies to achieve future career goals with success and satisfaction: acquire career information and identify career goals

Standard C – Students will understand the relationship between personal qualities, education, training and the world of work: acquire knowledge to achieve career goals and apply skills to achieve career goals

It is worth noting that the competencies listed are not broken down by grade level; the competencies to be developed at each grade level must be determined by the planning committee.

The Process of Program Development

Gaining Administration Support

Establishing preconditions – to be successful programs must have the staff, budget, facilities, materials, supplies and appropriate technology

Forming a planning committee—responsibilities include writing a mission statement, drafting a philosophy for the program, conducting a needs assessment, selecting the competencies that will be developed based on the needs assessment and planning the program.

Conducting a needs assessment—to determine what type of program best serves the students, it is imperative that full understanding of the characteristics of students and their families be developed

Writing goals and objectives and establishing criteria for success

Designing the Career Development Program

ADDRESSING THE ISSUE: PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION

Budgeting—money available to underwrite the career development rarely provides all of the resources needed. School counselors need to learn to take advantage of the community and free resources.

Selecting a Management System—regardless of who is involved on the management team, the overall approach to managing the program should be a collaborative one.

Planning and Implementing the Guidance Curriculum—a comprehensive program is aimed at developing academic and personal social competencies.

PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTING INDIVIDUAL STUDENT PLANNING

Each student should have an individualized career plan which includes career and educational goals. This plan should begin no later than the 8th grade and should culminate when the student graduates from high school or leaves high school prior to graduation.

PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTING RESPONSIVE SERVICES

Responsiveness include consultation, individual and small-group counseling, crisis counseling and response to crises, referral and peer facilitation.

The two that require the greatest attention for planning career development programs are consultation and individual and group counseling.

PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTING EVALUATION AND ACCOUNTABILITY

Evaluation is the process by which the impact of the career development program on student development and behavior is assessed and is, therefore, the core element of the accountability effort.

Look at the overall impact of the program

However, the evaluation of the impact of an entire program is a laborious task and may not provide the data needed for program improvement as it might be difficult to establish which aspect of the program actually produce the observed results.

PROGRAMMING PLANNING TIPS

Elementary School

Should probably be organized around a theme that parallels what is used in social studies or other curricular areas. Themes could be enhanced by speakers or field trips; starting and operating a business in school; career days. The most important tip for implementing programs is that it should be fun.

Middle School

Along with increasing students’ awareness of choices, increasing their self-awareness and enhancing their goal setting, planning and decision-making ability become important.

Organizing a theme around Holland’s RIASEC model is a good approach. Provide Career Classes and involve parents if appropriate

High School

The approaches listed above can be adapted to high school

Pay particular attention to students with disabilities

Target minority students to assist with occupational advice and how it relates to earnings

Target multi-potential students (gifted)

Involve community resources—local service clubs, local labor union reps, social agencies, churches, libraries.

Chapter 16

Career Development in Postsecondary Education Institutions

Students at all levels of higher education need the services of a strong career development program.

Getting an education is important; getting an education that prepares you for a satisfactory occupation is much more important.

Career programs in postsecondary institutions need to be a high priority to assure that the investment of time and money by students is justified.

One of the primary reasons for pursuing a college education is to train for a career.

Georgetown University Center on Education and The Workforce

We are an independent, nonprofit research and policy institute that studies the link between education, career qualifications, and workforce demands.

https://cew.georgetown.edu /

U.S. Department of Labor- Earnings: https:// www.bls.gov/cps/earnings.htm

The Students

The stereotype of community college and college students is that they are 18 to 22 years old and pursuing their first postsecondary experience. However, the current profile is much different.

More than half of the student population is over 25, women outnumber men and nearly half of all students are enrolled in community college programs.

The diversity of college students increasingly reflects the diversity of our society.

Several authors have indicated that many students enrolled in postsecondary institutions need specialized career development services.

