SHEPHERDVILLE COLLEGE

Talojongon, Tigaon, Camarines Sur

College of Education Department
First Semester
AY 2022 – 2023

Career Development
and Work Values
Module No. 2: Career Development Theories

Prepared by:

Mr. Michael B. Borela

Instructor

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What is Career Development?

Career development is a process in which individuals assess their skills and career path
in order to grow and advance their personal career journey.

Career development may involve taking skill assessment tests or beginning a career
search based on one's true passions. It also incorporates learning or developing the
skills needed to succeed in careers that would fit their abilities and interests.

Career development theory can help you gain a better understanding of yourself
and your career. Many people find a combination of several theories enables them
to gain better insight. While learning about these theories can help people begin to
understand their interest in a career path, a career counselor can more specifically
guide you using tools and tests based on these theories, as well as their own
professional expertise.

Career development theory studies paths toward improving professional growth,

career trajectory, and overall job satisfaction. Understanding career development
theory can be an important step in determining your core values, strengths,
weaknesses, and desired path. While there are varying claims among the different
theories, all the theories acknowledge the importance of cultivating a positive
emotional relationship with work and developing meaningful career ambitions.

What is career development theory?

Career development theory is the study of career paths, success, and behavior. It
aims to explain why a person might be a good fit for a certain career and provide
advice on how to attain a promising trajectory. It also focuses on identifying
common career stages when education, guidance, and other interventions are
necessary.

There are many theories about career development and the best ways individuals
can advance in their chosen career path. We have collected some of the most
impactful theories which can be referenced in your own career development journey.

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Frank Parsons Trait and Factor Theory

This theory was created by Frank Parsons in the early 1900s, although his theory
wasn’t published until after he died in 1909. His theory consists of two main
characteristics: traits and factors. ‘Factors’ refer to possible jobs and occupations,
while ‘traits’ refer to qualities of the people seeking careers.

In essence, a professional may test, interview, and observe an individual, assess the
results, and then compare their findings to available occupations, seeking to find the
most compatible match possible.

Other names for this theory are matching, actuarial, and career counseling.

Holland’s theory of vocational types

John Holland developed his theory building off the ideas in Frank Parsons’ theory.

Essentially, he categorizes six personality types:

• Artistic
• Investigative

• Realistic
• Conventional

• Enterprising
• Social

While there are many facets involved in each personality type, the theory relies on
an individual’s personality type to direct their proper career path.

This theory assumes that all people do have some features of each personality type,
although identifying the dominant personality trait is key in determining the right
career path for them.
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For example, someone with a primarily investigative personality would be well suited
to work as a biologist or anthropologist. On the other hand, someone with a dominant
enterprising personality would work well in sales or promoting businesses and services
for others.

Bandura’s social cognitive theory

Albert Bandura created this career development theory, which also relies on the
personal aspects of an individual to build their career path.

However, unlike other theories, it places greater weight on a person’s past

experiences. Behind these experiences, one can find what motivates an individual.
When you find the reason behind what motivates a person (praise, controlling outside
factors, competitiveness with peers), you can determine the career where they are
most likely to find success.

Super’s developmental self-concept theory

Donald Super began developing career theories in the 1950s and continued to do
so throughout his professional life. As his ideas expanded, they also grew in
complexity.

However, the primary basis of his theories is the idea that we can group the human
lifespan into certain age groups. Within these age groups, we also develop different
perceptions of the world around us, take on different responsibilities, and prioritize
the most relevant things to that stage in life.

Super even conducted a study that followed individuals for a long span in their lives,
from 9th grade up to their 30s, to confirm his beliefs. He found that with maturity and
experience, individuals change their concept of self and often their goals. For
example, in early adulthood, individuals often focus on relationships with others. By
middle adulthood, many individuals move on to developing their skills and careers.

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Krumboltz social learning

John Krumboltz developed a theory based on Bandura's theories for his main concepts
and then used those to develop his own theory, which incorporates career counselling.

Rather than focusing on inherited traits, Krumboltz’s theory is based on the idea that
an individual’s development and experiences over the course of their life affect which
career they are best suited for.

Krumboltz's theory focused on inherited personal qualities, life circumstances, learning

through consequences, and skills gained through work experiences. According to his
theory, these factors and experiences determine the best match for an individual and
their career.

Ann Roe ‘needs’ theory

The ‘needs’ approach, developed by Ann Roe, assesses the structure of needs and
values each individual has based on experiences early in life and childhood.
However, the theory also accounts for environmental and genetic factors, all of which
she believed should be considered to find a career that fits an individual’s ‘needs.’

The theory includes six levels of skills ranging from unskilled to

professional/managerial (considered the top-level). From there, Roe also includes
eight different significant occupation categories to build from; including science,
technology, arts and entertainment, outdoor, service, business, managerial, and
general cultural occupations.

Roe’s personality theory

Much like Ann Roe’s ‘needs’ approach to career development, the personality theory
also places a lot of importance on an individual’s early life experiences.

In this case, the experiences Roe focuses on most are the interactions an individual has
with their parents during childhood.
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In short, the more interaction a person has with their parents, the more likely they are
to choose jobs she classifies as ‘person oriented’ or ‘non-person oriented.’ In her needs
approach, she also classifies occupations into eight different categories, five of which
are person-oriented and three of which are non-person oriented.

Based on an individual’s experience, they will have different levels of independent

capability. She also considered non-person-oriented jobs to be the more independent
of the eight categories.

Linda Gottfredson - circumscription and compromise

Linda Gottfredson’s theory of circumscription and compromise, developed in the

1980s, focuses primarily on children and the four main stages of their growth. These
stages are divided into both age ranges and developmental orientations during these
ages. This theory helps us discern why children would choose certain career paths.
The age ranges included are 3-5, 6-8, 9-13, and 14 and above.

Essentially, the careers children identify with also correlate to their social
understandings at the time. Younger children often choose gender-oriented careers,
while older children tend to choose careers that are more involved in their community
values and personal identity.

Tiedeman and Miller - Tiedeman’s decision-making model

Tiedeman and Miller’s decision-making career development theory is heavily based

on Erikson’s eight psychosocial stages. This theory also includes an individual’s life as
being important to career development as their occupational choices are. The
decision-making model helps people searching for a career path to weigh several
main factors to lead them to their ultimate career goal.

There are two main stages of different factors that make up Tiedeman and Miller’s
theory. The first preliminary stage is called Anticipation or Preoccupation.

In this stage, individuals go through four main steps: exploration, crystallization,

choice, and clarification.
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The second stage, called Implementation or Adjustment, involves the following steps:
induction, reformation, and integration.

Reference: https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/career-
development-theory

https://www.valamis.com/hub/career-development-theories