Effects of a values clarification curriculum on high school students' definitions of success.

Fifty-four students in a suburban, Midwest high school participated in a four-part values clarification curriculum. The majority of the students in the experimental group expanded their definitions of success. Student evaluations, focus group reports, and student journals indicated additional positive outcomes. The authors suggest implications for further research, and they offer suggestions to school counselors for the implementation of values clarification processes with students and their families.

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Much of the focus of career development for high school students has been on choosing a "successful" career. Those charged with the career development of our children want them to become self-sustaining, productive, successful members of society. However, educators, parents, and students themselves often have not questioned the measures of success by which they have evaluated career choices. A consideration of traditional Western views of success, the ways these definitions may or may not fit certain individuals or groups, and a consideration of evolving expectations for life success indicate ways values-clarification may positively impact the career development of high school students.

TRADITIONAL WESTERN VIEWS OF SUCCESS

While success has seldom been specifically defined in popular or research literature, images of success have been proliferative, especially in the media and in popular culture. Materialistic measures--money, job security, high salary, property ownership, a large retirement income, and money for leisure activities--have contributed to the "have-it-all" image, but these measures may have led ultimately to dissatisfaction with life (Duplisea, 1974; MacKay-Lassonde, 1996).

In Western culture, values that may be seen as inconsistent with one another have often been held in high esteem. Cornell (1987) reported that the norms of the culture specify individual achievement as a means toward the end of material success. Achieving this material or financial success has often competed for time with family, community, and personal growth. Obsession with material success tended to make individuals one-dimensional and to make them feel alienated from life. In this mindset, workers--women in particular--often have not satisfied their needs for balance, self-care, and maintenance of relationships. Thus, career success may have led to the experience of personal failure (Kasser, Ryan, Zax, & Sameroff, 1995; Westman & Etzion, 1990). The ethic of success has implied that if one had not found success, there was something wrong with him or her. Hence, Goldstein and Smucker (1986) described these material definitions of success as mythologies.

Living in such a society, young people have been socialized to identify with these mythologies and to place high value on hard work, success, and goal attainment (Westman & Etzion, 1990). It has also been shown that the more value people place on materialistic measures, the less they value warm relationships with others (Kasser et al., 1995).

Additionally, workers who receive minimum wage for their labor may not have seen their work as meaningful in terms of personal development, the development or maintenance of relationships, or creation of balance in one's life. Rather, labor has been necessary to gain income to meet basic needs. Additionally, individuals in lower-paying jobs may not have had opportunities to increase their self-esteem based on the level of their occupational status as compared with those who have earned larger incomes. This inability to develop self-esteem has been especially true in a society that has historically attributed higher prestige to those who have earned larger incomes. Marshall (1983) posited that individuals should emphasize creating a meaningful life for themselves in broader terms than just thinking about a career or a job. Thinking about success in terms of a meaningful lifestyle can help bring acceptance and self esteem to individuals in all levels of occupations, because achievement is determined by progress toward one's larger goals, whether that be the acquisition of money and belongings or the development of relationships and the freedom to choose how to spend one's time.

MULTIPLE DEFINITIONS OF SUCCESS

Because of diverse experiences during childhood and because of the various ways people have chosen to find meaning in their lives, multiple definitions of success may better serve the career development needs of students and young adults. Super (1980) acknowledged that all persons engage in a "rainbow" of life roles over their life span, and the work role varies in its salience to an individual at any given time. Hence, Super's (1995) career development theory has evolved from a point-in-time, decision-making model to a lifespan model. Vondracek (1992) recognized the joint influence of personal development and social and cultural influences on vocational identity. An increased awareness of best practices in multicultural counseling (Arredondo, 1999; Loscocco & Roschelle, 1991) has also suggested that the "American Dream" means different things to different people.

As just one example, the Native Americans are historically a collectivist people who have emphasized the maintenance of peoplehood (in political, cultural, and economic terms) as a prime value (Kasser et al., 1995). Many Native Americans also believe that power is inherent in the freedom and capacity to imagine alternative futures and to construct distinct accounts or conceptions of the world one experiences (Cornell, 1987). Persons holding these values and beliefs may therefore be skeptical of the "American" values of market economy, individualism, and secular politics.

