Vocopher A Web-Library of Free Career Inventories American Counseling Association April 7 th, 2005 Kevin Glavin Kent State University, Kent, OH [email protected]

Vocopher A Web-Library of Free Career Inventories

American Counseling AssociationApril 7th, 2005

Kevin GlavinKent State University, Kent, [email protected]

Dr. Mark RehfussRegent University, VA

[email protected]

4/8/2005

Kevin Glavin & Dr. Mark Rehfuss2

American Counseling Association:Vocopher: A Web-Library of Free Career Inventories

Agenda

1. Introduction to Vocopher: The Online Career Collaboratory. http://www.vocopher.com.

2. Instruments available on Vocopher3. Who is using Vocopher?

4. How do I get Access to Vocopher?.

5. Types of Vocopher Accounts 6. Introduction to the Career Development Inventory (CDI). 7. Overview of Super’s construct of Career Maturity8. Live demonstration on how to administer and interpret the

results of the CDI.9. Interactive Case studies to practice interpretation of CDI

results.

4/8/2005



What is Vocopher

Vocopher is a collaboratory involving academic professionals, career counselors, and professional web developers. The purpose of Vocopher is to provide researchers and counselors with career resources with which to further their research and assist their clients respectively. These services are provided free of charge in the hope that others will join us in this collaborative effort.

User Login Register Admin

4/8/2005



Instruments currently available on Vocopher

Career Development Inventory (CDI). College Form and School Form

Adult Career Concerns Inventory (ACCI)

ACCI - Portuguese paper version

4/8/2005



Who is using Vocopher?

•World wide

•Within the United States

4/8/2005



How do I get Access to Vocopher?

Accessing Vocopher Video (Users) Accessing Vocopher Video (Admins)

4/8/2005



Types of Vocopher Accounts

User: Students, Individual clients, Counselor trainees

Admin: Faculty, Researchers, Counselor Practitioners

Super Admin: Me (Kevin Glavin :)

4/8/2005



Introduction to the Career Development Inventory

Interest inventories are commonly used to assist students with vocational choices. However, the results of such instruments offer little value if the individual lacks the requisite attitudes and competencies required to make sound vocational decisions.

The Career Development Inventory (CDI), created by Albert Thompson, Richard Lindeman, Donald Super, Jean Pierre Jordaan, and Roger Myers, can be used before administering an interest inventory to measure an individual’s readiness to make vocational choices, or with an interest inventory to determine how best to interpret the interest inventory results.

4/8/2005



Introduction to the Career Development Inventory

The CDI operationally defines Super’s structural model of career choice readiness among adolescents and emerging adults.

Inspired by the construct of reading readiness, Super, at mid-century, reasoned that the readiness to and resources for making fitting educational and vocational choices emerged during childhood and developed during adolescence.

He spent nearly 40 years identifying the critical attitudes and competencies that lead to sound educational and occupational decisions, constructed inventories to measure these attitudes and competencies, and then studied their development in students from middle school through college.

4/8/2005



The Concept of Career Choice Readiness

Super believed vocational choice to be an individual’s attempt to implement their self-concept in a work role. Through fitting work, individuals can manifest their self-concept in daily activities (e.g. counselors manifest their self concept of “helper”).

The choice of an occupation, or course of study, is a major decision that adolescents must make as they enter the adult world. A students’ level of satisfaction and success depends upon the realism and wisdom of their educational or occupational choice. To make a fitting choice, and to avoid educational or occupational failure, and frustration, individuals must possess the requisite readiness and resources.

Career choice attitudes denote an individual’s disposition with regard to the amount of thought, effort, and planning they give to future occupational or educational choices.

Career choice competencies denote an individual’s ability to apply their knowledge and understanding of careers and the world of work in making rational educational and career decisions.

4/8/2005



The Concept of Career Choice Readiness: Attitudes (CP & CE)

The two most important attitudes are planfulness and exploration.1. Attitude toward planning reflects a future orientation, an awareness of

choices to be made, and a disposition to be involved in preparing to make imminent and distant choices. – Well-developed attitudes toward planning prompt behaviors such as

discussing career plans with adults, getting part-time jobs, taking part in college or community activities, and finding out what people do in one’s field of interest. All of these can help one gain a clearer understanding of one’s vocational interests.

