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Adapting Vocational Psychology to Cope with Change
Journal of Vocational Behavior 59, 203–212 (2001) doi:10.1006/jvbe.2001.1826, available online at http://www.idealibrary.com on
Adapting Vocational Psychology to Cope with Change Beryl Hesketh Faculty of Science, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia The article highlights the interdisciplinary theoretical and empirical tradition of vocational psychology as a strength, the slowness in responding to the impact of technology on work as a weakness, while developments in technology provide opportunities for future research and careers interventions, and a possible drift away from psychology is presented as a threat. Strategic issues include implications of having mapped the human genome and the next generation of functional genomics research, change and transfer, development of career programs drawing on goal setting and metacognitive skills, virtual work organizations, and an increased emphasis on time as a variable in research. °C 2001 Academic Press
The field of vocational psychology occurs at the intersection between psychology and several other discipline areas, including sociology, economics, education, industrial relations, and human resource management. Vocational psychology is a more pronounced specialization within the United States than elsewhere, in part because of the population base in the United States and the publication of Journal of Vocational Behavior there. In Europe, vocational psychology falls within the general umbrella of work and organizational psychology, while elsewhere in the world research on career development tends to be subsumed under an educational or Human Resource Management framework. This article uses the SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) to help suggest strategic areas where vocational psychology might develop and adapt to cope with the many science and technology-related changes associated with the subject matter of its domain. A SWOT ANALYSIS Strengths There are several major strengths that have arisen from the specialization of vocational psychology in the United States, and these strengths have migrated to other parts of the world. Despite the clearer distinction between vocational psychology and industrial/organizational (I/O) psychology, the Journal of Vocational Behavior has always covered those areas of I/O psychology that are relevant to Address correspondence and reprint requests to Professor B. Hesketh, Dean, Faculty of Science, Carslaw Building, F07, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia. E-mail: b.hesketh@ scifac.usyd.edu.au. 203 0001-8791/01 $35.00 C 2001 by Academic Press Copyright ° All rights of reproduction in any form reserved.
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an individual perspective on work and organizations. This policy has ensured at least some awareness of developments in I/O psychology as they affect individuals who have to manage their careers within the changing context of work and its organization. For example, when there was considerable debate on the role of “g” in selection, the Journal of Vocational Behavior organized a special issue on this topic (Gottfredson, 1986). Similarly, the organizing structure provided by the Five Factor Model of personality for the validation of personality measures in selection (Barrick & Mount, 1991; Siebert & Kraimer, 2001) has also been used within areas of vocational psychology. Areas of common interest to organizational psychology and vocational psychology include topics such as managerial career advancement (Tharenou, 1997), sexual harassment (O’Leary-Kelly, Paetzold, & Griffin, 2000; Wayne, 2000), work and family (Kossek & Ozeki, 1998; Parasuraman, Purohit, & Godshalk, 1996), and equity and justice in the workplace (Blau, Lenneman, Brooks, & Hoover, 1992; Lee, 1995). Vocational psychology has been responsive to needs within society. For example, during the 1980s and early 1990s vocational psychologists addressed issues associated with unemployment and the transition from school to work. Several specialist conferences have been organized around relevant themes. More recently it has attended to cultural differences and minority group careers. Perhaps the greatest strength of vocational psychology as evidenced in the Journal of Vocational Behavior has been its emphasis on theoretically based approaches, with a strong empirical tradition. Vocational psychology has a long and proud theoretical history and hence has been an excellent way of teaching students the value of theory. Osipow’s text books, including the most recent edition (Osipow & Fitzgerald, 1996), have always provided a good structure for studying theory, evaluating the adequacy of the theory from first principles, classifying theories in various ways, and then subjecting them to empirical test. Brown and Brooks (1996) have added to this tradition by including practical cases as a basis for elaborating the major career development theories. The combination of sophisticated person–environment fit theories such as the Minnesota Theory of Work Adjustment (Dawis, 1994; Dawis & Lofquist, 1984), with strong developmental overlays (e.g., Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994; Super, 1994), will continue to provide a useful structure for teaching career theories. Weaknesses Some of the weaknesses shown within vocational psychology include the slowness to embrace information technology for research and the lag in any major effort to understand the impact of information technology on work and its organization and hence on careers. In recent years this lapse has been redressed, but prior to that many of the traditional career models appeared irrelevant to part-time and insecure work that was all many people of all ages could hope to attain. Although interests and values remain an important component of understanding work motivation and satisfaction, vocational psychologists could have benefited
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from the different ideas about work motivation, much of which relates to goal setting and self-regulatory processes (Kanfer, 1990). Fortunately vocational psychologists have used the concept of self-efficacy (Hackett & Betz, 1981) and drawn on Bandura’s (1986) ideas to develop a social cognitive career theory (e.g., Lent et al., 1994). Nevertheless, there are additional depths to plumb in the more recent developments in self-regulation and sociocognitive theory, particularly in integration with goal setting and training (Smith, Ford, & Kozlowski, 1997). In general, one of the major criticisms of vocational theory and vocational psychologists is their failure to keep up with the developments in mainstream cognitive psychology, learning theory, social psychology, and motivation theory, all of which have major implications for updating career theories and providing the next generation of ideas. This can be illustrated in relation to occupational information. Although earlier approaches to vocational psychology were aware of the importance of facts about job or occupational information, surprisingly little research has been undertaken on careers information. Few, if any, vocational psychologists focus on occupational information as an area of research, perhaps because information-based career help is not seen as requiring counseling skills, but rather skills associated with librarianship or journalism. There is no doubt that information-based skills are important in the preparation and presentation of occupational information, but the lack of interest in cognitive processes associated with career choice and planning has resulted in very few studies specifically addressing occupational and lifestyle information; how it is processed, organized, retrieved, and used; and how its presentation can mislead, misinform, or occasionally help clients. Perhaps vocational psychologists have not seen the link between developments in cognitive psychology and this important aspect of career choice. These comments are not meant to detract from the many excellent studies on career choice, some of which do address information processing (e.g., Gati, 1998), but given the importance of occupational information in career choice and development, one might have expected more sophisticated vocational theories and research on the topic. In the 1950s Jordaan provided a tantalizing unpublished document on exploratory behavior, trying to show how this construct might link to the search for relevant occupational information. More recently, Pirolli and Card (1999), in an article in Psychological Review, describe an ecological model of information foraging within an evolutionary context and illustrate this through food foraging. Theory and research on information foraging has become important because of interest in Internet behavior. In the same way as animals have had to develop strategies for optimizing return on effort in relation to food foraging, the authors argue that people need to solve the problem of “maximizing the rate of valuable information gained per unit cost, given the constraints of the task environment” (p. 645). Information environments are patchy, as are food environments, and a key decision involves allocating time to searches in different patches. Individuals seeking information about jobs and careers can easily be thought of as fitting the concept of information foraging.