Stephens, Szanja, and Broome (1998) have also suggested that success be defined in terms of the composite of achievement, development, and work/non-work balance throughout the lifespan. Miller-Tiedeman (1999) suggested replacing the term career with life-career, to better reflect the interconnection and the balance of all aspects of one's life. Those who believe that a career path is laden with compromises have proposed a similar concept (McNulty & Borgen, 1988). Women, for example, have tended to define their life and career success by their individual preferences or life stage (Russell & Burgess, 1998). This indicates that career success for a woman may be defined by choices she has made around raising her family or having chosen to not have a family and opting for career only. This success may also look differently for her depending on what stage of development her family is in. She may, for example, limit her career development when her young children need more from her. Goldstein and Smucker (1986) designated these varied modes of success as the "multitrack model." These approaches are flexible, with varied meanings of success, different means of achieving success, and various ways of ensuring personal autonomy. In the words of the poet David Whyte (2000), we are, each of us, a "unique human being, different from anyone else, with our own characteristics, our own nature, our own way to amaze the world" (p. 2).

LIFE EXPECTATIONS

Perceived barriers and unrealistically high expectations can be problematic in both life and career development. Paa and McWhirter (2000) stated that perceived barriers might be as influential as actual barriers to career development. Students' belief in society's rigid and limited definitions of success can create barriers for those for whom these definitions are not possible. By expanding students' definitions of success, values clarification may help reduce barriers that are based on students' perceptions of success. Research has indicated that education can raise expectations and, therefore, can contribute to a lack of satisfaction when these expectations are not met (Hodson, 1985; Loscocco & Roschelle, 1991). Providing students with opportunities to explore and identify their own values may permit the development of a realistic and future-oriented set of career and life expectations and, correspondingly, an increased satisfaction with one's life (Hodson). Miller (1995) argued for the utility of such exploration. He stated that a period of indecision and uncertainty for adolescents is normal and natural, and should not be avoided. Tinsley, Benton, and Rollins (1984) found that participation in a values clarification curriculum by seventh and eighth grade students did not lead to increased solidification of occupational decision making. This current work, which is built on such existing research, is a preliminary attempt to describe the ways in which values clarification exercises may expand and not narrow students' definitions of success. It is necessary to allow adolescents sufficient time for life and career decision making. It is during a time of such uncertainty that the important work of clarifying one's life and work values can be done.

ROLE OF VALUES CLARIFICATION

The quality of work life is most commonly assessed by using individual attitudes (Loscocco & Roschelle, 1991). Values clarification is a key component of individual attitudes in the area of career development and ought to be strongly considered when making career decisions (MacKay-Lassonde, 1996). Since values vary among cultures, values clarification in the process of career development is appropriate and supportive for most individuals in most situations. A values-based approach acknowledges that individuals function holistically in career development as in life in general (Brown & Crace, 1996).

Values-clarification curricula stress the future effects of present decisions. Values clarification also increases the awareness of the factors that influence career decisions (Reeves & Reeves, 1982). Values provide standards for behavior, orient people to desired outcomes, and form the basis for goal setting. An individual who is able to identify his or her own values is able to attribute worth to situations and objects and, therefore, make personally satisfying choices. Conversely, a lack of clarity in values or dissonance between values and choices leads to a lack of motivation, poor decision making, and dissatisfaction (Brown.& Crace, 1996).

Hodson (1985) defined adolescence as a crucial transition stage in the formation of lasting attitudes, aspirations, and viewpoints. Kasser et al. (1995) indicated that when aspirations for financial success were highly valued relative to aspirations for self-acceptance, affiliation, or community feeling, adolescents had lower well-being (i.e., more depression, lower global adjustment, and fewer tendencies toward self-actualization).

Vondracek (1992) realized that identity formation is an ongoing process of interaction and negotiation between the biological and psychological forces within individuals and the sociological and cultural influences of the environment. He believed that it was critical that adolescents identify the impact that social and cultural influences have on their values and their decisions. Values are tied to the normative structure of the social institution in which they were acquired (Brown & Crace, 1996). And educational institutions have been historically tied to a narrow definition of success (Duplisea, 1974). An environment that does not provide support for an individual's self-expression and personal needs can inhibit one's tendency towards actualization, integration, and growth (Kasser et al., 1995). Education should focus on developing those skills and abilities that allow all students to become happy adults and well-prepared for life. Educators need to consider themselves change agents, facilitating holistic learning and encouraging each student to consider career paths that contribute to the lives of others (Duplisea; Kussrow, 1993).