2. Attitude toward exploration means curiosity about the world of work and one’s place in it. – Well-developed attitudes toward exploration prompt behaviors such as

information-seeking, role playing, and talking with career counselors, professors, and professionals in one’s field of interest. Adequate exploration involves one using the resources available oneself to gain information on careers and the world of work.

4/8/2005



The Concept of Career Choice Readiness: Competencies (DM & WW)

The two critical competencies are skill at decision-making and knowledge about occupations.

1. Decision-making competence means the ability to apply the principles of rational decision

making to one’s educational and vocational choices.

2. Occupational or World of Work knowledge in breadth, means knowing the requirements, routines, and

rewards of a variety of occupations in which one may be interested.

in depth, means having detailed knowledge about the occupational group that one currently prefers.

4/8/2005



Supers Model of Readiness

These four variables, – two attitudinal (Planfulness and Exploration) and – two cognitive (World of Work knowledge & Decision-Making), – compose Super’s model of readiness for making vocational

choices during adolescence.

Super and his colleagues operationally defined this structural model of vocational development during adolescence and emerging adulthood by creating the Career Development Inventory.

4/8/2005



Interpretation of the CDI Scales:CP, CE, DM, WW

There exist two versions of the CDI. 1. CDI School form designed for students in grades 8-122. CDI College form designed for college students.

Both forms measure the same constructs, yet differ in content according to the educational level of the subjects being tested.

Scores are reported for four scales: – The Attitudinal Components:

1. Career Planning (CP) 2. Career Exploration (CE)

– The Critical Competencies:3. Decision Making (DM), 4. knowledge of the World of Work (WW)

4/8/2005



Interpretation of the CDI Scales: PO

In addition to the four scales, there is a fifth scale: 5. Knowledge of Preferred Occupation (PO).

– PO measures the amount of in-depth knowledge one has with respect to their primary field of interest.

– PO is measured separately from the other four scales, and should not be administered to students below the 11th grade. This is due to the fact that it is unlikely such students have acquired the knowledge and maturity to answer the questions in an informed manner.

4/8/2005



Interpretation of the CDI Scales: PO

When administered to the appropriate population, low scores on PO indicate one may need to gather more detailed information regarding their occupation of choice. Such information can be ascertained from professors, career counselors, and professionals already working in that field.

4/8/2005



Interpretation of the CDI Scales:CDA, CDK, COT

The CDI also reports on three composite scales: 1. Career Decision Attitudes (CDA) is the combination

of CP and CE.

2. Career Decision Knowledge (CDK) is the combination of DM and WW.

3. Career Orientation Total (COT) is the combination of CDA and CDK.

– These composite scores exist to help gain a more reliable measure of attitudes toward career, knowledge of careers and the world of work.

4/8/2005



Interpretation of Attitudinal Scales: CP & CE

Scale High Scores Low Scores

CareerPlanning

(CP)

High scores on CP indicate one has actively engaged in career planning activities and behavior, indicating they have an appropriate awareness of occupational decisions that need to be attended to; as well as a heightened sense of curiosity with regard to their place in the world of work. As a result, high CP scores indicate a readiness to narrow one’s choices and focus on advanced exploration in a few occupational fields.

Low scores on CP indicate one may have given little thought to career decisions, and therefore may not yet be serious about attending to future occupational or educational choices. One may benefit from increasing one’s awareness of current and future occupational decisions that need to be made, as well as engaging in activities that arouse one’s curiosity about different occupational paths.

CareerExploration

(CE)

High scores on CE indicate one has actively employed the resources available to them, and gathered information relevant to future occupational choices. One may be ready to engage in broad exploration of the world of work and to investigate occupational fields that attract them.

Low scores on the second attitudinal scale, CE, indicate one has not yet adequately explored sources of quality information regarding career opportunities available to them. One may benefit from identifying quality resources and investigating a number of different occupational fields.

