The Career-O-Gram: A Postmodern Career Intervention. (Effective Techniques).

The authors examine the usefulness of postmodernism in career counseling. Specifically, a case is made for broadening career counseling theories and techniques to feature the contextual influences inherent in each individual's unique career history. A career intervention, titled the Career-O-Gram, is introduced as a tool for exploring contextual influences on career development. A case study is presented to demonstrate the application of the Career-O-Gram.

Career development theorists focus on the plethora of developmental, psychodynamic, interpersonal, and sociological influences that affect individual career development. Inextricably combined with these influences are individual personalities, skills, interests, values, and knowledge of occupations. Developmental, interpersonal, social, and intrapersonal influences all combine in career exploration and decision making. Given the magnitude of interest in career development influences articulated from various theoretical viewpoints, it seems logical to deduce that exploring these influences with clients would be beneficial.

Examining multiple influences is a cornerstone concept of postmodern philosophy, which is currently affecting the counseling profession, in general, and, to a lesser degree, the field of career counseling (McNamee & Gergen, 1995; Sexton & Griffin, 1997). Postmodernism, also referred to as post-positivist or constructivist thought, emphasizes plurality of perspectives, contextual impacts, social constructions of reality, and the importance of the meaning individuals give to their experiences. From a postmodern perspective, theories (including career development theories) are not built on facts, but rather facts are derived from theory (Hayes & Oppenheim, 1997).

Proponents of postmodern career interventions (Peavy, 1997; Savickas, 1993) focus on exploring the meaning clients place on their careers. The emphasis here is on the contextual factors that influence clients' career development. Career interventions that are based in modern philosophy focus on identifying specific traits of individuals and then placing those individuals in corresponding career categories. Thus, modernists search for "fit," and postmodernists search for "meaning" in helping clients articulate their career goals.

Modern thought predominated in an era when an individual might expect to hold few jobs over his or her life span, and work was a thing to be "done"; it had little to do with the measure of personal worth (Kennedy, 1998). Postmodernism is alive in an era of fast-paced change in which career decisions take on personal meanings that are related to self-esteem, and the concept of career is a lifelong and ever-changing process (Kennedy, 1998).

In the following sections of this article, we outline the views of researchers and counselors in the career development field who propose a shift toward postmodern thinking in career counseling. We conclude with a description of a tool designed to assess career development from a postmodern perspective. A case study demonstrates the perceived efficacy of this approach.

Postmodernism and Career Counseling

Richardson (1993) is a proponent of changing the direction of career development to encompass a more postmodern or social constructionist epistemology. She proposed expanding career development theories and decision-making models to include the acknowledgment of multiple contextual influences and subjective meanings that clients give to their choices of work or career. The concept of work includes activities both inside and outside the occupational structure that contribute to human development. Richardson (1993) noted, "If inquiry is limited to work in jobs and occupations, what might be known about people in the multiple and interacting contexts or environments of their lives is severely truncated" (p. 428). The concept of work also moves away from a focus on middleclass individuals who are typically engaged in what are considered "careers" (Savickas, 1993).

Richardson's (1993) proposal also promoted the inclusion of a social constructionist epistemological perspective for career development. From this position, there is no single reality "out there" or objectively knowable, but it is recognized "that what people see before them is affected by who they are, and what they value, as well as by their biases, theoretical predilections, and social locations" (Richardson, p. 428). Reality is, thus, socially created through the conversations that people have with one another and the agreed-upon meanings that are determined through interactions (Berger & Luckman, 1966). This stance does not champion relativistic solipsism but does encourage the exploration of what is true for each individual and the meaning that is attached to life experiences and choices. Inherent in this approach is the acknowledgment that some people wield more power than others and are, thus, more influential in the creation of what is accepted as reality. When applied to career development or couns eling, a social constructionist perspective would explore the relative amount of power individuals have in making career choices. The cultural, social, political, and economic contexts that surround career choices would also be key components of counseling from this stance.

Savickas (1993) summarized and expanded on Richardson's (1993) proposal. He emphasized the need for professionals in career development fields to transition from a psychology of careers to a social analysis of work. In this era of fading hierarchical bureaucracies, individuals can no longer build their lives around one stable career. Rather, Richardson and Savickas advocated exploring client's values in the "real" world, which is ever changing.