However, students share common needs and the career development services

Available should include some of all of the following:

Career and self-awareness activities

Exploration of interests, values, goals and decisions

Realities of the job market and future trends

Practical, accurate information about careers

Workshops that deal with special needs such as risk taking, resume development, interviewing and so forth

An academic advising system that makes it possible for students to get the assistance they need in academic planning

The Institutions

3 General Types of Institutions

Vocational-technical schools – extensions of high school vocational education programs and provide skills training in a variety of careers ranging from semiskilled to professional

Community Colleges – often have a vocational component and are coordinated with four year programs for transfers. Students select community colleges for financial reasons, because of the need for remedial study or want to explore whether post-high school study is actually something they want to pursue.

Four year colleges are very diverse— from high prestigious to predominately female, historically African American and Galludet (focusing on students with hearing impairments)

Resources, philosophy, mission, size and characteristics of the student body, curriculum offerings, location and a variety of other factors influence the career development program.

CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

Many issues confront career development specialists as they plan programs for postsecondary institutions—among these are philosophical issues

Emphasize counseling or placement

Send clients out on their own to collect information

Focus students on “vocational” aspects of their training

Involve significant others (such as parents) in career planning process

Emphasize risk taking or security in the career planning process

Competencies and Guidelines

Adults Need To

Identify positive self-images

Be able to identify career information and use that information to make informed career decisions

Engage in lifelong learning

Prepare for transitions in their careers

Understand the interaction of career and other life roles

Understand the changing roles of men and women in our society

Understand the interrelationships that exist between the needs of society and the world of work

Understanding the nature of the global economy and its impact on jobs

Technological competencies needed to access occupational information, self-assessment opportunities and finding and securing jobs.

Developing the Program

Florida State University has been at the forefront in thinking about the design and implementation of career programs on college campuses

Program design that Sampson suggests

Evaluate current career resources, service tools and services

Select, adapt, revise and develop improved career resources, service tools and services

Integrate improved career resources, service tools and services into existing program

Train staff to use new service tools and approaches

Conduct a pilot test of the new program

If applicable, train staff in all career centers and schools

Implement program

Conduct ongoing evaluation and continue accountability

At the end of each step, communicate with stakeholders

159

The actual competencies to be developed in the program, the processes to be used and the specific activities depend on the overall philosophy and nature of the school itself.

Sampson breaks career services into 3 broad categories:

self help (self administered assessments

brief staff assisted (workshops, short-term group counseling and large sections of career courses)

individual case managed

Career Program Activities

Brief Activities: Websites, Advising, Major Fairs, Career Courses, Workshops and Seminars, Self-Directed, Information Dispensation

Individualized Case-Managed Activities: Internships, Consultation, Career Counseling, Peer Counseling Programs

Program Evaluation

It’s meant to answer two questions

Did we accomplish the objectives that we set for? and

Which activities contributed to their development

However, career development programs may have other objectives that deal with broader institutional concerns.

Some of these objectives might be to increase the graduation rate, increase satisfaction with the advising program, increase the satisfaction with the internship program, etc.

These objectives would be evaluated using a variety of techniques, such as follow-up studies and qualitative strategies such as focus groups.

Chapter 17

Career Counselors in Private Practice: Counseling, Coaching and Consulting

PRIVATE PRACTICE

Unlike mental health counseling, which is often at least partially paid for by health insurance, the client must underwrite the entire cost of career counseling unless there is a coexisting mental health problem.

Private Practice is about offering career development services to earn money.

Most career development practitioners work in educational or governmental agencies for a salary. Career Counselors who choose private practice do so for a variety reasons including the opportunity to manage their own careers and increase their earnings.

According to estimates of leaders in the field of career counseling and vocational psychology, the demand for career counseling is at an all time high.

Qualifications—all states have licensure, certifications and/or registry laws that regulate the practice of psychologists and counselors. Some states have laws that limit both the title and practice. Some states have included career counseling as a service that should be offered only by licensed professionals counselor

Guidelines for consumers: caveat emptor or “let the consumer beware” since the practice of career counseling is not sufficiently regulated. The National Career Development Association (NCDA) and the Society of Vocational Psychologists are at the forefront of establishing professional standards for private practitioners and in consumer protection.