4/8/2005



Interpretation of Competency Scales: DM & WW

Scale High Score Low Score

DecisionMaking

(DM)

High scores on DM indicate that the student has developed the essential decision making skills for making effective vocational decisions. Thus, one may now be ready to match their abilities and interests to the requirements and rewards of different educational majors and occupations.

Because DM represents one’s skill at applying the principles of rational decision making to educational and vocational issues, low scores indicate that the student may benefit from studying and practicing the principles and processes involved in effective decision making; such as identifying the problem and gathering the information required to solve the problem.

Worldof Work

(WW)

High scores on WW indicate that students may have a broad fund of information to support their career decision making. However, one still may need to gather more information about the specific occupations one is now considering before one commits oneself to a particular choice.

Low scores indicate that the student may need more information about, and inquiry into, occupational fields and career development tasks before making important career decisions and occupational choices. Students may benefit from learning more about one’s tentative preferences, how people get jobs in those occupations, and how they adjust to those jobs.

4/8/2005



Interpretation of PO Score

Scale High Score Low Score

Knowledge ofPreferred Occupation

(PO)

Hi scores on PO indicate one has gathered detailed information about their preferred occupation. This indicates one may now be ready to narrow their choice to a few occupational fields.

Low scores on PO indicate one may need to gather more detailed information regarding their occupation of choice. Such information can be ascertained from professors, career counselors, and professionals already working in that field

4/8/2005



Interpretation of CDI Scale Scores

When all scales are high, this indicates the individual has the requisite attitudes and competencies required to make sound educational and vocational decisions.

One is able to place more confidence in the results derived from interest inventories.

Most importantly, scores should be used to:– Raise a student’s awareness of imminent and future vocational

decisions– Instill a sense of curiosity about the world of work and one’s

place in it– Stimulate discussion about current and future vocational

choices

4/8/2005



Case Study 1: Interpret the CDI Scores for Sean

CDI Scale Scores for Sean

CP, 72

PO, 99CDK, 90

COT, 75

CDA, 40

WW, 57

CE, 18

DM, 99

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

CP CE DM WW PO CDA CDK COT

Scale

%

4/8/2005



Case Study 2: Interpret the CDI Scores for Rod

CDI Scale Scores for Rod

CP, 44

PO, 99

CDK, 96

COT, 90

CDA, 78

WW, 84

CE, 91DM, 95

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100


Scale

%

4/8/2005



Case Study 3: Interpret the CDI Scores for Elsie

CDI Scale Scores for Elsie

CP, 20

PO, 42

CDK, 82

COT, 56

CDA, 28

WW, 97

CE, 39

DM, 64

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100


Scale

%

4/8/2005



CDI Case Study Interpretations:

View Interpretations

4/8/2005



The CDI on the Internet

With the permission and encouragement of the CDI authors, the CDI is now available at no charge on the internet. The CDI is one of a number of career instruments available through Vocopher: The Online Career Collaboratory

http://www.vocopher.com

4/8/2005



The CDI on the Internet

Scoring of the CDI is done on the internet, and the results are shown immediately to the user. It is important that practitioners take the time to interpret these results with their clients.

Practitioners can use the ideas presented herein to help raise their client’s level of awareness and curiosity with regard to vocational decisions they will be required to make. Suggestions for improving one’s decision making skills and knowledge about the world of work have also been outlined. Additional ideas are presented in the CDI manual, which is also available on Vocopher.

4/8/2005



Suggested Additional Readings

Glavin, K. W. (2004). Retrieved Oct 17, 2004, from Vocopher: The Online Career Collaboratory web site: http://www.vocopher.com.

Super, D. E. (1974). Measuring vocational maturity for counseling and evaluation. Washington, D.C.: National Vocational Guidance Association.

Super, D. E. (1990). A life-span, life-space approach to career development. In D. Brown, L. Brooks, & Associates (Eds.), Career choice and development: Applying contemporary theories to practice (2nd ed., pp. 197-261). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Thompson, A. S., Lindeman, R. H., Super, D. E., Jordaan, J. P., & Myers, R. A. (1981). Career development inventory, Volume 1: User's Manual, Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

Documents

Vocopher A Web-Library of Free Career Inventories American Counseling Association April 7 th, 2005 Kevin Glavin Kent State University, Kent, OH [email protected]