Although robust evidence has been accumulating over the last decades supporting the effectiveness of career counseling in various populations, yet there are scarce conceptual or empirical studies investigating the impact of distinct approaches, such as traditional-“psychometric,” narrative, or a mixed (integrative) one. The primary aim of this paper is to make a contribution in the field, providing a synthetic overview of contemporary research findings regarding the effectiveness of narrative and mixed career counseling approaches with a special focus on university students. The recent trend of utilizing mixed approaches in career assessment and intervention is also emphasized in the article, suggesting they may have a great potential in helping young adults advance meaning-making about career and life design. Finally, a discussion of both benefits and challenges relating to narrative and mixed interventions along with recommendations for extending research in the area of assessing career interventions’ effectiveness for university students is provided.
AmbielR. (2020). Taking a test is telling stories: A narrative approach to interest inventories. International Journal For Educational And Vocational Guidance, 21(1), 33–46. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10775-020-09426-3
2.
AmundsonN. E. (2006, August). Bridge over troubled waters: Guidance crosses. Keynote presentation at the International Association for Educational and Vocational Guidance Conference, Copenhagen, Denmark.
BarclayS.StoltzK. (2016). The life-design group: A case study assessment. The Career Development Quarterly, 64(1), 83–96. https://doi.org/10.1002/cdq.12043
5.
BernaudJ.-L.Di FabioA.Saint-DenisC. (2010). Subjective effects of career counselling and client’s satisfaction: An analysis of processes and causes. Canadian Journal of Counselling and Psychotherapy, 44(3), 307–325. Retrieved from https://cjc-rcc.ucalgary.ca/article/view/59277.
6.
BriddickW.Sensoy-BriddickH.SavickasS. (2019). Innovation meets need: Career counselling and youth populations in uncertain times. In MareeJ. (Ed.), Handbook of innovative career counselling (pp. 251–268). Springer.
BrkichM.JeffsD.CarlessS. A. (2002). A global self-report measure of person-job fit. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 18(1), 43–51. https://doi.org/10.1027/1015-5759.18.1.43
9.
CardosoP.JaneiroI.DuarteM. (2018). Life design counseling group intervention with Portuguese adolescents: A process and outcome study. Journal of Career Development, 45(2), 183–196. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894845316687668
10.
Di FabioA. (2014). Career counselling and positive psychology in the 21st century: New constructs and measures for evaluating the effectiveness of intervention. Journal of Counsellogy, 1, 193–213.
11.
Di FabioA. (2015). “Constructing my future purposeful life”: A new life construction intervention. In Di FabioA.BernaudJ. L. (Eds.), The construction of identity in the 21st century: A festschrift for Jean Guichard (pp. 219–239). Nova Science.
DrososN.TheodoroulakisM.AntoniouA.RajterI. (2021). Career services in the post-COVID-19 era: A paradigm for career counseling unemployed individuals. Journal of Employment Counseling, 58(1), 36–48. https://doi.org/10.1002/joec.12156
14.
DuarteM. E.PaixãoM. P.da SilvaJ. T. (2019). Life-design counselling from an innovative career counselling perspective. In MareeJ. (Ed.), Handbook of innovative career counselling (pp. 35–52). Springer.
15.
FroidevauxA. (2018). A life design perspective on the work to retirement transition. In Cohen-ScaliV.RossierJ.NotaL. (Eds.), New perspectives on career counseling and guidance in Europe: Building careers in changing and diverse societies (pp. 89–104). Springer.
16.
GatiI.OsipowS.KrauszM.SakaN. (2000). Validity of the career decision-making difficulties questionnaire: Counselee versus career counselor perceptions. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 56(1), 99–113. https://doi.org/10.1006/jvbe.1999.1710
17.
HartungP. J.SantilliS. (2018). My career story: Description and initial validity evidence. Journal of Career Assessment, 26(2), 308–321. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072717692980
18.
HechtlingerS.LevinN.GatiI. (2017). Dysfunctional career decision-making beliefs: A multidimensional model and measure. Journal of Career Assessment, 27(2), 209–229. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072717748677
19.
HirschiA.FroidevauxA. (2020). Career counselling. In GunzH.LazarovaM.MayrhoferW. (Eds.), Routledge companion to career studies (pp. 331–345). Routledge.
20.
HooleyT. (2014). The evidence base on lifelong guidance: A guide to key findings for effective policy and practice. University of Jyvaskyla and Finnish Institute for Educational Research (FIER), Saarijarvi, Finland.
21.
HouZ.LeungS. A.LiX.LiX.XuH. (2012). Career adapt-abilities scale – China form: Construction and initial validation. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 80(3), 686–691. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2012.01.006
22.
KalirisA.IssariP. (2022). Exploring narrative ideas in career counseling. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 10(2), 365–380. https://doi.org/10.4236/jss.2022.102026
23.