Credentials: Career counselors should have earned graduate degrees. They should have knowledge about career development, assessment, occupational information, employability skills, the integration of life roles and stresses of working, job loss and/or career transitions.

Ethics: licensed career counselors follow the ethical codes adopted by the APA, the American Counseling Association or other professional organizations.

Career Coaching—solution-oriented approach which involves working with clients to see what concrete steps they can take to achieve career objectives. It is not therapy and should not address mental health problems.

Establishing a Private Practice

Several questions must be answered prior to establishing a practice:

What skills do I have that I can market?

Who are the people who might purchase my services, my target audience?

How will I reach my target audience—that is, what is my marketing plan?

Where will the services be offered?

Before moving on, work in pairs to make a list of services that a private practitioner might offer the public.

Types of Services that can be offered:

Career counseling with individuals and groups

Consultations

Job placement

Testing

Outplacement

Resume development

Development of other employability skills

Career coaching

Retirement planning

Career/life-role integration counseling

Spousal relocation

Training

Program evaluation

Work adjustment counseling

Vocational appraisal services

Location of the office

Some use portions of their residences for their office. This eliminates commuting, rental fees, janitorial services, etc. Might not work in some areas due to zoning restrictions.

Image – an office located in a professional office building helps project the professional image that many career counselors desire.

Once the decision has been made and practice is open, customers are wanted and advertising is key—a well placed article in the business section of the local newspaper; a well-designed website is a must; provide free speeches, workshops, and seminars; social media; networking by attending and participating in local professional meetings.

Marketing—advertising; networking; direct solicitation by mail or telephone; developing a newsletter, etc. Marketing never stops.

Budgeting

Hiring a knowledgeable accountant may be the first step in setting up a private practice.

Utilize a software package to budget expenses and maintain records.

Keep careful logs of expenses. Entertainment, travel, meals, equipment purchases, furniture, malpractice insurance and continuing education are all legitimate expenses.

Fees and Billing

Have established fees and allow clients to choose the services they need, terminate whenever they deem it appropriate and pay for only those services that have been provided.

Look at the fees of competitors. Charge less for group counseling than for individual counseling. Fees may range from $75 to $200 an hour.

Consider how to collect fees—credit card, check

Other Business Details

Other details include establishing a record keeping system, considering the possibility of using an answering service (versus an answering machine), hiring assistants and/or clerical workers, choosing an appropriate liability insurance policy and selecting an accountant.

Chapter 20

Trends in the Labor Market, Factors That Shape Them and Issues for Decision Makers

The workplace in this country has always been in a state of flux primarily because of technological advances and changes in economic conditions

Some changes that have occurred and will occur in the future have been quite sudden and dramatic (9/11 and Katrina in 2005)

Most change occurs far more gradually as result of economic cycles, the impact of wage differentials in the U.S. and the rest of the world on business decisions, the impact of technology and business consolidations

The Impact of Technology

The first industry to experience rapid and dramatic job change was agriculture

Other occupations that are expected to decline are, for example: postal clerks, sorters; sewing machine operators, textile cutting and weaving machine operators; meter readers; word processors; door to door sales to name a few

Global economy and long-term job trends

75 years ago the goods and services produced in the U.S. were consumed in this country

Although the U.S. tends to import more than it exports, agricultural products, manufactured goods and other goods and services produced in this country are sold abroad

Most corporations in this country are multinational which means they not only do business with other countries but also have investments and operations abroad

The U.S. has also been the beneficiary of foreign business leaders’ decisions to locate a portion of their businesses in this country.

The economies of the world are linked!

