Contemporary Models in Vocational Psychology

A Volume in Honor of Samuel H. Osipow

Frederick Leong, Azy Barak, Frederick Leong, Frederick Leong, Azy Barak

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2005
• Topic: Psychology
• eBook ISBN:
  9781135684266
• Subtopic: History & Theory in Psychology
• Index: Psychology

This volume, prepared in honor of Samuel H. Osipow, a prominent teacher, researcher, author, and pioneer in vocational psychology, deals with significant theoretical and practical issues in the field of vocational psychology. As a state-of-the-art review of contemporary models of vocational psychology, this book will provide current and up-to-date coverage of the topics. It will also contain in-depth reviews of models of vocational psychology by leading scholars, including career decision making models, career self-efficacy, occupational stress, cross-cultural assessment of interests, and career counseling services within university systems.

A major theme that runs throughout all chapters is the concept of change. This unifying theme is fitting since the authors have prepared their chapters in honor of Osipow, who has significantly changed the field over the last four decades.

This volume should serve as a valuable resource for vocational psychology researchers, counseling graduate students, and career counselors. In addition to being a professional text, it should also be a useful supplement text for career development and career counseling courses in graduate programs of counseling, counseling psychology, and industrial/organizational psychology.

Chapter 1
Some Introductory Notes on Innovations in Career Psychology Inspired by the Legacy of Samuel H.Osipow

Frederick T.L.Leong
The Ohio State University

Azy Barak
University of Haifa

This collection of innovative scientific chapters was sparked by the retirement of Samuel H.Osipow from Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. Osipow, a prominent teacher, researcher, and author, has left his stamp in nearly every area of career psychology: career development theory, career decision-making models, vocational assessment, cross-cultural and minority groups issues, counseling interventions, counseling services provision, organizational consultation, professional intervention ethics, research methodology, and teaching. His active involvement in this broad variety of areas and his dynamic activity—18 books and more than 200 articles published, plus numerous paper presentations—have earned him a central place in the Hall of Fame of career psychology. In addition to his scientific activities, Osipow has continually been involved in academic teaching, supervision, administration, and professional organizations. Osipow was the chairperson of the Department of Psychology at the Ohio State University for 13 years, president of the American Ptychological Association’s (APA) Division of Counseling Ptychology, and chairperson of numerous committees and task forces at APA and other bodies, such as the APA Committee on Women in Ptychology and the APA Council of Editors. He was the founder and the first editor of The Journal of Vocational Behavior (1970–1975), and he edited the Journal of Counseling Psychology (1975–1981) and Applied and Preventive Psychology (1993–1999). An examination of his specific deeds and activities indeed leads to the conclusion that he has turned over stones and cultivated these fields in an attempt to facilitate constructive change.

Osipow represents a highly functional perspective: While identifying with and emphasizing cognitive-behavioral theory, he has recognized the place of rival explanations and has been open to alternative viewpoints to his own. In adopting his scientific position and rationale, Osipow has actively contributed to conceptualizing numerous specific topics in career psychology. These contributions included continuous critical reviews of existing career development theories and a cry for their integration and convergence; the role of perceptions of and attributions concerning occupations and occupational titles; adaptation of behavioral and cognitivebehavioral strategies to counseling practice; models of vocational indecision; assessment of career decision making, including processes, barriers, and outcomes; evaluation of and coping with occupational stress; issues related to the career psychology of women; various topics related to the development and crystallization of vocational interests; interrelationship of personality and career choice and development; cognitive factors related to career decision making and choice; the role of occupational and task-specific self-efficacy beliefs; work adjustment; unemployment; vocational and career education; issues in the career development of disabled persons; training of counseling psychologists; psychological consultation in business and industry; and professional identity issues in counseling psychology. This list reflects not only the level of Osipow’s activity and involvement, but also his determination, motivation, identity, and dedication to career and counseling psychology. The recognition he has received, reflected in various awards and grants, is a result of these attributes. (For a comprehensive review of Osipow’s career, see Simon, 1998.)

In preparing this volume, we collected original contributions from a number of outstanding scientists in the field of career psychology who have been associated with Osipow either as career-long colleagues (e.g., Betz, Harmon, Walsh) or as his students first and colleagues later (e.g., Fitzgerald, Spokane, Winer). Each of these individuals not only contributed a valuable manuscript to this book, but also associated the article with Osipow’s work. As a result, this book contains a collection of scholarly, innovative chapters that presents comprehensive view of career psychology and reflects Osipow’s involvement in the field.

Chapter 2 analyzes the limitations of existing models of career decision making. Based on this analysis and Gati’s program of research on this topic, the authors present a prescriptive-systematic model for career decision making. The PIC model consists of three stages-prescreening, in-depth exploration, and choice. Each stage is presented in detail and compared to the other stages. The chapter concludes with a presentation of research that is relevant to the PIC model, as well as what implications the PIC model holds for the future of career decision making and counseling.