METHOD

The values clarification curriculum in this study was designed to raise students' awareness of their own values. This research was conducted to study the hypothesis that this values-clarification curriculum would expand student participants' definitions of success in life and career.

Participants

The participants were 54 students who were members of two career exploration classes in a suburban, Midwest, U.S. high school (a non-random convenience sample). The class composition was representative of the school and its environs. Approximately 7% of the students had racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds (i.e., non-Caucasian). All students reported their age, gender, current grade level, academic achievement (grades self-report), previous employment experiences, and previous participation in career-development courses.

Control group. The control group consisted of 25 students. The age range of the control group was 14.5-19.0 years, with a mean age of 16.0 and a SD of 1.06. The mean grade level in school was 10th grade. The majority of students (72%) reported that their grades in school were mostly A's and B's. Sixty percent of the control group was female, and 40% was male. Most students (84%) had not previously participated in career-development classes, although 64% had previously held a paid employment position.

Experimental group. The experimental group consisted of 29 students whose age ranged from 14.0-18.0 years, with a mean age of 15.3 years with a SD of .992. The mean grade level of the experimental group students was ninth grade. Sixty-six percent of the students reported that they received either a grade of A or B in school. The experimental group consisted of 59% females and 41% males. Ninety-three percent of the experimental group reported they had not previously participated in career development classes, and 31% had previously held a paid employment position.

Instruments

All participants responded to the open-ended question, "What does life/career 'success' mean to you?" both before and after the experimental group had experienced the values-clarification curriculum. In addition, students in the experimental group completed a written evaluation of the values-clarification curriculum, and they participated in a focus group concerning their reactions to the values-clarification curriculum. Third parties conducted this focus group. Students from the experimental group also voluntarily submitted journal entries to the researcher.

Procedures

The values clarification curriculum was implemented during the course of a career exploration class offered by the high school. Two sections of the class participated, providing the division for the control and experimental groups. Although this was an elective class, it met some graduation requirements for the students. The values-clarification curriculum consisted of the four class sessions, each 90 minutes in length. Specifically, the values-clarification curriculum components focused on (a) defining values, (b) identifying and prioritizing values, (c) identifying influences on values, and (d) relating values to future choices and "success." Brown and Crace (1996) have stated that values clarification needs to be done through a process of contemplation and conflict. The technique of contemplation and conflict is a reflective methodology that asks students to consider what they believe to be true (contemplation). It is then followed by a dialogue in which students need to explain and, perhaps, defend their beliefs to their peers (conflict). The contemplation and conflict technique was central in the teaching methodology in this study, as students considered, verbalized, and defended their preferences when they made choices between values. Other teaching methods included student-centered discussion, group and paired work, and reflective journaling. The researcher's role was that of a facilitator and a teacher; the students actively participated in the development of their own knowledge. The values clarification curriculum can be found on the Web site (http://ericcass.uncg.edu/brag/mosconi.html). This site contains papers from a forum of the ERIC/CASS Leading & Managing Comprehensive School Guidance Programs Conference held February 14-17, 2002.

The researcher used a quasi-experimental research design with non-equivalent experimental and control groups. During the first phase of the research, the participants in the experimental group engaged in four 90-minute curriculum sessions on values. Both before and after participating in this values-clarification curriculum, students responded to an open-ended question that asked them to define success. During this time, the control group participated in the pre-treatment and post-treatment questionnaires, but not in the curriculum. In the second phase, which followed the data collection, the same values-clarification curriculum was provided to the control group, so that all consideration of the students' human rights was observed.

Data Analysis

Student responses to the open-ended question "What does life/career success mean to you?" were collected from both the experimental and control groups. A research assistant unfamiliar with the data sample and the intent of the research intermingled pre-treatment and post-treatment responses from both the control group and the experimental group. This preliminary study had no existing categories into which student responses could be coded. Rather, two researchers independently coded the student responses and then compared their initial coding categories. After discussion, they identified and agreed upon 43 coding categories. The researchers then reached consensus on the assignment of responses to categories. Hence, the researchers did not measure inter-rater or intra-rater reliability.