Other economic factors: current interest rates are at historic lows; national debt has passed the $20 trillion mark; value of the dollar in the currency exchange market also influences job growth

Population Factors

Baby boomers, birthrates, influx of minority works into the labor, illegal workers

Size of Government

Local, state and national government employ millions of people. Arguments for and against downsizing at all levels abound

Cause of Short-Term Trends

Various types of calamities either caused by humans or natural disasters

New directions in fashion, recreation and other activities can also alter the occupational structure by creating new demands or reducing old ones

Seasonal variations are also influential

Projections for the Future

The Bureau of Labor Statistics regularly issues forecasts regarding the various aspects of the labor force and provides up-to-date information

Holistic Approach to Life Planning

Sunny Hansen has developed a model (the Integrative Life Planning approach) that focuses on ways to make society a better place while helping individuals with their career concerns

Six critical life tasks identified by Hansen

Task 1 – Finding work that needs doing in changing global contexts

Task 2 – Weaving our lives into a meaningful whole

Task 3– Connecting family and work

Task 4– Valuing pluralism and inclusivity

Task 5– Managing personal transitions and organizational change

Take 6: Exploring spirituality, purpose and meaning

Assess the effect of passive-aggressive behaviors on organizational goals.

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Passive-Aggressive Behavior at Work

Construct a short case study of passive-aggressive behavior at work. You may draw from personal experience, use an example from an article or other published work, or even create a hypothetical scenario and character(s). If you choose to write about someone you know, please use a pseudonym. Include the following:

  • Describe specific passive-aggressive behaviors exhibited by the person.
  • Analyze how the behaviors may affect others in the workplace.
  • Assess the effect of passive-aggressive behaviors on organizational goals.
  • Citing accepted mental health practices, evaluate effective reactions to passive-aggressive behavior providing four or more actions that may resolve the situation.

Your paper should be 3-4 pages in length. Use the textbook and scholarly sources in your research and analysis of passive-aggressive behavior. Be sure to cite any sources referenced in APA format.

explain how you think social workers might have a powerful and positive effect as elected officials.

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Social workers often have commitments to specific policies, laws, or funding of programs that are vital to the population they serve or an issue that they strongly support. Such commitments often lead social workers to become involved in political issues and the campaigns of specific candidates. Being a social worker, such campaign experiences, the outcomes of your efforts, and how effective you felt you were may affect your view of the political process and the likelihood of becoming involved in similar campaigns in the future.

For this Discussion, reflect on your experiences if you have ever participated in a political campaign. What was the outcome of your participation? If you have not participated in a campaign, choose a campaign topic you support or oppose and consider the ways you might like to participate in that campaign. Likewise, think about your experiences if you have ever lobbied on a topic. If you have not, choose a topic for which you might like to lobby in favor or against. Finally, consider how you think social workers might have a powerful and positive effect as elected officials.

By Day 4

Post an explanation of the role of lobbying and campaigning in social work practice. Then, explain how you think social workers might have a powerful and positive effect as elected officials. Finally, explain of the impact, if any, the experiences and opinions of your colleagues have had on your own experiences and opinions.

 

Required Readings

Plummer, S.-B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014). Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore: MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].
“Working With Survivors of Sexual Abuse and Trauma: The Case of Rita” (pp. 81–83)

Rome, S., Harris, S., & Hoechstetter, S. (2010). Social work and civic engagement: The political participation of professional social workers. Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare, 37(3), 107–129.
Note: Retrieved from Walden Library databases.

Plummer, S. -B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. (Eds.). (2014). Sessions: Case histories. Baltimore: MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].
Part 1, “The Johnson Family” (pp. 11–13)

Popple, P. R., & Leighninger, L. (2015). The policy-based profession: An introduction to social welfare policy analysis for social workers. (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education..
Chapter 12, “Taking Action: Policy Practice for Social Workers” (pp. 262-283)
Chapter 13, “Conclusion” (pp. 284-289)

Required Media

Laureate Education (Producer). (2013). Sessions: Johnson family (Episode 4 of 42) [Video file]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Accessible player –Downloads–Download Video w/CCDownload AudioDownload Transcript

 Are there any environmental, social, or biological influences that may be contributing to the onset or maintenance of the character’s disorder?