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Another major criticism of much of vocational psychology over the past century was its failure to recognize the significant impact of culture on the relevance of the models and approaches. More recently, cross-cultural aspects of career choice have been discussed, with a growing realization that not all career theories can migrate to different cultures. Content free theories, such as Social Learning Theory, and decision theories are more likely to generalize across settings and cultures. Opportunities The developing information technology context provides a vast array of opportunities for vocational psychologists. These include the opportunity to use Web technologies for improved contact with individuals in longitudinal studies and to study effective ways of presenting careers information to facilitate career decision making. For example, it should be possible to examine closely the impact of different types of information on choice, using trace processing technologies, digitized video, and eye-gaze recording equipment. Technology also makes it possible to introduce simulation to help facilitate career planning in context by using adaptive program structures that take local cultural factors into account. Information technology provides a basis for innovative approaches to career choice and development, perhaps making use of dynamic simulations that allow people to test the impact of particular decisions in a virtual reality. Simulation is now widely used as a research tool in many areas of science. The development of career simulation tools should make it possible to include the dynamic aspect of career choice and help individuals develop a strategic focus to their personal career planning (Hesketh & Considine, 1998). These are areas that need research. There is an opportunity in vocational psychology to use the Minnesota Theory of Work Adjustment (Dawis & Lofquist, 1994) as broad conceptual framework, but to supplement it with an interactive dynamic time dimension and with specific smaller scale theories that address components of the framework. Threats The major threat to vocational psychology, from my perspective, is that it could become too sociological and hence cease to be able to draw on the developments that are occurring in mainstream psychology. Achieving the right balance is likely to be challenging but important given that the strength of the field is its capacity to draw on interdisciplinary approaches. The two applied areas most likely to absorb vocational psychology are counseling psychology and organizational behavior. Retaining an identity distinct from these two fields is critical. STRATEGIC ISSUES FOR VOCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY Genetic Basis of Skills and Abilities and Understanding How to Stretch These The past decade has witnessed the sequencing of the human genome. The next decade of research will focus on functional genomics, which will include the ways
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in which genetic variation is expressed in a range of behaviors including those relevant to careers. It will be important that psychologists get beyond the somewhat futile and politically loaded debate about “g” in an attempt to use the new scientific developments to understand more fully the ways in which genes do express themselves and, more importantly, how experiences and attitudes can be used to stretch functional capabilities. It has been established that simply viewing abilities as predetermined is debilitating, with those who have beliefs about the malleability of abilities being better able to stretch their capabilities (Dweck & Leggett, 1988). Given the importance of general abilities, values, and interests in career choice, it will be necessary to examine the contributions that functional genomics can make to psychology in general and vocational psychology in particular. Change, Transfer of Training, Adaptive Skills and Interests, and Adaptive Performance The pace of change arising from technological developments has had a major impact on work and hence on the nature of careers and job opportunities. An accelerating pace of change appears inevitable. In response, psychological research on training and transfer has increased enormously in the past decade. We now know much more about the best ways of training and how to ensure transfer across tasks, situations, and time (Hesketh, 1997; Hesketh & Ivancic, in press; Quinones & Ehrenstein, 1996). Similarly, we understand more about the nature of adaptive performance (Allworth & Hesketh, 1999; Plulakos, 2000) and the importance of flexibility and role breadth self-efficacy (Parker, 1998). Vocational psychologists might try to package this new knowledge in a way that could give greater control to individuals in managing their own careers in an uncertain and changing world. By way of suggestion, I have provided a change overlay to the traditional Minnesota Theory of Work Adjustment (Dawis, & Lofquist, 1984), which places the emphasis on seeking development opportunities and being satisfied with the challenge of change, while also supplying adaptive skills to meet employer expectations for adaptive performance (see Fig. 1). A framework such as this could be used to help highlight to clients the importance of these skills. Fortunately, there is a growing body of research that addresses the change overlay implicit in Fig. 1 (Allworth & Hesketh, 1999; Hesketh, 1997; Parker, 1998; Quinones & Ehrenstein, 1996). The adaptation of TWA provides a basis for placing the emphasis on personal career management that is also an important strategic goal in vocational psychology. Many other issues could be raised in relation to the impact of change on career concepts and the development of protean careers (Hall & Mirvis, 1995; Hall & Moss, 1998), but these have been addressed recently in a chapter in the Handbook of Counseling Psychology (Hesketh, 2000b). Goal Setting, Self-Efficacy, and Metacognitive Skills Across many areas of psychology, it has been shown that setting goals is effective. The goal setting literature has been incorporated with self-efficacy into broader sociocognitive theories. There can be little doubt that this approach will
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FIG. 1. Change and adaptive performance overlay on diagrammatic representation of the Minnesota Theory of Work Adjustment.
