NCJ Number
116066
Journal
Journal of Vocational Behavior Volume: 26 Issue: 1 Dated: (1985) Pages: 41-54
Date Published
1985
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This study gathered data on the career maturity levels of delinquent youth and examined the effectiveness of a short-term career guidance program on the career maturity and self-concept of delinquent youths in residential treatment.
Abstract
Data from the study invalidate hypotheses indicating that vocational development can be guided and a youth's self-concept changed through career guidance. Forty black and white 17-year-old males were the subjects of the study, which was conducted in a large residential treatment center in Ohio. All had average intelligence levels, lived in the inner city, and were from lower economic class environments. The subjects showed marked delay in their career development and job choice skills. Most would soon be discharged and would attempt to find employment. The 40 delinquents in the experimental group took part in a career guidance group experience that met two hours a week for 8 weeks. Because many of the subjects held faulty beliefs and negative attitudes about the world of work, a cognitive restructuring approach was used throughout the curriculum. The study revealed no differences between the black and white subjects, suggesting that factors facilitating or depressing the career development process are the same for both groups. There was no difference between the subjects in the career guidance group and a control group, thus denying Super's hypothesis that a delinquent youth's vocational development can be guided. Similarly, Super's other hypothesis that career guidance can modify the self-concept of delinquent youth was invalidated by the study. 40 references.