PSYC3039/40A Career Psychology - Final Assessment Preparation

Week 4: Career Choices and Poverty

  • Chapter 9 of the textbook.

  • Relation between poverty and career choices.

  • Factors influencing poverty.

  • Psychological impact of poverty.

  • Practicality of career choice and interventions.

  • History and contextualization of unemployment in South Africa.

  • Effects and impact of unemployment.

  • Implications for career practices.

  • Interventions for curbing unemployment.

Week 5: Holland & Vocational Personality

  • Chapter 3 of the textbook.

  • Holland’s theory:

    • Assumptions

    • Congruence

    • Vocational personality types

    • Holland’s environment types

  • How it works.

  • Critique of Holland’s theory.

Week 5: Super’s Career Development Theory

  • Chapter 4 of the textbook.

  • Super’s theory:

    • Principles & themes

    • Life career rainbow

    • Career maturity and adaptability

    • Archway model

  • Career construction theory.

  • Super’s theory in South Africa.

Career Psychology Theories

  • Chapter 2 of the textbook.

  • Historical development of career psychology theories.

  • Role of career psychology theories.

  • More recent theories.

  • Career psychology theory in the 21st century.

Theory Timeline

  • Before 1950: Trait approaches.

  • 1950s: Theories re career behavior & career choice process emerged.

  • 1960s and 1970s: Process of career decision-making (Holland and Super), social learning theory.

  • 1980s and 1990s: Proliferation of theories and constructs.

  • Early 21st century: Constructivist approach.

More Recent Theories (from 1980s)

  • Work adjustment theory.

  • Social learning theory of career development.

  • Social cognitive career theory.

  • Circumscription & compromise.

  • Developmental-contextual theories.

Career Psychology Theory in the 21st Century

  • Examples:

    • Systems Theory Framework (STF).

    • Chaos theory of careers (Bright & Prior, 2005, 2011).

    • Career construction theory.

Week 7: Career Psychology Indigenization

  • Chapter 13 of the textbook.

  • Need for indigenization.

  • Indigenous psychology versus indigenization.

  • Culture and ethnicity in indigenization.

  • Research re. indigenization.

Week 7: New Forms of Work

  • What is driving new forms of work?

  • New work types and what to watch out for.

  • Generational cohorts.

Deferred Exam