be effective in assisting individuals manage their own careers. I anticipate that we will see these and other cognitive behavioral interventions developed into highly structured career coaching packages that aim to help individuals make the most of their potential capabilities. Although coaching psychology has its roots in dysfunctional behaviors, it is increasingly being applied to positive aspects such as sports coaching (Rider, 1998), managerial coaching (Levinson, 1996), and study skills (Grant, 2001). Prochaska and DiClemente (1984) suggest five stages of change that have been used in coaching: (1) precontemplation (accepting that there is a problem), (2) contemplation (considering making a change), (3) preparation (increased commitment to change), (4) action (behavior change is initiated), and (5) maintenance (once change is stable). In summary, I anticipate both theoretical and practical developments to arise out of sociocognitive theories and the application of cognitive behavioral principles to career development and career management. Increasing self-management skills may need to be matched by the provision of opportunities in the workplace and to individuals using active skills to negotiate developmental opportunities. Parker (1998) has shown how job enrichment can contribute to role breadth self-efficacy. Work and Nonwork—Virtual Work Organizations Vocational psychology has a strong interest in the relationship between work and nonwork. In the next decade the ways in which work and nonwork are combined over all career periods may change dramatically particularly in certain industries.
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The growth in communication technologies has made it possible to provide flexible work arrangements that are no longer restricted in time and space. Currently the research into the newer forms of work organization is essentially descriptive, comparing various forms of work (telecommuting, teleworking, satellite work stations, neighborhood work centers, and traditional work arrangements) in terms of hours worked, satisfaction, perceived flexibility, and the impact on work and family balance. Telecommuting is a term that is used to describe a work arrangement where an employee is provided with a computer for use in an office at home. The extent to which this is used varies from arrangements that systematically substitute the home office for a work office for anything between 1 and 5 days per week to simply extending work into “nonwork” hours at home. Teleworking covers a broader range of work arrangements, including the use of a car as a mobile office, call centers, and home work. In a large U.S. study, Cree and Sorenson (2000) found that teleworkers worked more hours than traditional workers (56.4 h versus 47.1 h). Because of the longer hours, teleworkers perceived that the arrangement had a negative impact on work and family balance. However, when hours worked was controlled, teleworking provided the hypothesized benefit for work–family balance. There is a need for more systematic theory development and research (Duxbury, Higgins, & Thomas, 1996). Most new forms of work require greater self-direction and potentially alter the modes of communication and informal hierarchies at work. The challenge for vocational psychologists is to help people recognize the importance of self-management for work in the new climate and to assist clients in addressing the social needs that work might have provided previously. The challenge for organizations is how to develop trust and reduce distrust in a virtual environment (Baba, 1999). Time as an Important Dimension in Careers and Jobs Surprisingly little attention has been given to time as a construct in many areas of psychology. Vocational psychology is no exception, although the concept of future time perspective has always been important, and the Journal of Vocational Behavior has recently included several articles with a time theme (Hesketh, 2000a; Marko & Savickas, 1998; Saunders & Fogarty, 2001). The role of time in decision making is now a hot topic with a recent issue of the Journal of Behavioral DecisionMaking devoting almost all of an issue to time relevant decision making. The topic is also being addressed within the social psychology literature, where Trope and Liberman (2000) report five studies examining time-dependent changes in preferences. Time-related planning becomes particularly important in late career development, when decisions must take into account the need for future financial support as well as uncertain health risks. I anticipate the need for more sophisticated multiattribute Subjective Expected Utility decision models to take account of the specific facets that are important in late career decision making (e.g., financial income, activities, and health), but with an explicit time dimension added to utility and expectancy. Although adding a time dimension increases the complexity of the model, developments in visualization will make it easier for us to understand
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multidimensional interrelations over time. Developments in visualization have been made possible through high-performance computing, with applications in areas such as astronomy, archeology, and bioinformatics, and it is not impossible to think of ways of applying this technology to assist theorizing in vocational psychology. Conclusions It is not accidental that the Journal of Vocational Behavior has the highest citation rate of all applied journals. This arises from its strong tradition of theory and sound empirical research, but with an interdisciplinary overlay. The review articles provided in the Journal over many years remain enormously helpful, as do the special issues. I would like to see the continuation of the emphasis on theory and research, but we need new theories perhaps arising from the changing work context or from theoretical and research developments in allied fields, and a wider range of research approaches making use of developments in information technology. REFERENCES Allworth, E. A., & Hesketh, B. (1999). Construct oriented biodata and the prediction of adaptive performance. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 7, 97–111. Baba, M. L. (1999). Dangerous liaisons: Trust, distrust and information technology in American work organisations. Human Organisation, 58(3), 331–346. Bandura, A. (1986). Social foundations of thought and action: A social cognitive theory: Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Barrick, M. R., & Mount, M. K. (1991). The big five personality dimensions and job performance: A meta-analysis. Personnel Psychology, 44, 1–26 Blau, G., Linnehan, F., Brooks, A., & Hoover, D. K. (1993). Vocational behavior 1990–1992: Personnel practices, organizational behavior, workplace justice, and individual/organizational management issues. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 43, 133–197. Brown, D., &. Brooks, L. (Eds.). (1996). Career choice and development. San Francisco: Jossey–Bass. Cree, L. H., & Sorenson, S. (2000). Effects of telecommuting on total hours worked, flexibility, work and family balance, and performance. Paper presented at the XXVII International Congress of Psychology, Stockholm, July 23–28, 2000. Dawis, R. V. (1994). The theory of work adjustment as convergent theory. In M. L. Savickas & R. W. Lent (Eds.), Convergence in career development theories: Implications for science and practice (Ch. 3). Palo Alto, CA: CPP Books. Dawis, R. V., & Lofquist, L. H. (1984). A psychological theory of work adjustment. Minneapolis: Univ. of Minnesota Press. Duxbury, L. E., Higgins, C. A., & Thomas, D. R. (1996). Work and family environments and the adoption of computer-supported supplemental work-at-home. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 49, 1–23. Dweck, C. S., & Leggett, E. L. (1988). A social-cognitive approach to motivation and personality. Psychological Review, 95, 256–273. Gati, I. (1998). Using career related aspects to elicit preference and characterize occupations for better Person–Environment Fit. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 52, 343–356. Gottfredson, L. (Ed.). (1986). The role of “g” in selection. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 29, (3). Grant, A. M. (2001). Extending the Transtheoretical model to performance enhancement: Stages of change and academic study skills. Unpublished document, University of Sydney. Hackett, G., & Betz, N. E. (1981). A self-efficacy approach to the career development of women. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 18, 326–339.