A school counselor and a counselor educator (neither of whom were responsible for administering the values-clarification curriculum) collected and compiled student evaluations and led the focus groups on student perceptions and outcomes of the curriculum. The classroom teacher was also present. Students voluntarily submitted anonymous journal entries, although they had the option of withholding these journal entries if they were uncomfortable sharing them, because they had not been asked in advance to record these for the research project.

RESULTS

Results of this study are presented in several ways. First, data are presented from the responses to the open-ended research question that was posed during pre-treatment and post-treatment phases to both groups (control and experimental) of students. These results are presented in terms of change from pre-treatment to post-treatment in the following areas: (a) the change in number of individual student's definitions of success from pre- to post-treatment; (b) the degree of change in the number of responses from pre- to post-treatment; and (c) the changes in the quality of the responses from pre- to post-treatment. Responses from the experimental group's student evaluations as well as their focus group feedback on the values clarification curriculum are also presented. Selected journal entries from students in the experimental group are quoted in order to demonstrate some ways in which the values-clarification curriculum impacted the students.

Responses to the Open-Ended Research Question

Coding of the open-ended data resulted in 43 distinct categories of responses to the research question, "What does life/career success mean to you?" These categories are listed in the first column of the Table.

Change in number of responses. In the experimental group, 17 students (59%) increased their number of responses, whereas only 10 (40%) students from the control group increased their number of responses. These changes were analyzed further in terms of the strength and direction of the changes (furthermore addressed as "degree of change"). The changes were also analyzed in term: of the qualitative nature of the responses from the students in the experimental group compared wit responses from students in the control group.

Degree of change. The researcher calculated, for each individual student, a number representing the degree of change in number of responses from pre-treatment to post-treatment. If a student's number of responses increased from pre- to post-treatment, the number is positive. When the number of responses decreased from pre-treatment to post-treatment, the number is negative. For example, a student whose responses fell into only one category in the pre-treatment and whose responses increased to three categories in the post-treatment received a degree of change number of +2. This method of calculating the amount of change criminates the influence of responses that fell into the category Did not answer question. The means for these degree-of-change numbers were then calculated. The mean degree of change for the experimental group was +1.7 per student, whereas it was +1.26 for the control group.

Change in nature of responses. While a major objective of this research was to measure quantitative changes in the number of responses from pre--to post-treatment, it became apparent that this measure alone did not adequately reflect the students' changes in beliefs about success. Therefore, the researcher also considered the impact, in qualitative terms, on the curriculum students' responses to the question, "What does life/career success mean to you?"

The researcher examined those specific categories that showed the most change from pre-treatment to post-treatment for each of the categorical response variables that emerged through coding. The Table illustrates the frequencies of student responses in each of the open-ended question categories for both the control and experimental groups, in pre- and post-treatment phases.

The ratings that delineated the amount of change in a category from pre--to post-treatment are: no change (0 differences in responses in the category), little change (1 difference in responses in the category), moderate change (2 differences in responses in the category), or much change (3+ differences in responses in the category).

The experimental group showed much change the following categories: Having just enough money to get by (increased by 4), Money is not top priority (increased by 3), Contribute to the world/others (increased by 3), and Individually defined (increased by 6). These categories are closely related to the hypothesis of this research and the supporting literature as well as the design of the curriculum.

In the experimental group's pre-treatment s responses, there were no responses in the category Individually defined. However, 6 responses were given for this category in post-treatment data collection. Although Individually defined is a single category, it represented the intent of the curriculum, which was to help students to acknowledge varying perspectives, thereby allowing for acceptance of " broader and more divergent definitions of success for themselves and others.

In the control group, four response categories of data also indicated much change. Students' responses increased in the following categories: Having more money than needed (increased by 5); Competence in work (increased by 5); Like the work you do (increased by 3); and, there were 3 additional responses in the Did not answer question category.

Overall, the experimental group's post-treatment responses showed thoughtful understanding of the idea of life/career success as it relates to the students' own individual perspectives. Changes in student responses from pre--to post-treatment showed that they were able to more fully explain and personalize their definition of success. Sample responses from students in the experimental group follow.

* Student l's pre-treatment response: Success ... is working at a job where you get something out of it and you like your job.

* Student l's post-treatment response: Success ... means ... that you are happy in what you are doing. You don't necessarily have to make a lot of money ... you just need to enjoy your work. It doesn't really matter what other people think of you or your job. It only matters what you think.