Savickas (1993) advocated decentering from self to context and emphasizing practical intelligence for everyday activities of ordinary life (Kvale, 1992). He also applied the postmodern concepts of moving from objective truth to perspective reality and moving from general principles to useful practices to the field of vocational psychology. He urged professionals in the field to realize that knowledge is relational and that theory can be situated in a perspectivist, social constructionist framework without giving way to complete relativism. He further propagated that both modern (quantitative) and postmodern (qualitative) approaches to research could advance knowledge and understanding of career development and that usefulness of knowledge should guide inquiry. It seems that both Savickas and Richardson believe that the field of career development would benefit from postmodern methods of inquiry and theory development that incorporate the context and multiple influences of an individual's career or work histor y.

This point of view was further advanced by Peavy (1997). He asserted that most models of career development and counseling are still based on logical positivism even though this concept as a viable philosophical position has been "dead" since the 1970s (p. 123). He called for subsequent revisions in the practice of career counseling to reflect the more relevant postmodern or postpositivist philosophy. Specifically, he placed his ideas for revision in a constructivist perspective that acknowledged the multiplicity of realities and contextual influences on career development. Peavy cited Giddens (1991), who observed that the influences of postindustrial society, including globalization, de-skilling, "commodification," rapidly changing market conditions, and corporatism, have produced workplaces that are rapidly changing, unpredictable, and even risky to virtually all people who work. It is, thus, necessary to spur changes in career counseling as well.

Peavy (1997) urged career theorists and counselors to recognize that clients have "lifecareer" histories that are constructed by the individual out of an ongoing dialectic between context and self (p. 124). He suggested that the gap between "life" and "career" be eliminated and more holistic perspectives such as a view of the individual in a lifecareer (MillerTiedeman, 1988) be incorporated. His sentiments echo those of Richardson (1993) who advocated examining the holistic concept of "work" in people's lives versus a focus on "career." Peavy further called for the acknowledgment of multiple conceptions of self. This notion has been advanced by postmodern constructivist stances and basically recognizes that the self is not a fixed or static entity, but rather a changing and evolving one.

Working from these concepts, Peavy (1997) advocated a career counseling stance that reflects the constructivist perspective. He outlined several practical considerations regarding clarification of career counseling procedures that convey this perspective. He suggested that career counseling procedures should enable counselors and clients to coconstruct a relationship that acknowledges clients as experts on their lives and counselors as experts on planning. He further championed procedures that resonate with the concept of an evolving self, appreciate context, and support clients' recognition of their strengths and adoption of action plans that are personally meaningful. Procedures should challenge entrenched or stereotypical thinking that disempowers or limits options. In short, Peavy urged career counselors to look at clients as unique and ever-changing individuals who must adapt to an ever-changing environment. He seemed to suggest adopting procedures or techniques that draw meaning from the reciprocal infl uence of individuals' lives and their career development. In other words, career and life are intertwined, with each influencing the other. Recognizing and exploring these multiple influences seem to be vital components of career counseling as it moves into the twenty-first century.

Patton and McMahon (1999) added to these postulates by proposing an integration of systems theory and career development. Their book speculated that by looking at career development from the perspective of multidirectional influence, a greater understanding can be gained of individuals in relation both to themselves and to their familial, social, and economic environments. They advocated experiential learning activities that explore individual careerists in relation to the many levels of systems surrounding them. These ideas are in line with those of Young, Valach, and Gollin (1996) who advocated that career development be explained from a contextual viewpoint.

The postmodern perspectives advocated by Peavy (1997), Richardson, (1993), Savickas (1993), Patton and McMahon (1999), and Young et al. (1996) clearly elucidated the importance of clients gaining greater understanding of the context in which their careers have developed and continue to develop, as well as considering the implications that career choices may have on the rest of their lives. As noted by Peavy, it is important for career counseling clients to make themselves "visible." He indicated that "procedures such as clustering, diagramming, mapping, using objects to physicalize concepts, and letter writing are examples of in-therapy activities that can be used to metaphorize, construct, and visualize self and situation" (p. 132). A tool that one of the authors (Thorngren) designed, the Career-O-Gram, is another example of such a procedure.