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Hall, D. T., & Mirvis, P. H. (1995). The new career contract: Developing the whole person at midlife and beyond. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 47, 269–289. Hall, D. T., & Moss, J. E. (1998). The new protean career contract: Helping organizations and employees adapt. Organizational Dynamics, 26, 22–37. Hesketh, B. (1997). Dilemmas in training for transfer and retention. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 46, 317–339. Hesketh, B. (2000a). Time perspective in career-related choices: Applications of time-discounting principles. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 57, 62–84. Hesketh, B. (2000b). Prevention and development in the workplace. In S. D. Brown & R. W. Lent (Eds.), Handbook of counseling psychology (3rd ed., pp. 471–498). UK: Wiley. Hesketh, B., & Bochner, S. (1994). Technological change in a multicultural context: Implications for training and career planning. In H. C. Triandis, M. D. Dunnette, & L. M. Hough (Eds.), Handbook of industrial and organizational psychology (Vol. IV, 2nd ed., pp. 191–240). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologist Press. Hesketh, B., & Considine, G. (1998). Integrating individual and organizational perspectives for career development and change. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 7, 405–418. Hesketh, B., & Ivancic, K. (in press). Enhancing performance through training. In S. Sonnentag (Ed.), Psychological management of individual performance. Chichester, UK: Wiley. Kanfer, R. (1990). Motivation theory and industrial and organisational psychology. In M. D. Dunnette & L. M. Hough (Eds.), Handbook of industrial and organizational psychology (Vol. 1, 2nd ed., pp. 75–170). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press. Kossek, E. E., & Ozeki, C. (1998). Work–family conflict, policies, and the job–life satisfaction relationship: A review and directions for organizational behavior–human resources research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 83, 139–149. Lee, C. (1995). Prosocial organisational behavior: The role of workplace justice, achievement striving and pay satisfaction. Business and Psychology, 10, 197–206. Lent, R. W., Brown, S. D., & Hackett, G. (1994). Toward a unifying social cognitive theory of career and academic interest, choice, and performance [Monograph]. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 45, 79–122. Levinson, H. (1996). Executive coaching. Consulting Psychological Journal: Practice and Research, 48, 115–123. Marko, K. W., & Savickas, M. L. (1998). Effectiveness of a career time perspective intervention. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 52, 106–119. O’Leary-Kelly, A. M., Paetzold, R. L., & Griffin, R. W. (2000). Sexual harassment as aggressive behaviour: An actor based perspective. Academy of Management Review, 25, 372–388. Osipow, S. H., & Fitzgerald, L. F. (1996). Theories of career development (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Parasuraman, S., Purohit, Y. S., & Godshalk, V. M. (1996). Work and family variables, entrepreneurial career success and psychological well-being. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 48, 275–300. Parker, S. K. (1998). Enhancing role breadth self-efficacy: The roles of job enrichment and other organizational interventions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 83, 835–852. Pirolli, P., & Card, S. (1999). Information foraging. Psychological Review, 106, 643–675. Plulakos, E. D., Arad, S., Donovan, M. S., & Plamondon, K. E. (2000). Adaptability in the workplace: Development of a taxonomy of adaptive performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85, 612–624. Prochaska, J. O., & Di Clemente, C. C. (1983). Toward a comprehensive model of change. In J. O. Proschaska & C. C. DiClemente (Eds.), The transtheoretical approach: Crossing the traditional boundaries of therapy. Homewood, IL: Dow Jones. Quinones, M. A. & Ehrenstein, A. (Eds.). (1996). Training for a rapidly changing workplace: Applications of psychological research. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Rider, S. P. (1998). Application of the transtheoretical model of change to psychological skills training in intercollegiate athletes. Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B. The Sciences and Engineering, 58(11-B), 6254.