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FINAL COMPREHENSIVE ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS & RUBRIC

Abnormal Psychology: Disorder & A Movie Paper: 

Description:  The paper should be minimum four pages double-spaced 12 point New Times Roman font in APA style and will need to have 3-5 five references, with only one of those coming from the internet and the DSM-V required. Your textbook can, of course, be used as one reference. You will be required to write a paper analyzing a fictional character in a film. This character must be an individual who you believe or has been diagnosed as having a psychological disorder. You will need to talk a little bit about the character and their behavior. What in their behavior makes you assess them as potentially demonstrating a psychopathology? Are they having difficulty functioning?  What makes you sure of your diagnosis? What aspects of their behavior are not normal? How do those around them act in response to their behavior?  Are there any environmental, social, or biological influences that may be contributing to the onset or maintenance of the character’s disorder? Is this character being treated for the disorder? If so, what sort of treatment are they receiving? How are they responding to the treatment? If they are not receiving treatment, what options for treatment are available and what would you propose?

A more detailed description of the paper, format and style will be available. A list of recent films that feature or depict characters with disorders is provided below, though another film off of the list can be chosen in consultation with the instructor.

Abnormal Psychology Movie List: The movie is ‘Antwone Fisher’

What are the strengths and weaknesses of each kind of reaction?

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Assignment Details

YesPoints Possible100.0Resubmissions Allowed?NoAttachments checked for originality?Yes

Assignment Instructions

Write briefly in response to the following, using your text and one other reference (preferably from the APUS online library) and citing both in APA format.  This assignment should be approximately 1200-1500 words long.

Assignment 3:  Seven year old Danny is outside playing in the yard, and he throws a ball that hits his family’s house and breaks a window.  Write a description of how each of these kinds of parent might react to the incident.  What are the strengths and weaknesses of each kind of reaction?

  1. Indulgent
  2. Authoritarian
  3. Authoritative
  4. Uninvolved

Possible gradeStudent gradeThe paper addresses the issues specified by the assignment30 The author shows insight and sophistication in thinking and writing40 Paper was well organized and easy to follow. Paper was the required length. Cover page, paper body, citations and Reference list were in the correct APA format.20 Few to no spelling, grammar, punctuation or other writing structure errors10 TOTAL100

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    ASSIGNMENTWEEK6.docx

examine ethical issues encountered by clinical and counseling psychologists in the digital age

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Setting Boundaries When Working with Clients

Prior to beginning work on this week’s discussion, please review Standard 3: Human Relations (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. in the APA’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. Please also read the Asay and Lal (2014) “Who’s Googled Whom? Trainees’ Internet and Online Social Networking Experiences, Behaviors, and Attitudes with Clients and Supervisors,” Harris and Robinson Kurpius (2014) “Social Networking and Professional Ethics: Client Searches, Informed Consent, and Disclosure,” and Taylor, McMinn, Bufford, and Chang (2010) “Psychologists’ Attitudes and Ethical Concerns Regarding the Use of Social Networking Web Sites” articles.

For this discussion, you will examine ethical issues encountered by clinical and counseling psychologists in the digital age. Begin by reviewing the cases of Dr. Arnold and Dr. Washington listed below and selecting one of these ethical dilemmas for analysis.

Case 1
Dr. Arnold is a clinical psychologist who specializes in child and adolescent issues. From time to time, she provides consultation on high lethality cases within the juvenile court system. Recently, she was referred a case involving a 15-year-old male who has a history of aggression, angry outburst, destructive behavior, and cyberstalking.  Concerned for her safety and well-being, Dr. Arnold input the client’s name into a search engine, which yielded the client’s social network page. Dr. Arnold is uncertain whether or not to look at the client’s social network page.

