Key career theories – and how counsellors can use them

When a student makes an academic or vocational choice, what they are negotiating is one of the interfaces between them as an individual and society. Career development and guidance theories therefore draw on the fields of sociology and psychology, often in an interdisciplinary way. Such theories underpin many of the activities and approaches used by counsellors.

Here I give a brief summary of some significant theories and ways that we can use them – as well as their limitations.

Differential psychology and ‘matching’

Differential psychology is the foundation for “matching” approaches, which include some of the earliest theories. Frank Parson’s 1909 “trait and factor” theory is predicated on the concept that individuals have “traits” (which can be strengths, skills and interests) and that employment roles have requirements that need to be met, or “factors”.

John Holland’s RIASEC model revised this approach by identifying the extent to which people have a combination of six traits (realistic, investigative, artistic, social, enterprising and conventional). Try this online quiz to find your own combination of traits. A person may be considered suited to particular occupations or fields of study depending on their individual traits.

Guidance counselling using a differential approach would therefore involve matching the individual to a university or course programme by aligning their traits to the factors of the possible destination. A highly numerate and analytical student, for example, could be encouraged to look at opportunities in finance or mathematics.

This approach is now considered overly simple: it does not take into account nuanced and mutable factors, such as changing higher education landscapes and labour markets, or the ability for traits to develop and change. However, it has been hugely influential. It is the foundation for many counselling activities. Examples include:

• Meetings in which we discuss students’ performance and grades, particular interests and how they may relate to university destinations – the notion of “fit”.
• Many of the psychometric profiling systems that counsellors (and recruiters) use, as well as online quizzes and search facilities designed to create university shortlists, such as Niche and College Board’s BigFuture, plus the filtering opportunities within searches created by the software used in schools.

A differential approach can be an effective starting point, as the focus on the student’s current priorities and the many interactive resources available can be a useful way of engaging students initially.

Developmental psychology

Developmental approaches – for example, the work of Donald Super in the late 1950s –  focus on the notion of “self-concept”. Super suggests that self-concept can change over time and develop through experience. His “life-career rainbow” posits five main stages: growth (from 0-14 years); exploration (15-24); establishment (24-44); maintenance (45-64) and decline (65+).

Later revisions of his model acknowledge that career paths may not be linear and that career changers may have to return to aspects of an earlier stage. The theory accepts the dynamic nature of persona and priorities, but its focus on the idea of “self” may create limitations when working with students from collectivist cultures.

There is much that remains of use to counsellors, however – the “exploration” phase features young people trying out new academic interests, hobbies and work experience, and this often informs their next steps. Encouraging engagement and participation in new opportunities – such as work experience, co-curricular activities and new academic subjects – is key.

Sociological approaches

Sociological theories explore the relationship between the individual and society in order to examine the impact of social stratification on choices and destinations. According to Roberts’ opportunity structure theory (1977), factors such as social class, race and ethnicity, sex and family background influence available opportunities and therefore perpetuate inequality.

Although such theories have been criticised as deterministic and presenting students as passive, they do accept real differences in opportunity. For example, it is the case that, regrettably, the opportunities of some of the students with whom we work may be limited because of issues pertaining to finance and varying fee structures.

The sociologist Pierre Bourdieu used the term “habitus” to refer to the way that humans passively develop an understanding of what is possible and acceptable within their communities, and how they may consciously choose to self-regulate to fit in with these. This is the idea that you “have to see it to be it”.  

People from differing communities and cultures may have divergent social norms comprising their habitus, and learning a new habitus can be very challenging. This theory therefore draws attention to the importance of the work of counsellors in encouraging students to explore a wider range of possibilities, challenging barriers that are perceived and social, rather than tangible.

Common ways we might do this include:

• Probing and challenging assumptions during meetings, without invalidating the experiences and perspectives of the student or their family.
• Providing information on a range of role models, perhaps using alumni, who may have taken less-common routes to their goal.
• Recognising and negotiating the complexities of working with students who may be considering opportunities in a country and culture other than their own: these complexities may go further than whether or not admission requirements are met. Students in this situation will need to become accustomed to new expectations and environments and will need to be prepared for this transition.
• Working with management teams and teaching staff to create a cohesive culture of broad aspirations and challenging stereotypes in school.

More broadly, ongoing widening participation initiatives in UK universities and the use until recently of affirmative action in the US demonstrate the need for sociologically informed approaches in societies with noted inequality of opportunity.

Social cognitive career theory

In 1994, Lent, Brown and Hackett published their monograph, Toward a Unifying Social Cognitive Theory of Career and Academic Interest, and Performance. This is based on Bandura’s social cognitive career theory, and focuses on the decision-making process and the importance of social and cognitive factors for young people making decisions about academic choices. It also incorporates the support a student may receive.

In its recognition of the range of influences a student may experience, the theory accepts the significance of both social and personal factors. It considers how students work towards achieving “self-efficacy” and the personal agency they exercise to do so as well as external factors that could constrain them.

The theory focuses on the importance of goal-setting by the student as a mechanism of self-regulation that prevents passivity. A student’s interest in something may lead them to set goals for themselves and select activities that help them to achieve these goals. For example, setting a goal of achieving a certain test score would encourage a student to set aside specific revision time each day. Meeting the goal and developing skills will allow self-efficacy to be attained.

This model is helpful in allowing counsellors to show students how to break down the process of researching institutions and applying, as well as helping them to understand the origin of students’ ambitions.

Humanistic psychology and ‘the skilled helper’

Unlike the other theories mentioned here, the work of the humanistic psychologist Carl Rogers and his person-centred approach to counselling, and of Gerard Egan’s “skilled helper” focus not on the factors affecting students but on ways in which the counsellor can work most effectively with a client – in our case, students.

Factors include:

• An environment that is comfortable and appropriate for purpose.
• The counsellor demonstrating empathy and respect for the client.
• The counsellor’s use of encouraging body language and non-verbal cues in order to encourage the student to explore their thoughts more.
• Active listening.
• The use of open-ended questions, reflecting on and summarising what a client has said, and allowing for silences and pauses as appropriate.
• Structuring a meeting appropriately and working with the client to create goals or action steps towards the end of an interaction.

This approach is an important reiteration of the fact that we work with human beings as well as educational structures, that our role and our expertise extend well beyond the provision of information and that our purpose and focus is to facilitate young people in exploring opportunities.

No single theory can encapsulate the priorities of students from across all cultures while simultaneously exploring external sociological influences on aspiration, opportunity and individual psychology. An understanding of the broad themes, however – developmental influence, practical constraints and opportunity, individual strengths and the importance of exploration – as well as the way in which these may interlock or fall into conflict, can add depth to our practice and engagement with students.