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Saunders, B., & Fogarty, G. (2001). Time discounting in relation to career preferences. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 58, 118–126. Siebert, S. E., & Kraimer, M. L. (2001). The Five-Factor model of personality in career success. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 58, 1–21. Smith, E. M., Ford, J. K., & Kozlowski, S. W. J. (1997). Building adaptive expertise: Implications for training design strategies. In M. A. Quinones & A. Ehrenstein (Eds.), Training for a rapidly changing workplace (pp. 89–118). Washington DC: American Psychological Association. Super, D. E. (1994). A life span, life space perspective on convergence. In M. L. Savickas, R. W. Lent et al. (Eds.), Convergence in career development theories: Implications for science and practice. Palo Alto, CA: CPP Books. Tharenou, P. (1997). Managerial career advancement. In C. L. Cooper & I. T. Robinson (Eds.), International review of industrial and organizational psychology (Vol. 12, pp. 39–93). UK: Wiley. Trope, Y., & Liberman, N. (2000). Temporal construal and time-dependent changes in preferences. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 779, 876–889. Wayne, J. H. (2000). Disentangling the power bases of sexual harassment: Comparing gender, age and position power. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 57, 301–325. Received March 1, 2001
Adapting Vocational Psychology to Cope with Change Beryl Hesketh Faculty of Science, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia The article highlights the interdisciplinary theoretical and empirical tradition of vocational psychology as a strength, the slowness in responding to the impact of technology on work as a weakness, while developments in technology provide opportunities for future research and careers interventions, and a possible drift away from psychology is presented as a threat. Strategic issues include implications of having mapped the human genome and the next generation of functional genomics research, change and transfer, development of career programs drawing on goal setting and metacognitive skills, virtual work organizations, and an increased emphasis on time as a variable in research. °C 2001 Academic Press
The field of vocational psychology occurs at the intersection between psychology and several other discipline areas, including sociology, economics, education, industrial relations, and human resource management. Vocational psychology is a more pronounced specialization within the United States than elsewhere, in part because of the population base in the United States and the publication of Journal of Vocational Behavior there. In Europe, vocational psychology falls within the general umbrella of work and organizational psychology, while elsewhere in the world research on career development tends to be subsumed under an educational or Human Resource Management framework. This article uses the SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) to help suggest strategic areas where vocational psychology might develop and adapt to cope with the many science and technology-related changes associated with the subject matter of its domain. A SWOT ANALYSIS Strengths There are several major strengths that have arisen from the specialization of vocational psychology in the United States, and these strengths have migrated to other parts of the world. Despite the clearer distinction between vocational psychology and industrial/organizational (I/O) psychology, the Journal of Vocational Behavior has always covered those areas of I/O psychology that are relevant to Address correspondence and reprint requests to Professor B. Hesketh, Dean, Faculty of Science, Carslaw Building, F07, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia. E-mail: b.hesketh@ scifac.usyd.edu.au. 203 0001-8791/01 $35.00 C 2001 by Academic Press Copyright ° All rights of reproduction in any form reserved.
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an individual perspective on work and organizations. This policy has ensured at least some awareness of developments in I/O psychology as they affect individuals who have to manage their careers within the changing context of work and its organization. For example, when there was considerable debate on the role of “g” in selection, the Journal of Vocational Behavior organized a special issue on this topic (Gottfredson, 1986). Similarly, the organizing structure provided by the Five Factor Model of personality for the validation of personality measures in selection (Barrick & Mount, 1991; Siebert & Kraimer, 2001) has also been used within areas of vocational psychology. Areas of common interest to organizational psychology and vocational psychology include topics such as managerial career advancement (Tharenou, 1997), sexual harassment (O’Leary-Kelly, Paetzold, & Griffin, 2000; Wayne, 2000), work and family (Kossek & Ozeki, 1998; Parasuraman, Purohit, & Godshalk, 1996), and equity and justice in the workplace (Blau, Lenneman, Brooks, & Hoover, 1992; Lee, 1995). Vocational psychology has been responsive to needs within society. For example, during the 1980s and early 1990s vocational psychologists addressed issues associated with unemployment and the transition from school to work. Several specialist conferences have been organized around relevant themes. More recently it has attended to cultural differences and minority group careers. Perhaps the greatest strength of vocational psychology as evidenced in the Journal of Vocational Behavior has been its emphasis on theoretically based approaches, with a strong empirical tradition. Vocational psychology has a long and proud theoretical history and hence has been an excellent way of teaching students the value of theory. Osipow’s text books, including the most recent edition (Osipow & Fitzgerald, 1996), have always provided a good structure for studying theory, evaluating the adequacy of the theory from first principles, classifying theories in various ways, and then subjecting them to empirical test. Brown and Brooks (1996) have added to this tradition by including practical cases as a basis for elaborating the major career development theories. The combination of sophisticated person–environment fit theories such as the Minnesota Theory of Work Adjustment (Dawis, 1994; Dawis & Lofquist, 1984), with strong developmental overlays (e.g., Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994; Super, 1994), will continue to provide a useful structure for teaching career theories. Weaknesses Some of the weaknesses shown within vocational psychology include the slowness to embrace information technology for research and the lag in any major effort to understand the impact of information technology on work and its organization and hence on careers. In recent years this lapse has been redressed, but prior to that many of the traditional career models appeared irrelevant to part-time and insecure work that was all many people of all ages could hope to attain. Although interests and values remain an important component of understanding work motivation and satisfaction, vocational psychologists could have benefited
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from the different ideas about work motivation, much of which relates to goal setting and self-regulatory processes (Kanfer, 1990). Fortunately vocational psychologists have used the concept of self-efficacy (Hackett & Betz, 1981) and drawn on Bandura’s (1986) ideas to develop a social cognitive career theory (e.g., Lent et al., 1994). Nevertheless, there are additional depths to plumb in the more recent developments in self-regulation and sociocognitive theory, particularly in integration with goal setting and training (Smith, Ford, & Kozlowski, 1997). In general, one of the major criticisms of vocational theory and vocational psychologists is their failure to keep up with the developments in mainstream cognitive psychology, learning theory, social psychology, and motivation theory, all of which have major implications for updating career theories and providing the next generation of ideas. This can be illustrated in relation to occupational information. Although earlier approaches to vocational psychology were aware of the importance of facts about job or occupational information, surprisingly little research has been undertaken on careers information. Few, if any, vocational psychologists focus on occupational information as an area of research, perhaps because information-based career help is not seen as requiring counseling skills, but rather skills associated with librarianship or journalism. There is no doubt that information-based skills are important in the preparation and presentation of occupational information, but the lack of interest in cognitive processes associated with career choice and planning has resulted in very few studies specifically addressing occupational and lifestyle information; how it is processed, organized, retrieved, and used; and how its presentation can mislead, misinform, or occasionally help clients. Perhaps vocational psychologists have not seen the link between developments in cognitive psychology and this important aspect of career choice. These comments are not meant to detract from the many excellent studies on career choice, some of which do address information processing (e.g., Gati, 1998), but given the importance of occupational information in career choice and development, one might have expected more sophisticated vocational theories and research on the topic. In the 1950s Jordaan provided a tantalizing unpublished document on exploratory behavior, trying to show how this construct might link to the search for relevant occupational information. More recently, Pirolli and Card (1999), in an article in Psychological Review, describe an ecological model of information foraging within an evolutionary context and illustrate this through food foraging. Theory and research on information foraging has become important because of interest in Internet behavior. In the same way as animals have had to develop strategies for optimizing return on effort in relation to food foraging, the authors argue that people need to solve the problem of “maximizing the rate of valuable information gained per unit cost, given the constraints of the task environment” (p. 645). Information environments are patchy, as are food environments, and a key decision involves allocating time to searches in different patches. Individuals seeking information about jobs and careers can easily be thought of as fitting the concept of information foraging.
