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Abstract

This paper provides a review of the career development research studies that have published in Australia and New Zealand between 1995 and 2000. The review has grouped the literature according to the categories of career development theory, career development constructs, career-related decision-making, gender, cultural comparisons, career programs for children and training programs for adults. These groupings were created to correspond with the main focus of each study. In Australia and New Zealand, career development has become a burgeoning field of study that has attracted research attention from a wide range of perspectives. This review of the literature reported between 1995 and the turn of the century aims to encapsulate the accrued evidence from this part of the world. It is intended to inform theorists and practitioners working here and to provide future direction for research endeavours. Moreover, it is anticipated that the present review will serve to inform experts in the field of career development research worldwide , particularly for those interested in the continuance of cross cultural comparisons. Specific criteria were laid down to demarcate the boundaries for this review. Initially, all articles concerning career development in Australia and New Zealand published between 1995 and 2000 were taken into consideration. Following this, a strict definition of empirical research was applied in that "the evaluation or assessment of a hypothesis or theory by appeal to data, facts and experimentation" (Reber, 1995, p. 249) was required. Accordingly, studies accepted for the review had to demonstrate sound methodology and clearly describe the systematic collection of data and testing of hypotheses. Policy documents, case studies and descriptive studies were not included. In addition, papers were omitted if deemed to contribute little to the knowledge base or if they appeared to possess limited potential for theory building. The search process involved the main data bases (e.g., Psychlit, ERIC) using key terms of career development, career maturity, career decision-making, careers, career interventions, career guidance, vocational guidance, vocational interests and career guidance programs. After searching using these terms alone, "Australia" and "New Zealand" were then added to each search. In addition, the above databases were searched using the names of authors identified in the first search wave. Lastly, reference lists from the articles obtained from these searches were also inspected for relevant articles. The identified articles were then categorized according to the main focus for each. The review was organised in this way to acquaint the reader with the specific sub-domains that have received research attention. Each category therefore reflects the realm of evidence gathered in each sub-domain of interest. Most of the groupings consisted of approximately nine articles, although several categories (e.g., Tests of Theory, Cultural Comparisons) contained fewer studies. This review, then, presents an ove...