Peer+Literature+Review

= Literature Review of Career Development and High School Students =

Nita Barot, Adam Brown, Jessica Mains, Nicole Robb Millersville University aaaaa The need for career development is an emerging concern in the United States. High school students, especially, are at a crucial transitional point in their career development. As these adolescents make the transition from high school to careers, important decisions---such as choosing a realistic and interesting occupation or obtaining further education---are often met with a struggle. Thus, there is a need for high school counselors to not only understand their students developmentally, but to also provide necessary aid in making these decisions.

aaaaa Currently, there is a wealth of research on the topic of career counseling and high school students. This literature review uses recognized research to first discuss the developmental factors, such as career maturity and self-efficacy, involved in high school students’ career decisions. Next, the needs of the group, as they pertain to career development, are analyzed. Finally, successful and proven interventions used in the high school setting are presented.

**Development of High School Students** aaaaa Career maturity is central to a developmental approach in understanding career behavior and involves the assessment of an individual’s level of career progress relative to his or her relevant career development tasks. The definition of career maturity includes the individual's ability and readiness to make appropriate career choices. Also included in this definition is awareness of what is required to make a career decision and the degree to which one's choices are both realistic and consistent over time. Although the main idea about career maturity was developed in the 1950s, it experienced a revival in the 1990s as a useful tool for understanding adolescent career development. According to Creed and Patton (2003), Donald Super i ndicated that key influences of career maturity, in addition to age and grade, were psychosocial forces. Determining what to do upon completing high school education continues to be a significant task for students. For some, choosing an occupation and finding a first full-time job are major challenges. For others, choosing and selecting a particular course of study constitutes the major decision-making goals at this stage (Creed & Patton, 2003).

aaaaa Bardick, Bernes, Code, and Gunn (2006) performed a study using the Comprehensive Career Needs Survey to assess how junior high and senior high school students perceive career concerns and how these concerns may change from grades 7 to 12. The reason for this change is discouragement in career planning due to (1) training and education concerns, (2) security, (3) satisfaction, (4) failing, (5) commitment, (6) wrong occupational choice, and (7) having to make a decision. Although Super's stage of exploration refers to common vocational tasks (i.e. crystallizing, specifying, and implementing a vocational preference), the career concerns in this study referred to what adolescents perceived to be personally important and essential to the development of their career (Bardick, Bernes, Code, & Gunn, 2006).

aaaaa Results from another study showed that three years after graduating from high school, seniors who had made greater progress developing the critical career awareness, exploration, and planning skills outlined in the integrative/contextual model of career development reported greater success in transitioning into fundamental life roles in young adulthood (Lapan, 2004). These young people were more likely to have found a direction in their working lives about which they were optimistic and were acting in proactive ways to become more successful. They were also more likely to achieve higher levels of education and training after leaving high school, were very satisfied with their lives, and were hopeful for the future (Lapan, Aoyagi, & Kayson, 2007).

aaaaa Tang, Pan, and Newmeyer (2008) found that students’ self-efficacy, or “task- or domain-specific confidence,” was related to the career decision-making process (p. 3). Female students had higher self-efficacy for working with people and ideas, while male students demonstrated higher self-efficacy for data and things. The main finding was that learning experiences significantly impact students’ self-efficacy, which in turn influences career interests and decisions. The implication for school counselors involves creating career development programs that focus on providing learning experiences that will enhance self-efficacy for high school students.

**Needs of High School Students** aaaaa There are many needs of high school students pertaining to career planning. One of the main concepts is parental involvement. Recent studies have shown that there is a significant family influence when it comes to a child’s perception and ideas of career development (Cenkseven-Önder, Kırdök, & Işık, 2009, p. 266). When looking at the importance of family influence, it becomes evident that parents must receive knowledge and support on the topic of career development. This allows for the child to receive the guidance they need to make career decisions that meet their abilities and interests. There is research that supports the notion that parents are the most influential factor in high school students’ career choices. In their article, Trusty, Watts, and Crawford (1996) studied what and whom parents of high school seniors perceive as their best sources of career development information. A survey was distributed to 9,659 parents of 1992 public high school seniors, and the results showed that schools, school counselors, and people working in a particular field were viewed by most parents as the best sources of career information. Results also showed that parents who had been contacted by the school at least once viewed schools and their counselors more positively. Due to these findings, it is imperative that school counselors are knowledgeable about current career information resources and can assist families in utilizing these resources.

aaaaa Another strong need for high school students is receiving valuable information about how to make career goals and choices. This can be achieved through more intense career development programs during high school and earlier. In a survey, individuals between the ages of 18 and 25 reported not receiving enough information to make future career plans (Blanton & Larrabee, 1999, p. 119). This is important because schools are sending unprepared students into the world of work with little to no resources or self-awareness to be able to find meaningful careers. Blanton and Larrabee (1999) also reported that students are unable, as well as unaware of how, to seek and find the necessary help from counselors when it pertained to career choices. Jennings et al. (1976) discovered a need for a career development curriculum in the high schools of Rome, Georgia. The need for such a program was evidenced in the high population of high school drop outs and reported low levels of interest in courses and preparedness for college. The implementation of this curriculum was a phenomenal success and demonstrated not only the need for students to be interested in subject matter taught in schools, but also the need students have for a career development curriculum. Although this study is over thirty years old, there is a clear need for more developed career counseling programs in high schools to better serve this population so they can be successful as they enter the workforce or attend college.