Case 2
Dr. Washington is a counseling psychologist who specializes in trauma and self-harming behavior. Recently, he received a “friend request” from a former client who he provided individual therapy to six months ago. Dr. Washington opted not to accept the “friend request,” but considered sending a private message to the client with the social networking policy from his informed consent.  Dr. Washington is uncertain whether or not to send the private message to the client.

In your initial post, assume the role of a colleague to the doctor named and analyze the ethical issues encountered in your chosen case. Given the situation described in the case study, recommend how your colleague should proceed. Provide support for your response by citing the required articles for this discussion. Consider the current and potential actions of your colleague and explain whether or not he or she is currently, or potentially will be, in violation of the APA’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. Provide support for your explanation by citing Standard 3: Human Relations (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. in the APA’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. Explain how your colleague might avoid this type of ethical dilemma in the future. Describe what policy or policies you might put in place if you were your colleague.

Guided Response: Review several of your colleagues’ posts and respond to at least two of your peers who chose a case study different from the one you selected by 11:59 p.m. on Day 7 of the week. You are encouraged to post your required replies earlier in the week to promote more meaningful interactive discourse in this discussion.

In your responses, evaluate the recommendations suggested by your peer. State whether you agree or disagree with your peer’s recommendation to the doctor on how to proceed. Suggest other ethical implications your peer may not have considered in this case. What follow up questions might you ask your peer to aid in the ethical assessment of the case? In addition to the suggestions provided by your peer, what recommendations might you make to the doctor so that he or she might avoid these types of dilemmas in the future? What additions or changes might you make to the policy or policies suggested by your peer?

explain how you might evaluate the success of the policy changes.

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According to the NASW Code of Ethics section 6.04 (NASW, 2008), social workers are ethically bound to work for policies that support the healthy development of individuals, guarantee equal access to services, and promote social and economic justice.

For this Discussion, review this week’s resources, including Working with Survivors of Sexual Abuse and Trauma: The Case of Rita and “The Johnson Family”. Consider what change you might make to the policies that affect the client in the case you chose. Finally, think about how you might evaluate the success of the policy changes.

By Day 3

Post an explanation of one change you might make to the policies that affect the client in the case. Be sure to reference the case you selected in your post. Finally, explain how you might evaluate the success of the policy changes.

 

Plummer, S.-B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014). Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore: MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].
“Working With Survivors of Sexual Abuse and Trauma: The Case of Rita” (pp. 81–83)

Rome, S., Harris, S., & Hoechstetter, S. (2010). Social work and civic engagement: The political participation of professional social workers. Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare, 37(3), 107–129.
Note: Retrieved from Walden Library databases.

Plummer, S. -B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. (Eds.). (2014). Sessions: Case histories. Baltimore: MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].
Part 1, “The Johnson Family” (pp. 11–13)

Popple, P. R., & Leighninger, L. (2015). The policy-based profession: An introduction to social welfare policy analysis for social workers. (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education..
Chapter 12, “Taking Action: Policy Practice for Social Workers” (pp. 262-283)
Chapter 13, “Conclusion” (pp. 284-289)

Required Media

Laureate Education (Producer). (2013). Sessions: Johnson family (Episode 4 of 42) [Video file]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Accessible player –Downloads–Download Video w/CCDownload AudioDownload Transcript

How can you use the knowledge gained in the course to advance social change within your immediate context of work, leisure, family, or broader society?

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Discussion: Looking Back and Looking Forward

In Week 1 of the course, you selected two topics that you hoped to explore further during the course. Language and cognitive development are broad fields with many theoretical perspectives, research areas, and applications. Did any new avenues of learning or professional interest open for you during the course? Reflect on these, as well as past and current research you explored during the course.

Research does not exist for its own sake; it exists to inform practice and provide the foundation for application. Whatever your role or future role in developmental psychology—whether in education, direct service provision, policy, programming, or other area—you will need to ground your work empirically and apply scholarship to its practice. For this Discussion, you consider how you could use specific knowledge from the course related to language and cognition to advance social change related to some aspect of your life.