The Career-O-Gram

Readers may be familiar with the genogram developed by Bowen (1978) in the family therapy field. The genogram is used to help family members trace and understand intergenerational family influences. Typically, this is done through verbal exploration with accompanying written depictions and diagrams representing family dynamics. The Career-O-Gram is also a tool for exploring influences through verbal and pictorial means. In contrast to the genogram, however, the Career-O-Gram focuses primarily on career history.

The Career-O-Gram was developed as a tool to qualitatively assess the multiple influences on career development. This tool is flexible and can be used with clients across any developmental stage. The Career-O-Gram can be used alone or in conjunction with most of the established models of career development (i.e., Holland, 1966, 1992; Roe, 1956; Super, 1957, 1990) to provide additional information. The contexts of developmental, psychodynamic, interpersonal, sociological, cultural, and individual personality influences on career development can all be explored qualitatively using the Career-O-Gram. Thus, a combination of established theoretical concepts and exploratory methodology can be combined to produce a more holistic view of career development.

The Career-O-Gram assessment begins with the counselor asking clients to recall their earliest career ambition. This ambition is denoted on paper by a symbol that the client chooses. Exploration of this ambition then begins with questions such as "How old were you when you developed this goal?" "What important people in your life encouraged/discouraged you in this pursuit?" "What aspects of this career most appealed to you?" "What were your chances of obtaining this position?" "What did you think you would have to do to attain this goal?" Additional questions of this kind can be used to elicit information about the developmental, interpersonal, psychodynamic, and sociological influences on career development, as well as assess individual personality characteristics and awareness of necessary skills and aptitudes.

Questions are designed to determine the unique cultural, ethnic, gender, and political influences experienced by each client. Examples may include "Was that choice similar to that of other people in your culture?" "What messages did you receive as a male/female about your career choice?" "How powerful did you consider yourself in making career decisions?" A question such as "What was going on in the world around you when you made that choice?" can be used to gain information regarding world events such as political happenings or more personal events such as family breakups. How the client answers such a question will likely indicate what was most important in his or her life at the time. This may provide avenues for further questioning and exploration. For example, if a client relates memories of presidential elections or economic decline, questions such as "Who influenced your political views?" or "How did this affect your daily life?" may be asked. If the client discusses family events as pivotal influence s, a question such as "What 'rules' did your family have for discussing feelings about the event?" may be used to explicate relevant family influences.

Each answer is placed on a chart in words or symbols. The counselor or client can add the symbols. The process should be one of collaboration and creativity. When the earliest career goal has been explored, the focus is on the client's subsequent goals and actual jobs or careers. Each is denoted symbolically and surrounded by depictions of the influences on that particular choice. Moving through the client's lifetime, a career history is explored verbally and illustrated pictorially. Each Career-O-Gram results in a unique and comprehensive picture of the client's interactions with his or her environment.

Together, counselor and client explore themes and patterns of influence across the career history. In particular, aspects of "social creation" in the "reality" of career development (Berger & Luckman, 1966) can be emphasized. Clients and counselors both can attain a greater understanding of social influences on what may initially appear to be a fixed, or given, reality in clients' lives. For example, a woman client may believe that it was simply destiny that she fulfill a traditional female job and that few other options are available. After exploring her career development history, she may gain awareness of the social climate, familial influences, and economic factors that intertwined to point her down that particular path. She may discover by whom or what she is most influenced and actively decide whether she wants to follow those influences or explore alternate paths.

Clients can be empowered to understand the reciprocal influence between themselves and the environment. This exploration alone provides valuable insight and awareness to the client. Clients who begin to see the many active influences in their career lives can begin to make more informed choices as they decide which influences are helpful and which ones need to be examined or modified. Another example is the adolescent client who examines his or her history of decision making and finds that choices have been made primarily in opposition to the wishes of parents. In this case, the client may want to rethink the propensity to be influenced solely from a reactive stance and develop a more proactive decision-making style. This can be crucial in making decisions about future job opportunities.

Awareness can lead to increased empowerment and to recognition of expanded options as clients actually begin to "make themselves visible" (Peavy, 1997). If the counselor and client determine that further exploration of particular influences or career decision making is necessary, the counselor can draw on his or her particular expertise in using additional theoretical models and inventories. For example, a counselor may note from the client's Career-O-Gram that the client is primarily influenced by parents and other significant others. Using parental influence theories such as Roe's (1956), the counselor could complete a more in-depth exploration of these influences. A counselor using Super's (1953) approach could examine the life stage in which the client currently perceives him- or herself and the roles taken on in each developmental stage. The Career-O-Gram helps provide a more comprehensive picture as the client becomes aware of the influences that affected the decision to assume a specific role.