* Student 2's pre-treatment response: My career ... is something I enjoy going to ... not many people have jobs they love.

* Student 2's post-treatment response: Life-career success is being happy with yourself and people you are surrounded by. Achieving goals you have set for yourself and never giving up. Being successful has a lot to do with personal values. Depending upon your values, your goals might be different, as well as how "successful" you are in other people's eyes. Being successful is an individual thought and accomplishment.

* Student 3's pre-treatment response: Being happy with your chosen profession and financially secure.

* Student 3's post-treatment response: I think that if you are happy with who you are and what you do, you are successful. Another way to be successful is to do something to better this world. Even if at rimes it may be hard. Finally, I think success can be defined by if you have your values and you stick to them through thick and thin. Never sell out and just be yourself.

Responses from Student Evaluations

Students in the experimental group completed written evaluations of their experience with the values clarification curriculum. Students provided basic demographic information, including age, gender, previous exposure to career development classes or exercises, previous employment, grade level, and grades earned in school. The students also responded to one open-ended question, "What does life/career 'success' mean to you? Be as complete as possible in explaining how you see the meaning of success." In addition, students were asked to write what they had learned from the curriculum.

The following student responses indicate a solid grasp of the curriculum material, students' insight into their own sets of values, and an appreciation for others' perspectives. The sample responses that follow have been corrected for spelling. Students indicated that they learned "... how different people think." "That my values affect what I do and who I am." "What my values are. I never actually paid attention to them." "... what influences people to do what they do." "Success has a different definition to everyone." "People were successful for many different reasons, and they had different values." "... to question myself on what occupations I would enjoy and be successful in." "I should know my values and don't jump into an occupation without thinking about it." "... (this will) help me make a decision because I know my values."

Responses from the Focus Group

Following the completion of the curriculum and the data collection, students from the experimental group participated in a focus group facilitated by another high school counselor and a counselor educator, neither of whom was associated with administering the curriculum. The classroom teacher was also present. The counselors asked students about their experience as participants in the values-clarification curriculum. The students indicated that they found participation in the values-clarification curriculum to be helpful in understanding values, their future careers, and the ways in which they define success. They stated that they enjoyed the interactive nature of the sessions and that they learned from each other's perspectives. Some of the student comments follow: "Hadn't thought about which values of mine were most important--this gave me opportunity to do that." "Your job doesn't label you--you are more than your job." "The same value means different things to different people." "There are different ways to be successful." "We feel more 'free' to choose something more practical [realistic]--not only one way to succeed." "[Before we thought success was] money, recognition, things, externally defined, and based on what you did. [Now we think success is] defined within yourself, fulfills [one's] values, satisfy [one's] self." "More jobs are 'successful' not just a few." "I can meet my needs for support, but not have to be very wealthy."

The counselor educator who conducted the focus group took notes from verbal student responses. She verified her understanding of student feedback from the school counselor and classroom teacher who were present during the focus group. She then compiled the notes from the session into an informal document. The following overall themes emerged from the focus group: (a) an appreciation for the approach of the curriculum, and (b) an expression of students' affirmation of multiple definitions of success.

Responses from Student Journal Entries

Students from the experimental group voluntarily submitted anonymous copies of journal pages that they completed after each curriculum lesson. In these reflective entries, the students affirm their own values and sense of self and typically acknowledge the inevitability of change throughout their life. Their comments indicate that the curriculum made a difference in how they see their ability to identify options and to make choices based on their own vision of success for their lives. They were able to identify influences on their values as well as specific ways in which these values may change over time. Comments that directly indicate the influence of the curriculum include: "I learned a lot from the things that we did in class, and I actually understood what we were talking about in all of our discussions" and "I have learned a lot about my values, because I stopped and realized what they actually are." While no negative entries were found, typical adolescent humor and egocentrism was evident in moderation.

DISCUSSION

Summary of Findings

Because of the large number of coding categories and the small number of responses in each category, it is not possible to state whether there is a statistically significant difference between the increase in the number of distinct responses between the control group's and the experimental group's responses to the open-ended question posed after the values clarification curriculum. However, more students who participated in the experimental group increased the number of their definitions of success from the pre-treatment assessment to the post-treatment assessment than did students in the control group. The strength of the change in responses from the pre-treatment assessment to the post-treatment assessment was also greater for students in the experimental group than for those in the control group. Additionally, the change in the quality of the experimental group responses is consistent with the supporting literature, the research hypothesis, and the intent of the curriculum. These students indicated a broader, more holistic approach to success and often stated that the individual should define success.