To prepare:

· Consider how the topics you explored throughout the course might influence your future as a psychology professional. How can you use the knowledge gained in this course to advance social change within your immediate context of work, leisure, family, or broader society?

With these thoughts in mind:

By Day 4

Post an explanation of two topics from the course you would like to continue exploring professionally. Then, explain how you could use this knowledge to advance social change within your profession, community, or society.

Be sure to support your postings and responses with specific references to the Learning Resources. Use proper APA format and citations.

Resources for this week; Barney, J. (12016). They’ll have to rewrite the textbooks. The university of Virginia Retrieved from https://news.virginia.edu/content/researchers-find-textbook-altering-link-between-brain-immune-system

Callahan, D., Wilson, E, Birdsall, I., Estabrook-Fishinghawk, B., Carson, G., Ford, S…..Yob, I. (2012). Expanding our understandingof social change: A report from the definition task force of the HLC special emphasis project. Minneapolis, Mn: Walden University.& Company.

Pinker, S. (1997). Standard equipment. In how the mind works. (pp 3-58). New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company.

Social Change working group. (2015). Review of social change at walden university. Retrieved from https://www.waldenu.edu/-/media/Walden/files/about-walden/walden-social-change-review-2015-2016.pdf?la=en

For more than 45 years, Walden University has provided a diverse community of career professionals with the opportunity to transform themselves as scholar-practitioners so that they can apply what they’ve learned to effect positive social change. Walden is focused on inspiring and celebrating the remarkable achievements of our community members who continue to make a difference by addressing challenges where they live, in their professions, and in the world around them.

Walden’s five-year social change plan is one that will shape our thinking about the future and our vision for social change within the university. Read more about the university’s efforts to become a leader in connecting our virtual presence with both local and global actions to make a difference in the Walden 2020: A Vision for Social Change 2017 Report.

For Walden, social change is not just something we talk about—social change is who we are. Walden students, alumni, faculty, and staff are creating and contributing to real change and having an impact on a global scale.

As a Certified B Corporation®, Walden is proud to join a growing, global movement of other Certified B Corps that look beyond profits to benefit the communities we serve and, most importantly, future generations. Our B Corp™ certification directly aligns with our mission to drive positive social change through our graduates of our degree programs. Our students and alumni embrace this responsibility, using their education to make the world a better place.

Learn more about the social change initiatives guiding our institution.

Scholarly Change

A Curriculum Designed to Foster the Application of Knowledge to Positive Social Change
A core commitment that Walden makes as we develop and improve our curriculum is ensuring that our students can apply new skills, expand their networks, gain deeper knowledge, and consider a variety of perspectives in order to better address practical problems at an individual level as well as within their organizations, communities, and society at large.

Working collaboratively, college leadership, faculty members, and curricula developers continually evaluate Walden’s programs to assess the effectiveness of our curriculum in helping our students effect positive social change. In our annual Review of Social Change at Walden University (summary), we document some of the more important changes to our curriculum that support social change initiatives.

Other Resources That Help Inform Perspectives on Social Change
Through ScholarWorks, Walden makes the scholarly and creative output of the Walden University community publicly available, in order to generate, conserve, and transform knowledge by making connections among and between ideas to improve human and social conditions. Browse our collection of social change publications that exemplify Walden’s mission by exploring issues that impact communities.

The Journal of Social Change, sponsored by Walden University, welcomes manuscripts from the Walden community and the public that focus on interdisciplinary research in social change that seeks to improve the human condition and moves people, groups, organizations, cultures, and society toward a more positive future.

Walden commissioned the Social Change Impact Report to discover the current state of social change around the world, assess the impact of social change, and learn more about the individuals who are creating and applying ideas. The report also identifies individual beliefs about social change, the issues that those surveyed care about, the motivations behind their engagement, the actions they are taking to further social change, and the tools they use. Discover what kind of social change agent you are by taking Walden’s quiz based on this research.

