Life Design and Career Counseling: Contributions to Social Justice

Abstract

This chapter addresses the contribution of the Life Design paradigm (Savickas, et al, 2009) and, consequently, career counseling for decent work and social justice. The approach taken herein is justified by the current context of a globalized economy, in which rapid change has led to new employment opportunities, but which also represents challenges to equity and social justice. The starting point of this chapter sees the Life Design paradigm and Life Design counseling characterized as a method for grounding the discussion on this particular career counseling approach and its contributions for decent work and social justice. Building on this foundation, a presentation of an illustrative case of these practices follows, in which the promotion of the clients' selfdetermination is complemented by a supported employment approach in which collaborative action between the target population, family and different community institutions facilitate the integration of disadvantaged populations into the labor market. Finally, conclusions summarize the most useful and important suggestions made throughout this chapter.