Conversely, responses from students in the control group were more typical of traditional Western notions of success. For example, increases in their responses from pre-treatment to post-treatment assessment included the categories of Work hard/try hard, Have a good job/career, Reach your goals, and Have more money than needed. These responses parallel what Westman and Etzion (1990) called the mythologies of hard work, success, and attainability of goals.

Students who spent time exploring their own values through the values-clarification curriculum were more likely to define success on their own terms. Those students who did not initially explore their values through the curriculum tended more often to repeat society's stereotypical materialistic definitions of success. It is hoped that because of this experience, students will be better able to make life and career decisions that align with their own values--their own preferences for life. Accordingly, these students are more likely to be satisfied with their life choices.

Limitations of the Study

Because the participants in this study are adolescents, there was the potential for change in their responses due to normal development. Also, because of the amount of interaction the researcher had with the students, there is the possibility that some students may have responded in ways in which they thought the researcher "wanted" them to respond. However, the nature of the curriculum design uses an open-questioning strategy, allowing and encouraging students to arrive at their own conclusions.

Except for the values-clarification curriculum, both the control group and the experimental group received the same additional in-school career development exposure during the time of the research. This career development may indeed have had an intervening effect on the results. For example, many responses fell in the category Reach your goals. Goal setting was covered in the career development classes concurrently with the value exploration curriculum. It is possible that a combination of the values-clarification curriculum and the goal setting and career exploration from the career development class influenced the respondents. Future research might seek to isolate these influences.

Researchers did not check the reliability of the data collection strategy by comparing the control group's pre--and post-test data. It is assumed that further tests of reliability and validity of the instrument and the intervention would be done with categories gleaned from this initial study.

Recommendations for Future Research

This research explored students' definitions of success and the effect of a values-clarification curriculum in expanding these definitions. The study is limited in its generalization and should be considered a starting point for future research.

Future research could use selected categories from the responses to the open-ended research question with larger and more equally matched populations to more accurately and quantitatively measure change in student definitions of success. In addition, follow-up studies of these original students could collect further data to investigate changes in the participants' beliefs about success over a longer time period.

A large number of students in both groups, both pre- and post-treatment, indicated that their definitions of success were tied closely to the category Be happy. Subsequent research may explore students' definitions of happiness as well as the relationship between happiness and success (i.e., How does being happy make one successful, or how does being successful make one happy?).

In future studies, researchers could check for agreement of the pre--and post-treatment time responses of the control group students to gather support for the stability of the measurement method.

Implications for School Counselors

The school counseling profession has its roots in vocational (career) development. School counselors have a long history of working to enhance the career development of students. Recent studies on the positive effects of today's school counseling programs reaffirmed their success in this domain (Lapan, Gysbers, & Petroski, 2001; Lapan, Gysbers, & Sun, 1997; Nelson & Gardner, 1998).

Career development in schools has emphasized helping a student to identify interests and abilities, and to set goals based on a match between those attributes and an occupational field. Eleven years of data from urban, suburban, and rural K-12 schools in a two-state region of the north central United States confirmed that career assessment in these schools focused almost exclusively on interests and abilities (Emmett, unpublished data, 1991-2002). Even the National Standards for School Counseling Programs (ASCA, 1997) did not include values clarification as one of the student competencies within the career standards.

Yet, according to several of the "emerging" career theories (Zunker, 2001), values are key factors in the career decision-making process. In the archway model that was his culminating model for career development, Super (1990) included values as a key component in the personal base of his career arch. Social cognitive career theory (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1996) posited that career goals are set and purposeful actions engaged in only when the expected outcomes of those goals and actions meet one's values. Brown's values-based career theory (Brown & Crace, 1996) proposed that one's values are the most important component in determining a career direction. And, a student must have career direction before she or he is motivated to set goals towards that end. According to this theory, a person's values are formed through continuous interaction with family, school, and other environmental influences. These influences often promote conflicting, and even contradictory, values. Hence, values clarification, crystallization, and prioritization must precede goal setting. Life career theory (Miller-Tiedeman, 1999) made each person's internal frame of reference the focus for career decisions. One achieves career direction and sets goals only after searching within oneself.

