The Psychology of Careers : An Introduction to Vocational Development

Contents: Preface. I. The nature of work: 1. Why people work. 2. Work and the way of life. 3. The varieties of work. 4. Occupational life spans and output curves. II. The course and cycle of the working life: 5. Career patterns and life stages. 6. Adolescence as exploration: developing a self concept. 7. The transition from school to work: reality testing. 8. The floundering or trial process: attempting to implement a self concept. 9. The period of establishment: the self concept modified and implemented. 10. The maintenance stage: preserving or being nagged by the self concept. 11. The years of decline: adjustment to a new self. III. The dynamics of vocational development: 12. The factorial approach to vocational development. 13. Vocational development. 14. Aptitudes in vocational development. 15. Interests and vocational development. 16. Personality and vocational development. 17. The family in vocational development. 18. Economic factors in vocational development. 19. Disabilities in vocational development. 20. Chance: the unknown or uncontrolled factors. 21. The synthesizing process. IV. Implications and applications: 22. Vocational adjustment and general adjustment. 23. Methods and techniques of vocational psychology and guidance. Bibliography.

How do children decide about their future careers in life is a question to be answered by the psychologists. Usually children are influenced in their choice of careers by their peer group or by the decision taken by their parents. Both the options may be correct options because children may be suitable for some careers according to their mental abilities and aptitudes but they opt for them for the above reasons.

Psychologists therefore have to opt for their intervention in the matter of selection of right type of careers.