ch. 2

Question 1

Frank Parsons

Answer 1

founder of vocational guidance. Pioneer in Trait and Factor Theory.

Question 2

Major Contributors to trait and factor theory

Answer 2

Gordon Allport - organized traits into a hierarchy of cardinal traits, central traits, and secondary traits
Raymond Cattell - 16 PF

Question 3

Trait-

Answer 3

characteristic of an individual that can be measured through testing

Question 4

Factor-

Answer 4

characteristic that is required for successful performance. This also refers to a statistical approach used to differentiate important characteristics of a group of people.

Question 5

Steps for career choice

Answer 5

Step 1: Gaining Self-Understanding
O Aptitudes
O Achievement
O Interests
O Values
O Personality
 Step 2: Obtaining Knowledge about the World of Work
O Types of Occupational Information
O Classification Systems
Step 3: Integrating Information about One’s Self and the World of Work
O How the Counselor can Help

Question 6

Aptitude

Answer 6

a person’s probable future level of ability to perform a task

Question 7

Ability:

Answer 7

measures maximum performance and reveals the level of a person’s present ability to perform a task

Question 8

Achievement

Answer 8

designed to reveal how much an individual has learned.

Question 9

Interests

Answer 9

has become the most important trait used in occupational selection because occupational entry can be predicted more accurately from interests than from aptitude for individuals with many abilities who are able to choose from a wide range of occupations.
Interests are more predictive of ability than self-estimates

Question 10

Values

Answer 10

General values

Work-related values: most similar to personal values

Question 11

Personality

Answer 11

Assists the Counselor in Step 1: Interest inventories help the counselor by identifying such related information through the use of a framework for categorizing and grouping such interests. The counselor can more easily understand the client’s experience by using a particular structure to evaluate a client’s interests. Being able to label a value and compare it with other values can provide the counselor with framework to assess the values that are important to a client. Personality helps the counselor match a personality profile with an appropriate occupational pattern.

Question 12

What are some assessments utilized to identify these traits and what does this do to assist the counselor and client in the career process

Answer 12

These assessments allow for the client and counselor to gain more insight into the client’s aptitude, abilities, achievements, interests, values, and personality. As a result, both parties are able to see what careers would possibly best match the client and allows the counselor to integrate results into counseling.

Kuder Career Search (KCS)
Strong Interest Inventory (SII)
California Occupational Preference Survey (COPS)
College Board Scholastic Achievement Test (SAT)
Act Assessment Program: Academic Tests (ACT)
Differential Aptitude Tests (DAT)
US Department of Labor O*NET Ability Profiler (AP)
Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB)
Study of Values (SV)
Super’s Work Values-Revised (SWVI-R)
California Psychological Inventory (CPI)
Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF)

Question 13

Kuder Career Search (KCS)

Answer 13

contains 10 interest scales

Question 14

Strong Interest Inventory (SII)

Answer 14

compares the interests of individuals with the interests of those who are unsure of their career choice. Such scales tend to predict occupational success and satisfaction many years after the inventory was taken. Contains 23 interest scales

Question 15

California Occupational Preference Survey (COPS)

Answer 15

contains 14 interest scales

Question 16

College Board Scholastic Achievement Test (SAT)

Answer 16

used for predicting college success

Question 17

Act Assessment Program: Academic Tests (ACT)

Answer 17

used for predicting college success

Question 18

Differential Aptitude Tests (DAT)

Answer 18

used to assist people in selecting a career

Question 19

US Department of Labor O*NET Ability Profiler (AP)

Answer 19

used only for counseling

Question 20

Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB)

Answer 20

used by the U.S. armed services for counseling and selection

Question 21

Study of Values (SV)

Answer 21

contains 6 values

Question 22

Super’s Work Values-Revised (SWVI-R)

Answer 22

contains 14 values

Question 23

California Psychological Inventory (CPI)

Answer 23

common sense or folk approach to personality

Question 24

Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF)

Answer 24

statistical approach

Question 25

What does obtaining knowledge about occupations do for both the client and counselor

