Chapter 2 Post

            Holland’s Theory of Vocational Choice seemed to entice me the most. He proposed the vocational choice is based on several assumptions, the first being an individual’s personality being the primary factor in vocational choice (Brown 2012, page 30). As I was reading about his theory I began to think about myself, my friends, and my family. I definitely fit into the social personality type (I have always been called a social butterfly). I am an elementary school teacher, and I love to be around people. My friend Jimmy graduated from college with an economics and math degree. Jimmy’s personality is a lot like mine, and as he was going through college I always questioned him about his career aspirations. After graduation, Jimmy went back to school to get his teaching degree. He is currently a middle school Math teacher. My brother, on the other hand, is a UPS manager. He decided not to attend college and began working at UPS as a loader, then driver, and now manager. My brother and I are quite different personality wise. He is more of an introvert and unsocial towards other. He fits right into the realistic personality type.

            I could go on with a few more examples, but as I continued to read on, I began to think about how family can impact a child’s life (personality, goals, status, career aspirations, etc…). Not many of the theories discussed in Chapter 2 went into detail about family and their impact. Parents, brothers, sisters, grandparents and the like, all influence a child’s educational and career aspirations (Gibson 2005, page 354). To be honest, I want to throw in teacher’s, too. All of the above can encourage or deter children from successfully choosing a vocation that is best fit for them. Over more, all of the above influence a child’s life in many ways. I often hear my students talking and here are some things I hear: “I like this because my mother likes it.” “I want to be a nurse because my mother is a nurse.” I want to join this club because my brother was a part of it.” Children are not only influenced, but often convinced to act, talk, and walk a certain way.

            This is why I do believe it is important to have elementary school students begin reflecting and acknowledging not only their family’s careers, but also, their family’s personalities, happiness, success, failures, etc... This can be done using a genogram to help build student’s awareness of personal characteristics, interests, aptitudes, skills and diversity of the world of work (Gibson 2005, page 354). This genogram can be a foundation that the child builds upon as he or she moves up to middle and high school levels. As the child matures and develops, he or she can add more detail by asking more critical questions to their family members and the influential adults in their life. This way, the child can see what could be good for them in the future, but more importantly, the child can see what they do not want to get into in the future. Building upon this genogram can provide a child with more of a sense of individuality in making these significant choices. Instead of becoming a janitor because dad did, a child can make their own decisions on what is best fit for them.

Brown, D. (2012). Career information, career counseling, and career development (10^th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson Education, Inc.

Gibson, D. The Use of Genograms in Career Counseling With Elementary, Middle, and High School Students. (2005). The Career Development Quarterly: Volume 53 (353-362).