The Career-O-Gram is a simple, flexible assessment tool that invites exploration of the multifaceted nature of career development. This qualitative instrument responds to postmodern career developmentalists who encourage increased understanding of the contextual and multiple realities that envelop career development (Patton & McMahon, 1999; Peavy, 1997; Richardson, 1993; Savickas, 1993; Young et al., 1996). The Career-O-Gram does not attempt to supplant, but rather to supplement, established inventories and assessments in the field of career counseling.

Case Study: Description of Influences

Brenda, a 39-year-old woman, currently resides in a small city in the western U.S. and is a full-time student at a state university. She sought career counseling to partially fulfill the requirements of one of her university courses. Although she did not have a career-related crisis as a presenting issue, Brenda was eager to explore options that would be available to her after she had received her degree. She met with a student career counselor for three sessions and with the first author for two sessions to complete a Career-O-Gram. As a nontraditional student who was returning to school after a lengthy hiatus to pursue various kinds of work and to raise her children, Brenda was eager to explore her career history. She welcomed the opportunity to gain further understanding of the choices that led her to pursue her current endeavors in the family science or special education fields. An exploration of Brenda's ambitions revealed the following influences and patterns of decision making. Questions such as the on es in previous paragraphs were used to garner information.

When asked what her earliest career goal consisted of and how old she was at the time she identified the goal, Brenda recounted the following. At the age of 5 or 6 years, Brenda dreamed of being in the medical field. She often pictured herself in the uniform of a nurse or other medical helper. The events surrounding her life at this time included living with alcoholic parents. She remembers feeling that her home was "secretive," which was something she did not like. She decided that she did not want that lifestyle for herself when she grew up. The influence of alcoholism, which held negative meanings for her, may have prompted Brenda to dream of and pursue a profession of helping others. No other major circumstances were recalled at this stage of her life, indicating that family dynamics surrounding alcoholism were key influences on Brenda at this time.

When asked who influenced her dream of being in the medical profession, Brenda stated that her grandmother was always a support and role model, but she did not specifically advise Brenda to pursue a helping profession. Although no one in particular encouraged this ideal, Brenda did recall a shopping expedition to a neighboring city at age 12 that heightened her interest in the medical profession. While in the dressing room of a department store, a stranger approached Brenda and told her that she envisioned the young girl growing up and wearing a white uniform and traveling. Brenda was not sure what prompted this exchange, but in her mind, it was confirmation of her dream to pursue a medically related career. She has held on to the notion of helping people throughout her life, despite the fact that she did not recall thinking through the exact steps she would have to take.

Questions such as "What kinds of activities did you engage in during your adolescence?" "In what ways were your decisions related to your gender?" and "Who was most influential during this time?" elicited the following information. During her adolescence, Brenda's mother encouraged her to present herself properly so that she could attract a young man who would marry and provide for her. Brenda chose to rebel against this traditional advice, a pattern that became apparent in other facets of her decision making. Brenda described her teenage years as very turbulent ones, which resulted in her becoming pregnant at age 17. She married when she was 18 years old; this marriage ended a few years later. During her late adolescence, Brenda found that she was a sounding board for other adolescents who were experiencing their own tumultuous times. Her advice and encouragement were often sought.

When asked what was going on around her during her teenage and subsequent years, Brenda described the following incidents that were indicative of strong interpersonal influences and a tendency to rebel against traditions if they did not fit her self-concept. In opposition to her mother's advice to become a "proper young lady" and not work outside the home, Brenda chose to work at fast-food restaurants to earn her own spending money. This was an indication of her quest for independence and perhaps an escape from an alcoholic home. Although the jobs provided money, Brenda recalled feeling "stuck" and discouraged at the prospect of being unable to advance in her current positions. She was also influenced by her divorce, which happened when she was in her early 20s. Even if she had chosen to follow her mother's advice regarding gender roles, the dream of a "happily-ever-after marriage" and the idea of a man "taking care of her" had vanished. At this point, in her early 20s, Brenda decided to "do something for he rself" and enrolled in beauty college. She felt that she could attain this goal and that it still fell in line with her desire to help others. Her ultimate goal was to own a salon and provide a different kind of "therapy" for customers.