However, most adolescents are not yet ready to make the relatively final career choices that they feel pressured to make during their high school years. According to Vondracek, Schulenberg, Skorikov, Gillespie, and Walheim (1995), the lack of career identity is an important Factor in this career indecision. In part, the inability to choose a career may be due to a lack of attention to the values that impact this decision. If schools are dedicated to developing the whole student, it is important for them to help students understand the relationship between their values and the development of career identity (Vondracek et al.). Values themselves evolve as students are exposed to diverse values and to diverse perspectives relative to work and to the meaning of success in both work and fife. Students need to learn about multiple perspectives on success, to understand the influences on their own evolving definition(s) for success, and to question society's definition(s) of success. Only then will they be able to apply their own vision for success in the creation of their career goals.

It may be significant to note that, in some communities, the issue of leading conversations on values can be controversial. However, it is important to make the distinction between morals, which are beliefs to which a group attributes "right and wrong," and values, which are beliefs held individually and evaluated by the individual. Communities may feel more comfortable in knowing that values clarification is about understanding and embracing what one believes to be true, rather than an effort to suggest alignment with a larger morality.

The results of this study confirmed the relevance of values clarification to high school students. The students in this study stated their sincere appreciation for the time the researcher-counselor spent on values education and on reflection with students about their values and their definitions of success. However, high counselor-to-student ratios make it unrealistic to propose additional direct services by counselors to students. School counselors need to consider some roles other than direct service to make ongoing values clarification work possible for all students.

In addition to a counseling role for school counselors, the ASCA role statement (1999) listed consulting and coordinating as appropriate roles for school counselors. School counselors can consult with teachers and parents to inform them about resources, opportunities, and processes by which they can help their students/children clarify values. Counselors can coordinate curricular initiatives among Faculty so that regular opportunities for values clarification within the curriculum is ensured at each grade level.

The transforming school counseling initiative (House & Martin, 1998) emphasized the responsibility of the school counselor to all students, but especially to those minority students (whether by race, ethnicity, culture, or class) that counselors have historically not served well in our schools. School counselors were urged to help these students set future goals that included high skills for good jobs and kept the door open to all forms of postsecondary education and training. For these students in particular, values clarification along with an understanding of the impact and relevance of family, culture and class on career values are critical.

The transforming school counseling initiative (House & Martin, 1998) listed five roles that school counselors should play in order to transform schooling for minority students. These roles are ones of leadership, advocacy, collaboration/teaming, counseling/consultation, and the use of data to promote change in schools. The following paragraphs give examples of how school counselors can function in each of these roles to promote values clarification as one component of career development for minority students.

In the standards-focused climate in today's schools, school counselors take a leadership role when they help administrators, teachers, parents, and others to recognize the link between values, future career goals, and achievement in schools.

School counselors engage in the advocacy role when they promote acceptance and appreciation by all staff for diverse life and career goals and the variety of educational means available to achieve these goals. In doing so, school counselors help school staff to identify and critique the unexamined and limited norms and expectations for "success" that drive many educational systems.

School counselors collaborate and consult with teachers, employers, and community mentors, and especially with students' families so that each of these groups may better understand the connection between values, goals, and achievement at school and at work. Counselors also teach these adults ways to support students in the process of values clarification.

School counselors use data when they conduct research with students still in school (as in this study) and with those students who have left school to better understand the impact, importance, and relevance of values clarification on success in life and work. Counselors then use that data in a continual process of improving career development programs.

Some specific suggestions for school counselors to use with their various publics are listed below. These suggestions are designed to trigger the creativity of the individual school counselor and are not intended to be prescriptive or exhaustive.

Suggested interactions with teachers. Help teachers reflect on their own values and the impact those values have on their career decisions. Coordinate teacher work teams to include regular values clarification opportunities in class curricula. Help teachers realize that the views of success projected by the majority of society do not fit all students, many of whom come to school with diverse sets of values.

Suggested interactions with families. Teach families how to use values clarification with their children throughout their education, but especially at the educational transition points of middle school to high school, postsecondary planning conferences, and high school to postsecondary training. Provide ongoing values-clarification suggestions for families through school newsletters and/or community media.

