Career and Life Planning Education: Extending the Self-Concept Theory and Its Multidimensional Model to Assess Career-Related Self-Concept of Students with Diverse Abilities

Abstract

<jats:sec><jats:title>Purpose:</jats:title><jats:p> This article aims to (1) systematically examine the development of career guidance practices in Hong Kong over the past 40 years, (2) discuss developmental attention to the career-related self-concept of diverse learners, and (3) propose a multidimensional model of self-concept by integrating the career-related domains with recent advances in self-concept research pertaining to students’ in-school and post-school outcomes. </jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Design/Approach/Methods:</jats:title><jats:p> This article charts the developmental trend of career guidance and counseling (CGC) over more than 40 years in Hong Kong. The article also examines key findings relating to self-concept research made in the fields of education and career counseling in the past 50 years. </jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Findings:</jats:title><jats:p> For 50 years, Hong Kong has progressively recognized the importance of CGC. The government’s continued determination to refine its policies and practices in this domain was succinctly highlighted in the Chief Executive’s 2018 policy address. However, many challenges pertaining the professional competence of career guidance teachers and the ability of school administrators to manage the paradigm shift from informal to formal career guidance and counseling practices (CGCPs) remain. Meanwhile, the effects of these CGCPs on students’ gains of career-related abilities and interests directly and indirectly remain under-researched. </jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Originality/Value:</jats:title><jats:p> This article integrates research into the developmental trend of career guidance practices in secondary schools and the study of academic self-concept. The article builds upon previous self-concept research by proposing an extended self-concept model that includes the career-related domain, setting a theoretical model for further research to explore. Finally, the article demonstrates the importance of tailoring career guidance activities in secondary education to reflect the diverse career-related self-concepts held by today’s students with diverse abilities. </jats:p></jats:sec>

Motivational Essay - A Useful Tool in Career Choice?

“…Choosing the right career remains an extremely important decision ( Toit, 2015) for all the young, especially for the economically disadvantaged who can essentially change the future professional standard and their life course, as a whole. Therefore, the career counselling practices should be improved with new useful, attractive tools both in the secondary and higher education environment (Sandelands, et al, 2020;Yang & Wong, 2020). Through our study results, we advocate the introduction and valorisation of the motivational essay in a career counsellor's tool portfolio.…”

“… From a theoretical point of view, there are a limited number of references in the literature on the topic of counselling applications that capitalise on the motivational essay (Ackerman, 2020;Mailhot, 2018;Super et al, 1963;Yang & Wong, 2020);  From a practical point of view, a motivational essay is used, most often, for other purposes than career counselling: as a tool for selecting candidates in the admission process to some universities (Bucharest University of Economic Studies, 2021; CB Community, 2020), which can be found under the name of letter of intent, motivation letter, letter of motivation; as a tool for learningevaluation, the versions of the pedagogical essay, integrated in the reflective journal) (Cojocariu & Mareș, 2019); as a tool for stimulating motivation (Hanson, 2021); as a tool to identify the students' and teachers' expectations towards the first year of academic activity ( Hassel & Ridout, 2018);  the motivational essay is not used in a well-established, constant and systematic way as a tool for choosing a career path. Theoretically speaking, generating and valorising the motivational essay in the career choice process involve a useful conceptual and methodological transfer, which involves several major changes in approach :…”

Determining the Moderating Role of Career Guidance in the Relationship Between Social Isolation and Job Search Self-Efficacy: A Study on University Students

“…The majority of university students declared that they experienced the job search process for the first time in their lives and described their first job finding experience very compelling after graduation (Dolfini, 2020). Specifically, faculty members have first-hand knowledge of their students' capability and training, as it relates to the opportunities and challenges in the field (Yang & Wong, 2020). Previous research indicates that, especially faculty members act as related models for undergraduate students (Nauta et al, 1998;Bartimote-Aufflick, 2016).…”

Challenged Motherhood: Mothers to Adult Daughters With Asperger Syndrome

“…The latter is clearly evident in early childhood and adolescence, where interpersonal relationships with parents, as well as acceptance by peers, significantly affects children's self-concept (Orth, 2018;Swann, et al, 2012). Hypothetical models have described self-concept as a hierarchical multidimensional construct (Yang & Wong, 2020), with different views of self, corresponding to various aspects of one's lives, including academic selfconcept (Marsh et al, 2020), music self-concepts, religious, family, peer, and social self-concepts, yet selfconcept of mothers coping with a challenging life was not often focused on. A brief reference to the conflicts inherent in motherhood in general, and in a challenged motherhood in particular, is called for.…”