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Another major criticism of much of vocational psychology over the past century was its failure to recognize the significant impact of culture on the relevance of the models and approaches. More recently, cross-cultural aspects of career choice have been discussed, with a growing realization that not all career theories can migrate to different cultures. Content free theories, such as Social Learning Theory, and decision theories are more likely to generalize across settings and cultures. Opportunities The developing information technology context provides a vast array of opportunities for vocational psychologists. These include the opportunity to use Web technologies for improved contact with individuals in longitudinal studies and to study effective ways of presenting careers information to facilitate career decision making. For example, it should be possible to examine closely the impact of different types of information on choice, using trace processing technologies, digitized video, and eye-gaze recording equipment. Technology also makes it possible to introduce simulation to help facilitate career planning in context by using adaptive program structures that take local cultural factors into account. Information technology provides a basis for innovative approaches to career choice and development, perhaps making use of dynamic simulations that allow people to test the impact of particular decisions in a virtual reality. Simulation is now widely used as a research tool in many areas of science. The development of career simulation tools should make it possible to include the dynamic aspect of career choice and help individuals develop a strategic focus to their personal career planning (Hesketh & Considine, 1998). These are areas that need research. There is an opportunity in vocational psychology to use the Minnesota Theory of Work Adjustment (Dawis & Lofquist, 1994) as broad conceptual framework, but to supplement it with an interactive dynamic time dimension and with specific smaller scale theories that address components of the framework. Threats The major threat to vocational psychology, from my perspective, is that it could become too sociological and hence cease to be able to draw on the developments that are occurring in mainstream psychology. Achieving the right balance is likely to be challenging but important given that the strength of the field is its capacity to draw on interdisciplinary approaches. The two applied areas most likely to absorb vocational psychology are counseling psychology and organizational behavior. Retaining an identity distinct from these two fields is critical. STRATEGIC ISSUES FOR VOCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY Genetic Basis of Skills and Abilities and Understanding How to Stretch These The past decade has witnessed the sequencing of the human genome. The next decade of research will focus on functional genomics, which will include the ways
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in which genetic variation is expressed in a range of behaviors including those relevant to careers. It will be important that psychologists get beyond the somewhat futile and politically loaded debate about “g” in an attempt to use the new scientific developments to understand more fully the ways in which genes do express themselves and, more importantly, how experiences and attitudes can be used to stretch functional capabilities. It has been established that simply viewing abilities as predetermined is debilitating, with those who have beliefs about the malleability of abilities being better able to stretch their capabilities (Dweck & Leggett, 1988). Given the importance of general abilities, values, and interests in career choice, it will be necessary to examine the contributions that functional genomics can make to psychology in general and vocational psychology in particular. Change, Transfer of Training, Adaptive Skills and Interests, and Adaptive Performance The pace of change arising from technological developments has had a major impact on work and hence on the nature of careers and job opportunities. An accelerating pace of change appears inevitable. In response, psychological research on training and transfer has increased enormously in the past decade. We now know much more about the best ways of training and how to ensure transfer across tasks, situations, and time (Hesketh, 1997; Hesketh & Ivancic, in press; Quinones & Ehrenstein, 1996). Similarly, we understand more about the nature of adaptive performance (Allworth & Hesketh, 1999; Plulakos, 2000) and the importance of flexibility and role breadth self-efficacy (Parker, 1998). Vocational psychologists might try to package this new knowledge in a way that could give greater control to individuals in managing their own careers in an uncertain and changing world. By way of suggestion, I have provided a change overlay to the traditional Minnesota Theory of Work Adjustment (Dawis, & Lofquist, 1984), which places the emphasis on seeking development opportunities and being satisfied with the challenge of change, while also supplying adaptive skills to meet employer expectations for adaptive performance (see Fig. 1). A framework such as this could be used to help highlight to clients the importance of these skills. Fortunately, there is a growing body of research that addresses the change overlay implicit in Fig. 1 (Allworth & Hesketh, 1999; Hesketh, 1997; Parker, 1998; Quinones & Ehrenstein, 1996). The adaptation of TWA provides a basis for placing the emphasis on personal career management that is also an important strategic goal in vocational psychology. Many other issues could be raised in relation to the impact of change on career concepts and the development of protean careers (Hall & Mirvis, 1995; Hall & Moss, 1998), but these have been addressed recently in a chapter in the Handbook of Counseling Psychology (Hesketh, 2000b). Goal Setting, Self-Efficacy, and Metacognitive Skills Across many areas of psychology, it has been shown that setting goals is effective. The goal setting literature has been incorporated with self-efficacy into broader sociocognitive theories. There can be little doubt that this approach will
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FIG. 1. Change and adaptive performance overlay on diagrammatic representation of the Minnesota Theory of Work Adjustment.