Suggested interactions with churches or civic organizations. Collaborate with religious or civic leaders to emphasize the importance of the values of these organizations and to connect these values to their members' work in the world.

Suggested interactions with other community members. Find mentors and role models with cultural backgrounds similar to the students. Provide business leaders who employ students ways in which they can help student employees connect their current jobs with their values for future work. Provide training so that community members and mentors increase their awareness of diverse meanings for success within the community.

CONCLUSION

According to Herr (1998), school counselors help students personalize their education. With the help of teachers, families, and the community, school counselors help students discover and create meaning for their lives and envision their future lives. As Brown and Crace (1996) have written, it is the values one holds that give meaning to one's actions. Although values clarification is only one part of the career development equation, it is clearly a vital one. School counselors can play an integral role in restoring values clarification to the career development process for all students.

Frequencies of Responses by Category to Open-Ended Question

Response Categories for Open-Ended
Question                                     Experimental Group

                                            Pre-Test    Post-Test

Be happy (no reference to work)                 5           7
Have more money than needed (2)                 4           2
Having just enough money to get by (1)          2           6
Money is not top priority (1)                   2           5
Make something of yourself                      0           0
Have a steady job                               0           0
Have a good job/career                          3           4
Have a place to live                            0           0
Family/friends                                  4           4
Do what you want to do                          0           2
Reach your goals                               10          10
Contribute to the world/others (1)              0           3
No regrets with choice                          1           1
Work hard/try hard                              4           3
Competence in work (2)                          3           2
Feel comfortable in work                        0           0
Overcome obstacles/mistakes                     2           1
Be kind/good person                             2           1
Individually defined (1)                        0           6
Go to college                                   3           2
Spiritual/religious                             1           0
Be healthy                                      1           0
Good grades                                     1           0
Make the best with what you have                1           0
Make it on your own                             0           1
Be a role mode                                  2           2
Meet new people in work                         0           0
Like the people you work with                   0           1
Like the work you do direct reference to
  work) (2)                                    13          14
Advancement possibilities                       1           0
Be happy with who you are                       0           2
Explore interests                               1           1
Stay with my values                             0           1
Be myself                                       0           2
Job has meaning to me                           1           1
Create a life of which I am proud               1           0
Wisdom                                          0           0
Do the job for a long time                      1           0
Car                                             0           0
Get a job                                       1           0
Do well in life                                 1           0
Accomplish many things                          0           0
Did not answer question (2)                     3           1

Response Categories for Open-Ended
Question                                        Control Group

                                            Pre-Test    Post-Test

Be happy (no reference to work)                7            6
Have more money than needed (2)                3            8
Having just enough money to get by (1)         4            4
Money is not top priority (1)                  2            2
Make something of yourself                     0            1
Have a steady job                              0            2
Have a good job/career                         2            2
Have a place to live                           1            1
Family/friends                                 1            3
Do what you want to do                         0            1
Reach your goals                               5            7
Contribute to the world/others (1)             1            1
No regrets with choice                         1            1
Work hard/try hard                             0            2
Competence in work (2)                         0            5
Feel comfortable in work                       0            2
Overcome obstacles/mistakes                    0            2
Be kind/good person                            0            0
Individually defined (1)                       1            0
Go to college                                  0            1
Spiritual/religious                            1            1
Be healthy                                     1            0
Good grades                                    0            1
Make the best with what you have               0            0
Make it on your own                            2            0
Be a role mode                                 0            0
Meet new people in work                        0            1
Like the people you work with                  0            0
Like the work you do direct reference to
  work) (2)                                    8           11
Advancement possibilities                      1            1
Be happy with who you are                      2            1
Explore interests                              0            2
Stay with my values                            0            0
Be myself                                      0            2
Job has meaning to me                          0            0
Create a life of which I am proud              2            1
Wisdom                                         1            0
Do the job for a long time                     1            0
Car                                            0            1
Get a job                                      1            0
Do well in life                                1            0
Accomplish many things                         0            1
Did not answer question (2)                    1            4

(1) Indicates categories in which the experimental group showed much
change from pre-test to post-test.

(2) Indicates categories in which the control group showed much change
from pre-test to post-test.

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Jacqueline Mosconi, is a licensed school counselor in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Email: [e-mail].

Judith Emmett, Ed.D., is professor of counseling, Counseling and School Psychology, University of Wisconsin, River Falls.