This study examines the impact of an experiential service-learning project designed to help high school students begin to choose a career path and increase college students' understanding about how to make career decisions. In the study, two groups of college students attended information sessions on career advising. The first group then helped…

In the field of career development, there is an acknowledged relationship between career assessment and career counseling. Traditional career assessment and more recent narrative approaches to career counseling are perceived as having an uneasy relationship because of their different philosophical bases. A sustainable future story for the field…

This study examined gender differences in relationships among vocational skills, motivational approaches, and same-gender and cross-gender interests for urban adolescents. Results showed gender differences in interests, with males having greater Realistic interests and females having greater Artistic and Social interests, based on Holland's (1997)…

The authors examined U.S. war veterans' career concerns (e.g., interests, personality, barriers, career thoughts) to provide possible avenues for research-based and theory-driven intervention. The veterans who participated in the study were receiving mental health, substance abuse, and vocational services at a residential facility. Participants…

College freshmen were divided into three groups: (1) 28 completed the Self-Directed Search and attended a 50-minute career exploration workshop based on it; (2) 28 completed the Career Decision-Making System-Revised (CDM-R) and attended a similar workshop; and (3) 28 were controls. CDM-R significantly increased knowledge of decision-making…

Few career counseling theories have had the long-standing background of Hollands RIASEC theory. His theory, which espouses that job satisfaction increases when there is congruence between individuals interests and environments, has resulted in many practical, reliable, and valid inventories, such as the Self-Directed Search (SDS). The majority of…

Replicated findings of Wiggins and Moody (1981). Evaluated four types of high school career exploration programs: cluster (N=53), Career Maturity Inventory (N=52), Career Survey (N=57), and Self-Directed Search/Vocational Preference Inventory (N=55). Results favored latter three programs which allowed students to pursue their own interests instead…

Compared effectiveness of two career self-assessments: the Vocational Interest, Experience, and Skills Assessment (VIESA) and the Self-Directed Search (SDS). Fifty-one college student volunteers from career-planning seminars participated. Results indicated both instruments were found useful. No statistically significant preference for either SDS…

Techniques and experiences that would help students not only in finding their first job, but in all future career decisions, were packed into a three-credit-hour course. (Author)

High school students took the Self Directed Search twice: (1) counselor-scored paper and online (n=31); (2) self-scored paper and online (n=42); (3) online at school twice (n=46); and (4) online at home (n=31). Content validity and reliability of the online version were supported, and users were more satisfied. Online resulted in higher profiles.…

Modification of instructions to the Activities and Competencies section of Holland's Self-Directed Search to allow users more flexibility in responding to items was compared to the standard set of instructions. Results indicated modified instructions did significantly alter users' summary codes although users were not more satisfied. (Author)

Compares impact of the Vocational Exploration and Insight Kit (VEIK) with the Self-Directed Search (SDS) and the Vocational Card Sort (VCS). Results indicate the SDS, VCS, and VEIK have small and similar effects on women's vocational behavior. Findings support counselor-free techniques as appropriate and inexpensive methods of career exploration.…

Undergraduate college students (N=40) were asked to rate their reactions to using the DISCOVER II microcomputer career guidance system and the Self-Directed Search. The majority of the participants preferred the DISCOVER II as a vocational exploration program. (Author)

Presents and responds to questions the author would ask himself before meeting with a client whose Self-Directed Search he has reviewed. The client in the case is a 29-year-old female high school teacher faced with four occupational opportunities from which she is trying to make a choice. (MKA)

Examined the performance of ninth-grade students on the Self-Directed Search during small group administrations monitored by a counselor. Results indicated scoring errors were high in comparison to norms. The percentage of erroneous summary codes was higher while transposition errors were lower, suggesting group administration with a proctor…