be effective in assisting individuals manage their own careers. I anticipate that we will see these and other cognitive behavioral interventions developed into highly structured career coaching packages that aim to help individuals make the most of their potential capabilities. Although coaching psychology has its roots in dysfunctional behaviors, it is increasingly being applied to positive aspects such as sports coaching (Rider, 1998), managerial coaching (Levinson, 1996), and study skills (Grant, 2001). Prochaska and DiClemente (1984) suggest five stages of change that have been used in coaching: (1) precontemplation (accepting that there is a problem), (2) contemplation (considering making a change), (3) preparation (increased commitment to change), (4) action (behavior change is initiated), and (5) maintenance (once change is stable). In summary, I anticipate both theoretical and practical developments to arise out of sociocognitive theories and the application of cognitive behavioral principles to career development and career management. Increasing self-management skills may need to be matched by the provision of opportunities in the workplace and to individuals using active skills to negotiate developmental opportunities. Parker (1998) has shown how job enrichment can contribute to role breadth self-efficacy. Work and Nonwork—Virtual Work Organizations Vocational psychology has a strong interest in the relationship between work and nonwork. In the next decade the ways in which work and nonwork are combined over all career periods may change dramatically particularly in certain industries.
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The growth in communication technologies has made it possible to provide flexible work arrangements that are no longer restricted in time and space. Currently the research into the newer forms of work organization is essentially descriptive, comparing various forms of work (telecommuting, teleworking, satellite work stations, neighborhood work centers, and traditional work arrangements) in terms of hours worked, satisfaction, perceived flexibility, and the impact on work and family balance. Telecommuting is a term that is used to describe a work arrangement where an employee is provided with a computer for use in an office at home. The extent to which this is used varies from arrangements that systematically substitute the home office for a work office for anything between 1 and 5 days per week to simply extending work into “nonwork” hours at home. Teleworking covers a broader range of work arrangements, including the use of a car as a mobile office, call centers, and home work. In a large U.S. study, Cree and Sorenson (2000) found that teleworkers worked more hours than traditional workers (56.4 h versus 47.1 h). Because of the longer hours, teleworkers perceived that the arrangement had a negative impact on work and family balance. However, when hours worked was controlled, teleworking provided the hypothesized benefit for work–family balance. There is a need for more systematic theory development and research (Duxbury, Higgins, & Thomas, 1996). Most new forms of work require greater self-direction and potentially alter the modes of communication and informal hierarchies at work. The challenge for vocational psychologists is to help people recognize the importance of self-management for work in the new climate and to assist clients in addressing the social needs that work might have provided previously. The challenge for organizations is how to develop trust and reduce distrust in a virtual environment (Baba, 1999). Time as an Important Dimension in Careers and Jobs Surprisingly little attention has been given to time as a construct in many areas of psychology. Vocational psychology is no exception, although the concept of future time perspective has always been important, and the Journal of Vocational Behavior has recently included several articles with a time theme (Hesketh, 2000a; Marko & Savickas, 1998; Saunders & Fogarty, 2001). The role of time in decision making is now a hot topic with a recent issue of the Journal of Behavioral DecisionMaking devoting almost all of an issue to time relevant decision making. The topic is also being addressed within the social psychology literature, where Trope and Liberman (2000) report five studies examining time-dependent changes in preferences. Time-related planning becomes particularly important in late career development, when decisions must take into account the need for future financial support as well as uncertain health risks. I anticipate the need for more sophisticated multiattribute Subjective Expected Utility decision models to take account of the specific facets that are important in late career decision making (e.g., financial income, activities, and health), but with an explicit time dimension added to utility and expectancy. Although adding a time dimension increases the complexity of the model, developments in visualization will make it easier for us to understand
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multidimensional interrelations over time. Developments in visualization have been made possible through high-performance computing, with applications in areas such as astronomy, archeology, and bioinformatics, and it is not impossible to think of ways of applying this technology to assist theorizing in vocational psychology. Conclusions It is not accidental that the Journal of Vocational Behavior has the highest citation rate of all applied journals. This arises from its strong tradition of theory and sound empirical research, but with an interdisciplinary overlay. The review articles provided in the Journal over many years remain enormously helpful, as do the special issues. I would like to see the continuation of the emphasis on theory and research, but we need new theories perhaps arising from the changing work context or from theoretical and research developments in allied fields, and a wider range of research approaches making use of developments in information technology. REFERENCES Allworth, E. A., & Hesketh, B. (1999). Construct oriented biodata and the prediction of adaptive performance. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 7, 97–111. Baba, M. L. (1999). Dangerous liaisons: Trust, distrust and information technology in American work organisations. Human Organisation, 58(3), 331–346. Bandura, A. (1986). Social foundations of thought and action: A social cognitive theory: Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Barrick, M. R., & Mount, M. K. (1991). The big five personality dimensions and job performance: A meta-analysis. Personnel Psychology, 44, 1–26 Blau, G., Linnehan, F., Brooks, A., & Hoover, D. K. (1993). Vocational behavior 1990–1992: Personnel practices, organizational behavior, workplace justice, and individual/organizational management issues. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 43, 133–197. Brown, D., &. Brooks, L. (Eds.). (1996). Career choice and development. San Francisco: Jossey–Bass. Cree, L. H., & Sorenson, S. (2000). Effects of telecommuting on total hours worked, flexibility, work and family balance, and performance. Paper presented at the XXVII International Congress of Psychology, Stockholm, July 23–28, 2000. Dawis, R. V. (1994). The theory of work adjustment as convergent theory. In M. L. Savickas & R. W. Lent (Eds.), Convergence in career development theories: Implications for science and practice (Ch. 3). Palo Alto, CA: CPP Books. Dawis, R. V., & Lofquist, L. H. (1984). A psychological theory of work adjustment. Minneapolis: Univ. of Minnesota Press. Duxbury, L. E., Higgins, C. A., & Thomas, D. R. (1996). Work and family environments and the adoption of computer-supported supplemental work-at-home. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 49, 1–23. Dweck, C. S., & Leggett, E. L. (1988). A social-cognitive approach to motivation and personality. Psychological Review, 95, 256–273. Gati, I. (1998). Using career related aspects to elicit preference and characterize occupations for better Person–Environment Fit. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 52, 343–356. Gottfredson, L. (Ed.). (1986). The role of “g” in selection. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 29, (3). Grant, A. M. (2001). Extending the Transtheoretical model to performance enhancement: Stages of change and academic study skills. Unpublished document, University of Sydney. Hackett, G., & Betz, N. E. (1981). A self-efficacy approach to the career development of women. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 18, 326–339.