She did not immediately attain this goal. Instead, Brenda chose to remarry and raise four children. Her children became and remained very influential in career decisions, because her highest priority was to be near and care for them. Brenda's decision was based on her desire to care for her children versus simply falling in line with what she had been taught were proper roles for women. When queried about influential interpersonal relationships in her life, Brenda noted that her children were at the forefront.

Brenda was asked to describe jobs or activities she had engaged in after her divorce. We discovered that another pivotal influence on Brenda's career decision making was work she engaged in at a psychiatric outpatient hospital for adolescents. In her late 20s and based on the advice of a friend, who discerned Brenda's abilities to relate to and empathize with others, she (Brenda) began working with severely emotionally impaired children. When asked questions such as "How did this work fit your personality?" Brenda recalled that it was reminiscent of her own teenage years. She was able to once again relate to these young people at an empathic level in much the same way that she had done with her own adolescent peers. The rebellion she perceived in them paralleled her own rebellion at that developmental stage. When queried about how this work affected her interpersonally, Brenda recalled one of the angry young men at the facility stating that he wanted to talk to her because "she understands, she's been there. " Other residents maintained contact with her even after they were released from the facility. One resident stated that Brenda was the closest thing to a mother he had ever had. This work, and the interpersonal influences of these young people, strengthened Brenda's desire to work with and help others.

Shortly after working in the psychiatric hospital, Brenda ended her second marriage. To be closer to her noncustodial children, she finished cosmetology school and opened her own salon near their high school. Brenda's decision again reflected the influence of her children on her life. When asked what she enjoyed most about this line of work, Brenda recounted that during her years as a business owner, she continued to enjoy listening to and relating to her customers' various dilemmas. These experiences, combined with her earlier work at the psychiatric hospital, heightened her desire to formalize (through education) her helping abilities. She continued to operate her salon until she felt that her children were old enough for her to pursue a college education without jeopardizing her relationships with them. She is now enrolled at a state university, as is her eldest son! Brenda is working on general education requirements and planning to pursue a degree in either family science or special education.

Case Study: Summary of Patterns and Themes

This Career-O-Gram was conducted in two parts. Information presented thus far relates to the specific jobs that the client had held and key influences on attaining those particular jobs. This information, which follows, led to subsequent questioning about themes, patterns, and larger systems of influence related to the client's career development history.

Questions about personality variables revealed an interesting pattern in this client's life. She was asked questions such as "How has your personality influenced your decisions?" and "How do your personality characteristics fit in with your career goals?" During the exploration of her career history, Brenda realized that she often rebelled at circumstances or went against what was expected of her. Growing up in a home with alcoholic parents led her to decide not to repeat her family's behavior patterns. Although she experimented briefly with drinking, she chose not to follow the same path as her parents. She also chose to opt out of two unsatisfying marriages and care for herself, despite the influence of her mother who advocated that Brenda look for a husband. When asked who may have influenced this part of her personality, Brenda stated that perhaps she learned "rule breaking" from her grandparents who were tolerant of behavior outside the norm for their generation. Her grandparents also instilled in her a strong work ethic and the ability to have fun. These characteristics of Brenda's personality have been borne out in her subsequent career choices.

Brenda also perceived that her individual personality was compatible with her career goals. When asked what personality characteristics she possessed that helped her in her pursuits, Brenda stated that her empathy and the ability to be "real" and honest with others meshed well with her desire to be a part of the helping professions. She was not certain how she developed these characteristics, but she hated the secretive atmosphere that was prevalent in her parents' home, in which alcoholism was a reality.

When asked specifically about the influences of gender, culture, and economics on her career development, Brenda indicated that she had received stereotypical gender messages from her mother and grandparents--they all encouraged her to seek out marriage and the roles of wife and homemaker. She noted, however, that she followed her grandparents' actions rather than their advice. Both her grandfather and grandmother worked hard in the family business; her grandmother was a role model for Brenda because the grandmother represented a woman who could accomplish anything.