Answer 25

The counselor’s role is to help the client gather occupational information
Types of occupational information
Can be found in books, pamphlets, websites, CDs and DVDs, etc.
Almost all information includes a description of the occupation, qualifications required for entry, necessary education, working conditions, salary, and employment outlook
The most important piece of information for a counselor to know is description of an occupation
Beyond this, it is helpful to have books
National Career Development Association has published guidelines that address the quality and content of occupational information
Sources: Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH), Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT), Occupational Information Network (O*NET), Standard Occupational Classification Manual (SOC), Guide for Occupational Exploration (GOE)

Question 26

Classification

Answer 26

Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT) → ONET
DOT used two-digit occupational divisions
Standard Occupational Classification System
Clusters jobs by similar work function rather than by interests
Developed to bridge the DOT and a classification system used by the U.S. Census Bureau. Designed to be used by all federal agencies.
Major groups
I.e. 11-0000
Minor groups
I.e. 11-1000, 11-2000, 11-3000, 11-9000
Broad occupations
Used in ONET
Guide for Occupational Exploration (GOE) uses a three-digit code somewhat similar to the DOT.
Requires less assistance from the counselor to use
Clients may find it easier to use than the O*NET

Question 27

Trait and factor requirements for each occupation

Answer 27

Occupational information can be related to the client’s traits
Counselor must decide what he/she must know about occupations (or how to obtain that information)
Often, the classification system that the counselor uses is determined by the classification system used by the occupational library in one’s setting
The counselor can direct the client to appropriate occupational information by making use of an organized library

Question 28

What are resources that both the counselor and client utilize to assist in occupational descriptive information

Answer 28

O*NET
Guide for Occupational Exploration (GOE)
Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH)
Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT)
Other online resources

Question 29

How do these resources operate, or what formats do they use to navigate the abundance of occupational descriptors

Answer 29

Standard Occupational Classification System
Clusters jobs by similar work function rather than by interests
Developed to bridge the DOT and a classification system used by the U.S. Census Bureau. Designed to be used by all federal agencies.
Major groups
I.e. 11-0000
Minor groups
I.e. 11-1000, 11-2000, 11-3000, 11-9000
Broad occupations
Guide for occupational exploration system
Interest areas
12
I.e. 01, 02….12
Work groups
I.e. 01.01, 01.02
Subgroups
348 subgroups with a DOT code for each code or occupation in the subgroup

Question 30

How does step 1 and 2 in trait and factor assist both the counselor and client as we move into step 3. Or, what information does it provide us

Answer 30

Step 1 and 2 provides information about oneself and about occupations allowing for Step 3 (integration) to occur, which is the major goal of career counseling.
The counselor interview assists in gaining valuable insight and information in career making decisions. The process of counseling by using Trait and Factor Theory requires moving between the assessment of oneself and occupational information
Because much of the occupational information can be obtained outside the counseling session, most of the focus within the session is on self-assessment. Both reasoning and feeling are important in making a career decision.
As the counseling process progresses, it may be important to get more specific occupational information, as well a more specific information about interests, aptitudes, achievements, values, and personality.

Question 31

What does the counselor need to consider when working with both women and diverse cultural populations

Answer 31

How does this influence the counseling process
Women
Confidence and self-esteem attempt to explain the different levels of accomplishment and ability of women compared with men
Women are less confident and more anxious about their math ability.
Girls tend to be less persistent than boys when pursuing math and science occupations.
Culturally Diverse
Only small differences among interests of different cultural groups
Interests of these youth predicted their choice of college major
Youth may have different values than their respective traditional values
Be aware of historical factors such as slavery and discrimination on African Americans

Question 32

What does the research suggest when applying trait and factor to both client populations

Answer 32

Women
Women who continue to study math have a much broader range of career options than those who do not
Interest inventories show that women have more interest in artistic, clerical, and social occupations
A problem when measuring interests is that early forms of interest inventories were often gender biased
Interest inventories still reflect social values about occupations.
Challenge for counselors is to encourage women to to develop occupational interests in areas such as science and math
Differences between workers within occupational groups are often much greater than those between men and women in general.
Culturally Diverse
Those who are less comfortable with American culture are more likely to be interested in stereotypical occupations (South Asian Americans)
African Americans are overrepresented in social service occupations
Not enough African American subjects in research studies
Native Americans concerned about work as it relates to the community
Mexican Americans- men are more likely to hold traditional views of the roles of women in the workplace than women