A review of career self-efficacy is presented in chapter 3. Betz was one of the first researchers to adopt the self-efficacy construct for career psychology by conceptualizing both its intervening role in career-related attitudes and behaviors and its measurement. Her analysis associates career self-efficacy with proximate conceptualizations, such as Super’s self-concept model and Holland’s typological approach. In addition, she reviews the findings on career self-eflicacy and on important vocational-related factors, such as interests and decision making. However, central to the chapter, Betz further develops her previous propositions on the centrality of career self-efficacy by explaining career-related attitudes and behaviors of minority group members and by noting its implication for career counseling.

Chapter 4 examines the validity and the utility of Osipow’s Occupational Stress Inventory (OSI), an instrument designed to assess occupationally induced stress and the role of coping strategies on well-being. The OSI was first developed in 1981 and revised in 1983 and 1987. OSI is a theoretically derived instrument with three subscales designed to tap role stressors, role strains, and coping roles in the context of a work environment: Occupational Environment Scale (OES), Personal Strain Questionnaire (PSQ), Personal Resources Questionnaire (PRQ). Beginning in 1981, more than 60 studies, including validity studies, support the notion that OSI is a psychometrically sound practical device for use in variety of research and practical settings. In addition, the authors provide empirical evidence for its internal consistency using three individual profile samples. Occupational stress and strain intervention, as well as prevention strategies, are outlined in the three OSI workshop modes (interpretive, full-day, and half-day). Finally, critical reviews concerning the OSI are recognized, followed by helpful guidelines for future research.

Chapter 5 presents a cognitive model of interest, which is a departure from the dominant trait/disposition approach. The chapter begins with illustrations of the pervasiveness of cognitions in one’s expressed interests and the assumptions and evaluations we make about others’ interests. Interests are conceptualized as emotional manifestations (or feelings) of cognitive processes. The feelings reflect degree of attraction or aversion toward a stimulus, and they originate from a person’s thoughts concerning the stimulus. Barak proposes three cognitive determinants of interest (perceived abilities, expected success, and anticipated satisfaction) and presents both correlational and experimental evidence to support his model. Development of interests and implications for career assessment, counseling and research are discussed. Barak views the individual as an active and responsible creator of his or her destiny, and since interests are cognitively determined, career counseling is a constructive dynamic process to help the client modify and restructure his or her emotions of attraction to and repulsion from activities and occupations consistent with his or her personal strengths and weaknesses. The model is also compared and contrasted with two other cognitive approaches: social cognitive career theory and social learning theory of career decision making. Barak concludes by suggesting the possibility of an integrated comprehensive cognitive career psychology theory.

Chapter 6 discusses cross-cultural assessment of interests. Meir and Tziner summarize ways in which cultural differences may influence the expression and assessment of vocational interests. The authors briefly discuss interests and other determinants in career choice and performance, such as abilities, before focusing on interests. Interests are defined as “the extent of attraction to act in, to be engaged in, or to receive training for any task, job, or occupation” (p. 00). The role of interests in occupational choice and satisfaction (i.e., congruence) and the origin of interests are also discussed. In terms of assessment of vocational interests, the authors also discuss evidence regarding the structural similarity if interests across cultures and the importance of using appropriate norm groups. They distinguish between measures that rely on comparisons of an individual’s score to the norm group (Is this person’s interest high compared to others?) and those that rely on intra-individual comparisons (Is this person’s interest high compared to his or her other interests?). Despite the vast number of difficulties noted in attempting to assess interests cross-culturally, the authors provide several rules and concrete practical suggestions for using and/or constructing interest inventories cross-culturally. They conclude with their conviction that accurate cross-cultural interest assessment is possible and that the rewards for doing so are considerable.

Chapter 7 concentrates on cross-cultural perspectives of career development. Leong and Serafica begin by reviewing the publications relating to career development cross-cultural research published since the 1960s in the Journal of Vocational Behavior and the Career Development Quarterly. The authors attempt to draw conclusions as to how these studies reflect on minority groups’ career development and career choice. They then present original generalizations relating to the concept of career maturity in the context of ethnic minorities. Then, Leong and Serafica, in adopting Leong’s previously published integrative cross-cultural model of counseling and psychotherapy and applying it in the context of Super’s developmental theory, analyze how the research findings that emerged in the first section of the chapter reflect on the second. Their review provides implications for and at the same time strengthens both the cross-cultural validity of Super’s model and Leong’s emphasis on cultural accommodation.

Existing literature in women’s career development is reviewed from the postmodernism perspective in chapter 8. The authors describe the changing face of the female workforce in United States. Then, they discuss measurement interests, parental influences on women’s career development, individual factors, the role of marriage and career barriers. They end with the description of the new, emergent portrait of the woman in 2000 in light of all the recent developments in postmodernist thought. This conceptualization of the emergent woman is an extension and elaboration of the pioneering work of Osipow’s work in this area.