Regarding cultural influences, Brenda noted that there was little diversity in the people around her during her childhood and adolescence. Most of her friends had similar interests. Her life experiences have made her value cultural diversity, and she believed that they would be important to her work in the helping professions. Her own culture reflected the values and lifestyle associated with growing up in a predominantly White, small, rural town in the 1960s and 1970s. She cited a strong work ethic and an abhorrence of an alcoholic lifestyle as being part of her own personal culture.

When questioned about the importance of economics in her career decision making, Brenda noted that her choice to pursue a career in the helping professions represented her desire to be happy, not necessarily wealthy! Brenda learned, again from her grandparents, that it was more important to be happy with what you were doing than to worry about money. She stated that her parents were primarily motivated by earning money but that she observed them being unhappy in their endeavors. In contrast, she described her grandparents as "poor, but happy."

Exploring the desire to pursue happiness in her career path brought Brenda back to reemphasizing characteristics she perceived as intrinsic to her personality and to being successful in the helping professions. Throughout the interview, Brenda noted a pervasive pattern of understanding and empathy for troubled individuals. She posited that this personality characteristic developed from her own rather turbulent upbringing and was indicative of the reciprocal nature of personality, family, and societal influences. Brenda believed that the greatest attributes she would bring to the helping profession were "being real" and authentic and the ability to work hard and not give up. Brenda thought that although her current decision to focus on family science or special education was not her original goal, it fulfilled her dream of helping others.

Figure 1 represents some of the key influences in Brenda's career development. Each major goal or actual job is depicted by a rectangle. Surrounding each rectangle are depictions of the major influences on that particular goal or job. Interpersonal relationships are characterized by diamond shapes, and significant experiences are denoted in triangles. Each influence is connected to the rectangular description with an arrow. Large arrows throughout the diagram indicate prevalent themes in the client's life. Finally, all rectangles point to the circle, which depicts the client's career development stage. This indicates the influence of each previous goal or job on the client's current status.

Summary

The Career-O-Gram allowed the aforementioned client and counselor to better understand the pattern of choices that led to the client's current educational pursuits. The client was asked questions related to the personality, developmental, interpersonal, cultural, and social influences on her career history.

Themes of special prevalence were highlighted and further examined. For example, the client noted that she had a pervasive sense of empathy for others from her adolescence through adulthood. Exploration of this area demonstrated the client's ability to extrapolate her own experiences into empathy for others. This skill is readily identifiable as an asset in many helping professions. The client was also able to understand how her early experiences with family members shaped and influenced her current career decisions. As she explored how key experiences and people influenced her, the client gained a greater awareness of what and who were important in her life.

A contextual theme of influences was portrayed by the Career-O-Gram. The client was able to grasp what had been and continued to be influential in her career endeavors. To borrow from Peavy (1997), the client was better able to view herself through verbal and pictorial illustrations of her career development. In this case, the Career-O-Gram bolstered the client's confidence in her current ambitions and opened the door for her to explore the specific kind of work that would be most satisfying for her.

During the final part of the interview, the client noted that she realized that she had grown more powerful in her career decision making throughout her lifetime. She moved from dreaming as a small child to enrolling in college and supporting herself as she worked toward the degree that would enable her to work in the helping professions. Brenda reflected that she had chosen to move from a "victim" of an alcoholic upbringing to a successful business owner and now a successful college student. She noted that her experience in completing a Career-O-Gram was very helpful and enlightening. This exercise gave her the chance to step back and view her process of decision making over her lifetime. As she became aware of the many influences on her current career development, Brenda was able to note recurring patterns and themes across the systems in which she was involved. Her final statement regarding the Career-O-Gram was that she had reaffirmed her desire to pursue a career in family science or special education a nd that she felt grateful for this reaffirmation.

The Career-O-Gram helped the counselor garner multidimensional information about the client's background, interests, prevalent influences, and skills. Together, the counselor and client were able to explore career options related to the client's unique skills and interests. The Career-O-Gram also clarified the client's decision-making processes. Awareness of these processes provides valuable information that can be generalized to the client's work world. The Career-O-Gram can, thus, provide direction to career counselors and insight to career counseling clients.

Jill M. Thorngren is an assistant professor of counselor education at Montana State University, Bozeman. Stephen S. Feit is a professor of counselor education and counseling at Idaho State University, Pocatello. Correspondence regarding this article should be sent to Jill M. Thorngren, 318 Herrick Hall, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717 (e-mail: [e-mail]).

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