**Interventions** aaaaa Although, developmentally, high school students are searching for their identities and attempting to gain independence, their parents still influence their career decisions. As indicated previously, recent studies have shown significant family influence on a child’s perception and ideas on career development (Cenkseven-Önder, Kırdök, & Işık, 2009). Green and Keys (2001) promote the idea of collaboration between school personnel and parents, and Jeffery, Lehr, Hache, and Campbell (1992) have also developed and tested programs for training parents to be the primary source of support for adolescents in rural settings (Domene, Keating, & Shapka, 2006). The search for careers can begin at home, but it is imperative that programming occur in the classroom and through interactions with school counselors as well.

aaaaa It is also very important that school counselors create career development programs that will enhance self-efficacy for high school students Examples include school-wide career fairs and working with teachers to develop in-class career projects. Counselors can also collaborate with community agencies to find speakers or field-trip sites for student activities (Tang, Pan, & Newmeyer, 2008). It would furthermore be crucial to develop curricula and programs that integrate various cultural values and provide financial aid and scholarship information to certain students who do not have easy access to these resources. Counselors should also help students find part time jobs that would assist in career development (Constantine, Kindaichi, & Miville, 2007).

aaaaa Earlier interventions are required to address career concerns and to help senior high students feel better prepared for their impending post-high-school transition. The development of community-based partnerships among schools, community agencies, and businesses would enhance the options available for adolescents and provide a number of opportunities for them to address their concerns (Code, Bernes, Gunn, & Bardick, 2006.) Programs should give students the knowledge of their personal skills, interests, talents, and motivations as well as information pertaining to colleges and the current labor market. Trips to college and university campuses should be organized and include meetings with university personnel (Bloxom et al., 2008).

aaaaa Regardless of the intervention and who is providing the student with assistance, it is of little benefit to students who do not seek help from school counselors. Identifying those students less likely to seek help as early as possible may allow schools to incorporate programming that will make these students more comfortable seeking guidance from school counselors and parents. “It is worthwhile to educate all students about the assistance that is available to them through school counseling services and how to access this assistance, but educating those individuals who are least likely to seek such services for themselves may be particularly important” (Domene, Keating, & Shapka, 2006, p. 155).

**Conclusion** aaaaa Research supports the need for career counseling in United States high schools. Both career maturity and self-efficacy, as described in recent studies, are critical elements in the career development of high school students. Thus, it is necessary that counselors focus their efforts on increasing these in adolescents. Additionally, parents have proven to be the most influential component in career decisions for teenagers, and parental involvement is imperative to the success of high school students. School counselors need to collaborate with guardians in the career decision-making process. There is also a need for schools to provide resources and access to information regarding careers and higher education. Interventions to aid in providing these resources include creating community-based partnerships, encouraging field experience, and implementing school-wide and classroom curriculums. Counselors should understand that their role in the career development of high school students is crucial to the success of these adolescents.

**References** Blanton, B. L. & Larrabee, M. J. (1999). High school and employment agency client views on career counseling. //Journal of Employment Counseling//, //36//, 119-130.

Bloxom, J., Bernes, K., Magnusson, K., Gunn, T., Bardick, A., Orr, D., et al. (2008). Grade 12 student career needs and perceptions of the effectiveness of career development services within high schools. Canadian Counsellor, //42//(2), 79-100.

Cenkseven-Önder, F., Kırdök, O., & Işık, E. (2009). High school students' career decision-making pattern across parenting styles and parental attachment levels. //Electronic Journal of Research in Educational Psychology, 8//(1), 263-280.

Code, M. N., Bernes, K. B., Gunn, T. M., & Bardick, A. D. (2006). Adolescents' perceptions of career concern: Student discouragement in career development. //Canadian Journal of Counselling//, //40//(3), 160-174.

Constantine, M. G., Kindaichi, M. M., & Miville, M. L. (2007). Factors influencing the educational and vocational transitions of Black and Latino high school students. //Professional School Counselin//g, //10//(3), 261-265.

Creed, P. A. & Patton, W. (2003). Differences in career attitude and career knowledge for high school students with and without paid work experience. //International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance//, //2//, 21-33.

Domene, J.F., Keating, D.P., & Shapka, J.D. (2006). Educational and career related help seeking in high school: An exploration of students’ choices. //Canadian Journal of Counseling, 40//(3), 145-159.

Herr, E.L., Cramer, S.H., & Niles, S.G. (2003). Career guidance techniques for senior high school. //Career Guidance and Counseling Through the Life Span.// Boston: Ally and Bacon, 449-453.

Jennings, G. D., Smith, H. D., & Monroe, E. (1976). Career education in the high school: An integration of counselor and teacher functions. // Journal unavailable //, 1-13.

Lapan, R. T., Aoyagi, M., Kayson, M. (2007). Helping rural adolescents make successful postsecondary transitions: A longitudinal study. //Professional School Counseling, 10//(3), 266-272.

Sikora, J., & Saha, L. (2009). Gender and professional career plans of high school students in comparative perspective. Educational Research and Evaluation, //15//(4), 385-403.

Tang, M., Pan, W. & Newmeyer, M. D. (2008). Factors influencing high school students’ career aspirations. //Professional School Counseling//, //11(//5), 285-295.

Trusty, J., Watts, R. E., & Crawford, R. (1996). Career information resources for parents of public school seniors: Findings from a national study. //Journal of Career Developmen//t, //22//(4), 227-238.