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Hall, D. T., & Mirvis, P. H. (1995). The new career contract: Developing the whole person at midlife and beyond. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 47, 269–289. Hall, D. T., & Moss, J. E. (1998). The new protean career contract: Helping organizations and employees adapt. Organizational Dynamics, 26, 22–37. Hesketh, B. (1997). Dilemmas in training for transfer and retention. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 46, 317–339. Hesketh, B. (2000a). Time perspective in career-related choices: Applications of time-discounting principles. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 57, 62–84. Hesketh, B. (2000b). Prevention and development in the workplace. In S. D. Brown & R. W. Lent (Eds.), Handbook of counseling psychology (3rd ed., pp. 471–498). UK: Wiley. Hesketh, B., & Bochner, S. (1994). Technological change in a multicultural context: Implications for training and career planning. In H. C. Triandis, M. D. Dunnette, & L. M. Hough (Eds.), Handbook of industrial and organizational psychology (Vol. IV, 2nd ed., pp. 191–240). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologist Press. Hesketh, B., & Considine, G. (1998). Integrating individual and organizational perspectives for career development and change. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 7, 405–418. Hesketh, B., & Ivancic, K. (in press). Enhancing performance through training. In S. Sonnentag (Ed.), Psychological management of individual performance. Chichester, UK: Wiley. Kanfer, R. (1990). Motivation theory and industrial and organisational psychology. In M. D. Dunnette & L. M. Hough (Eds.), Handbook of industrial and organizational psychology (Vol. 1, 2nd ed., pp. 75–170). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press. Kossek, E. E., & Ozeki, C. (1998). Work–family conflict, policies, and the job–life satisfaction relationship: A review and directions for organizational behavior–human resources research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 83, 139–149. Lee, C. (1995). Prosocial organisational behavior: The role of workplace justice, achievement striving and pay satisfaction. Business and Psychology, 10, 197–206. Lent, R. W., Brown, S. D., & Hackett, G. (1994). Toward a unifying social cognitive theory of career and academic interest, choice, and performance [Monograph]. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 45, 79–122. Levinson, H. (1996). Executive coaching. Consulting Psychological Journal: Practice and Research, 48, 115–123. Marko, K. W., & Savickas, M. L. (1998). Effectiveness of a career time perspective intervention. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 52, 106–119. O’Leary-Kelly, A. M., Paetzold, R. L., & Griffin, R. W. (2000). Sexual harassment as aggressive behaviour: An actor based perspective. Academy of Management Review, 25, 372–388. Osipow, S. H., & Fitzgerald, L. F. (1996). Theories of career development (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Parasuraman, S., Purohit, Y. S., & Godshalk, V. M. (1996). Work and family variables, entrepreneurial career success and psychological well-being. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 48, 275–300. Parker, S. K. (1998). Enhancing role breadth self-efficacy: The roles of job enrichment and other organizational interventions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 83, 835–852. Pirolli, P., & Card, S. (1999). Information foraging. Psychological Review, 106, 643–675. Plulakos, E. D., Arad, S., Donovan, M. S., & Plamondon, K. E. (2000). Adaptability in the workplace: Development of a taxonomy of adaptive performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85, 612–624. Prochaska, J. O., & Di Clemente, C. C. (1983). Toward a comprehensive model of change. In J. O. Proschaska & C. C. DiClemente (Eds.), The transtheoretical approach: Crossing the traditional boundaries of therapy. Homewood, IL: Dow Jones. Quinones, M. A. & Ehrenstein, A. (Eds.). (1996). Training for a rapidly changing workplace: Applications of psychological research. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Rider, S. P. (1998). Application of the transtheoretical model of change to psychological skills training in intercollegiate athletes. Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B. The Sciences and Engineering, 58(11-B), 6254.
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Saunders, B., & Fogarty, G. (2001). Time discounting in relation to career preferences. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 58, 118–126. Siebert, S. E., & Kraimer, M. L. (2001). The Five-Factor model of personality in career success. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 58, 1–21. Smith, E. M., Ford, J. K., & Kozlowski, S. W. J. (1997). Building adaptive expertise: Implications for training design strategies. In M. A. Quinones & A. Ehrenstein (Eds.), Training for a rapidly changing workplace (pp. 89–118). Washington DC: American Psychological Association. Super, D. E. (1994). A life span, life space perspective on convergence. In M. L. Savickas, R. W. Lent et al. (Eds.), Convergence in career development theories: Implications for science and practice. Palo Alto, CA: CPP Books. Tharenou, P. (1997). Managerial career advancement. In C. L. Cooper & I. T. Robinson (Eds.), International review of industrial and organizational psychology (Vol. 12, pp. 39–93). UK: Wiley. Trope, Y., & Liberman, N. (2000). Temporal construal and time-dependent changes in preferences. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 779, 876–889. Wayne, J. H. (2000). Disentangling the power bases of sexual harassment: Comparing gender, age and position power. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 57, 301–325. Received March 1, 2001