Chapter 9 discusses career assessment in relation to societal and technological evolutions and revolutions and examines the way these affect several highly relevant issues relating to vocational behavior and organizations. Understanding that a discussion of emerging assessments in a changing world would be meaningless without analyzing the process of change of work and the workplace, the authors first present a broad yet focused review of these topics in light of recent changes that the world is experiencing. Chartrand and Walsh later discuss the structure and role of various assessment devices, including innovative approaches, in light of these changes. They conclude their chapter with an important critique of how these career assessment changes reflect on career counseling and career-related research.

Chapter 10 provides an in-depth analysis of the evolution of career counseling theory. The authors review several early career counseling models, as well as emerging theories of counseling. They show how recent approaches differ from previous methods in relating differently to several psychological factors (e.g., environmental, social, emotional) and also in the way they refer to diagnosis, the counseling process, and client empowerment. The authors analyze the change in perspectives and their implications for counseling.

The challenges in providing career services within the university setting are addressed in chapter 11. The author discusses positive and negative forces that impact career services from three different perspectives: the applied or practitioner perspective, the academic or faculty perspective, and the administrative perspective. The author analyzes the interaction of these three perspectives within the context of the university setting. The last section discusses the problems and potential solutions to providing effective career services to university students.

Chapter 12 expands on Savickas’ long-held ideas on the convergence of career development theories by examining and confronting the concept of career maturity as a major factor in career development theory. Savickas challenges common assumptions and myths frequently held by researchers and professionals in career psychology. He proposes an alternative viewpoint that lays the ground for new theorizing. He identifies four major factors—termed levels of analysis (i.e., vocational personality types, career concerns, career narratives, mechanisms of development)—that should be used as foundations for integrating career theories into a comprehensive model of careers. Merging existing individual theories into a comprehensive framework by using the principles proposed may enhance our understanding of career development.

The chapters contained within this volume deal with significant theoretical and practice issues in vocational psychology. In presenting the various contemporary models, the authors present exciting new ideas and cutting-edge materials for both the researcher and practitioner in vocational psychology. From Gati’s new model of career decision making to supplant existing models to Betz’s discussion of recent developments in career self-efficacy; from Spokane and Ferrara’s review of the OSI and occupational stress assessment to Barak’s cognitive approach to vocational interests, the chapters highlight new and emergent perspectives in vocational psychology. Significant new developments in cross-cultural issues in vocational psychology are also presented by Meir and Tziner, as well as Leong and Serafica. As Fitzgerald and Harmon present a new perspective on women’s career development in light of postmodernism, Chartrand and Walsh highlight significant new directions in career assessment given major changes in the workplace, and Subich and Simonson trace the evolution of career counseling and how the practice of career counseling will change. Winer offers new solutions to providing career services in a university setting, while Savickas proposes a comprehensive framework for merging divergent developments in career development theories. It is fitting that the unifying theme of this volume concerns “change” because the authors have prepared their chapters in honor of Osipow, a pioneer in vocational psychology who has significantly changed the field over the last four decades. Osipow has made these significant changes as a professor, journal editor, scholar, theoretician, practitioner, and mentor. We dedicate this volume to Sam in honor of the all the positive changes he has made in our lives and our professional careers. We hope that this volume will facilitate positive changes and development in the field of vocational psychology and serve as a tribute to Sam’s professional legacy.

REFERENCES

Simon, J. (1998). Samuel H.Osipow: Commitment, caring, and innovatio...

Table of contents

• Contents
• Chapter 1 Some Introductory Notes on Innovations in Career Psychology Inspired by the Legacy of Samuel H.Osipow
• Chapter 2 The PIC Model for Career Decision Making: Prescreening, In-Depth Exploration, and Choice
• Chapter 3 Career Self-Efficacy
• Chapter 4 Samuel H.Osipow’s Contributions to Occupational Mental Health and the Assessment of Stress: The Occupational Stress Inventory
• Chapter 5 A Cognitive View of the Nature of Vocational Interests: Implications for Career Assessment, Counseling, and Research
• Chapter 6 Cross-Cultural Assessment of Interests
• Chapter 7 Cross-Cultural Perspective on Super’s Career Development Theory: Career Maturity and Cultural Accommodation
• Chapter 8 Women’s Career Development: A Postmodern Update
• Chapter  9 Career Assessment: Changes and Trends
• Chapter 10 Career Counseling: The Evolution of Theory
• Chapter 11 Career Services Within the University
• Chapter 12 Toward a Comprehensive Theory of Career Development: Dispositions, Concerns, and Narratives
• Author Index
• Subject Index