Boys and girls in Grade 9 are expected to master the same developmental tasks, yet the literature suggests that by this age, boys are experiencing precareer anxiety, while girls experience premature closure of opportunities. Such interpretations call for sex-based norms on the Career Maturity Inventory. (Author)

This study compared 127 vocationally undecided college graduates matched by sex, age, and college major with graduates selecting occupations on a Survey of Graduating Seniors. Undecideds had lower grade point averages, fewer career plans, less graduate school attendance, and less satisfaction with university experiences. Suggestions for countering…

A collection of 50 articles comprising guidelines for use of career assessment instruments by school counselors is provided. Topics addressed include: the nature of the guide, the counselor's role in career assessment, selection of career assessment instruments, interpretation of psychometric instruments in career counseling, and testing…

The research reported was an effort to determine whether, in the absence of validated models or measuring instruments effective for objective counseling of mature females, such often-relied upon, easily obtained, visible pieces of data as age, number of children, and educational background are critical predictor variables for counselors and…

The book and its companion workbook offer a complete program in vocational guidance and are intended as guides to students in the process of developing meaningful activities as they plan for further education and a career. Intended for use by senior high school, college, and university students, they are also valuable for self-study or as an…

This study explores the relationship of computer-assisted career guidance activities and career maturity and describes the counselors' role in using the computer. The study used computer-assisted activities with community college students and compared the latter to a control group. The experimental group had greater increase in vocational…

Patterns of occupational choice and correlates of these patterns were investigated for black male inner-city high school juniors and seniors. The pattern of occupational choice of the sample was distinctly different from the middle class, white normative sample of the occupational scale. (Author)

The usefulness of the Vocational Development Inventory as a counseling aid and the effect of post-secondary vocational training on vocational maturity are examined. (MU)

Discusses the need for a better diagnostic approach to career indecision. Suggests a model for differential diagnosis and treatment containing three career indecision types or perspectives, i.e., developmental tasks, acute situational reactions, and chronic psychological concerns. Discusses problems of diagnostic measurement. (WAS)

Compares self-instructional learning packages and traditional methods of improving job-search readiness. The use of the learning packages, which included slides, audiotape and a workbook, resulted in greater job-search readiness than use of the traditional method, a manual package using only a workbook. (Author/JAC)

University students (N=32) with anxious vocational indecision were randomly assigned to five training conditions: (1) anxiety management; (2) problem-solving; (3) both of the above; (4) a placebo procedure; and (5) a no-treatment condition. A combination of anxiety-management and problem-solving training was proven more effective than either…

Participants (85 women and 30 men) responded to measures pertaining to careers. Findings reveal that a larger proportion of women than men perceived past barriers as associated with family-related issues. Results also reveal a significant negative relationship between perceived occupational barriers and career maturity for some individuals.…

Discusses the construct of career maturity, and reviews research that identifies factors associated with it. Describes six measurement instruments and reviews their uses and psychometric properties. Summarizes information about these measures in two tables. Discusses issues associated with the assessment of career maturity. (Author/EMK)

Examined the relationship between career aspiration-current occupation congruence and the career maturity of 134 undergraduates (103 women and 31 men) attending a large Midwestern community college. Results revealed a significant relationship (p<.01) between aspiration-occupation congruence and two separate measures of career maturity. (Author)

A study evaluated the effects of a four-part decision-making workshop on students who were undecided about their selection of a major field of study. More than 1,500 freshmen at a midwestern university who had not declared majors received letters inviting them to the four 2-hour sessions of the workshop. Forty-two students volunteered to enroll in…