Applied Change

Walden’s annual Global Days of Service is an opportunity for the Walden community to make an impact in neighborhoods around the world and advance the university’s mission of positive social change. Members of the Walden community generously donate their time and expertise to serve their neighbors in need, as they experience firsthand the impact they can make in the lives of others. Students, alumni, faculty, and staff contribute to community projects serving schools, food banks, community centers, and much more.

The annual Scholars of Change video contest allows our students and graduates to share their stories demonstrating how a Walden degree is helping them make a positive difference in their lives and the lives of those in their communities. The winners’ inspirational videos underscore our social change mission and show how the Walden community is helping to advance the greater good.

Designed to expand learning beyond the classroom, Walden’s study abroad and international public service programs allow students to gain a better understanding of their own culture while being immersed in another, resulting in a greater tolerance for difference, better understanding of the role stereotyping plays, and a deepened appreciation for one’s own academic and career goals. Students generally volunteer 20–30 hours on public service trips.

Inspiring Change

Throughout students’ journeys at Walden, they are provided various opportunities to hear directly from distinguished scholars, journalists, social scientists, and change-makers who share with students their diverse global views. See the list of speakers from 2007 to present.

Walden’s alumni magazine and Spotlight on Walden, the university’s blog, both feature stories and insights from our community of change agents. Get to know the Walden community and see how we are making a difference. Share your story at mywaldenimpact@waldenu.edu.

It is a core belief at Walden that educational institutions like ours have an important role to play in supporting positive social change. To help students reach their fullest potential, so they can be prepared to make a difference in the world around them, Walden regularly commits millions of dollars in social change scholarships and grants.

Social Entrepreneurship Programs at Walden

Become the entrepreneurial professional you’ve always wanted to be. As part of our core mission of social change, Walden now offers masters-level program specializations and certificates to help you advance your passion for making an impact in your profession and community.

explain how you might apply a systems perspective to social work practice.

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Zastrow and Kirst-Ashman (2016) stated, “Clients are affected by and in constant dynamic interactions with other systems, including families, groups, organizations, and communities” (p. 35-36). As a social worker, when you address the needs of an individual client, you also take into account the systems with which the client interacts. Obtaining information about these systems helps you better assess your client’s situation. These systems may provide support to the client, or they may contribute to the client’s presenting problem.

For this Discussion, review “Working With People With Disabilities: The Case of Lester.”Consider the systems with which Lester Johnson, the client, interacts. Think about ways you might apply a systems perspective to his case. Also, consider the significance of the systems perspective for social work in general.

By Day 3

Post a Discussion in which you explain how multiple systems interact to impact individuals. Explain how you, as a social worker, might apply a systems perspective to your work with Lester Johnson. Finally, explain how you might apply a systems perspective to social work practice.

 

Required Readings

Zastrow, C. H., & Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (2016). Understanding human behavior and the social environment (10th ed.). Boston, MA:  Cengage Learning.
Chapter 1, “Introduction to Human Behavior and the Social Environment” (pp. 11-54)

Larsson, S., & Sjöblom, Y. (2010). Perspectives on narrative methods in social work research. International Journal of Social Welfare, 19(3), 272–280.
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library databases.

Plummer, S. -B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014). Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore, MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].
“Working With People With Disabilities: The Case of Lester” (pp. 31–33)Note: This text is available as an eBook (electronic book). It will be provided to you via an email from the Walden University book store.

Pack, M. (2011). Discovering an integrated framework for practice: a qualitative investigation of theories used by social workers working as sexual abuse therapists. Journal of Social Work Practice, 25(1), 79–93.
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library databases.

Roscoe, K., Carson, A. M., & Madoc-Jones, L. (2011). Narrative social work: Conversations between theory and practice. Journal of Social Work Practice, 25(1), 47–61.
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library databases.

Savaya, R., & Gardner, F. (2012). Critical reflection to identify gaps between espoused theory and theory-in-use. Social Work, 57(2), 145–154.
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library databases.

Optional Resources

Use the link below to access the MSW home page, which provides resources for your social work program.
MSW home page