KalirisA.KriwasS. (2014). The contribution of the postmodern approaches to career counseling theory and practice: Their emerging role in a crucial era for the world of work. Retrieved from http://www.elesyp.gr/index.php/news/drastiriotites.
24.
KennyM. E.Di FabioA. (2018). Postmodern guidance and career counseling: The need for new qualitative tools for evaluating intervention effectiveness. In Di FabioA.BernaudJ. L. (Eds.), Narrative interventions in post-modern guidance and career counseling (pp. 121–142). Springer.
25.
LamM.SantosA. (2017). The impact of a college career intervention program on career decision self-efficacy, career indecision, and decision-making difficulties. Journal of Career Assessment, 26(3), 425–444. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072717714539
26.
LambertM. J.FinchA. M.OkiishiJ.BurlingameG. M. (2005). Administration and scoring manual for the OQ-30.2. Brigham Young University.
27.
LangherV.NanniniV.CaputoA. (2018). What do university or graduate students need to make the cut? A meta-analysis on career intervention effectiveness. ECPS – Educational Cultural And Psychological Studies, 17, 21–43. https://doi.org/10.7358/ecps-2018-017-lang
28.
MareeJ. G. (2010). Brief overview of the advancement of postmodern approaches to career counseling. Journal of Psychology in Africa, 20(3), 361–367. https://doi.org/10.1080/14330237.2010.10820387
29.
MareeJ. G. (2015). Blending retrospect and prospect in order to convert challenges into opportunities in career counseling. In MareeJ. G.Di FabioA. (Eds.), Exploring new horizons in career counseling: Turning challenge into opportunities (pp. 4–24). Sense Publishers. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6300-154-0_1
30.
MareeJ. G. (2018). Advancing career counseling research and practice using a novel quantitative + qualitative approach to elicit clients’ advice from within. South African Journal of Higher Education, 32(4), 149–170. https://doi.org/10.20853/32-4-2558
31.
MareeJ. G. (2019). Group career construction counseling: A mixed-methods intervention study with high school students. The Career Development Quarterly, 67(1), 47–61. https://doi.org/10.1002/cdq.12162
32.
MareeJ. G.GerrytsE.FletcherL.OlivierJ. (2019). Using career counselling with group life design principles to improve the employability of disadvantaged young adults. Journal of Psychology in Africa, 29(2), 110–120. https://doi.org/10.1080/14330237.2019.1594646
33.
MareeJ. G.GerrytsE. W. (2019). Enhancing the employability of unskilled and unemployed young adults: Practical guidelines. In MareeJ. (Ed.), Handbook of innovative career counselling (pp. 445–468). Springer.
34.
MareeJ. G.SymingtonC. (2015). Life design counselling effects on the career adaptability of learners in a selective independent school setting. Journal of Psychology in Africa, 25(2), 262–269. https://doi.org/10.1080/14330237.2015.1065076
35.
MasdonatiJ.MassoudiK.RossierJ. (2009). Effectiveness of career counseling and the impact of the working alliance. Journal of Career Development, 36(2), 183–203. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894845309340798
36.
MasdonatiJ.PerdrixS.MassoudiK.RossierJ. (2014). Working alliance as a moderator and a mediator of career counseling effectiveness. Journal of Career Assessment, 22(1), 3–17. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072713487489
37.
McKayH.BrightJ. E. H.PryorR. G. L. (2005). Finding order and direction from chaos: A comparison of chaos career counseling and trait matching counseling. Journal of Employment Counseling, 42, 98–112. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-1920.2005.tb00904.x
38.
McLeodJ. (2003). An introduction to counselling (3rd ed.). Open University Press.
39.
McIlveenP.McGregor-BayneH.AlcockA.HjertumE. (2003). Evaluation of a semi-structured career assessment interview derived from systems theory framework. Australian Journal of Career Development, 12, 33–41. https://doi.org/10.1177/103841620301200306
40.
McMahonM. (2018). Narrative career counselling: A tension between potential, appeal, and proof. Introduction to the special issue. Australian Journal of Career Development, 27(2), 57–64. https://doi.org/10.1177/1038416218785537
41.
McMahonM.BimroseJ.WatsonM.AbkhezrP. (2020). Integrating storytelling and quantitative career assessment. International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, 20(3), 523–542. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10775-019-09415-1
42.
McMahonM.WatsonM. (2012). Story crafting: Strategies for facilitating narrative career counselling. International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, 12, 211–224. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10775-012-9228-5
43.
McMahonM.WatsonM.ZietsmanL. (2018). Adults changing careers through university education: Making meaning of quantitative career assessment scores through an integrative structured interview. SA Journal of Industrial Psychology, 44(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.4102/sajip.v44i0.1487
44.
Milot–LapointeF.Le CorffY.SavardR. (2019). A study of clinical change in individual career counseling. The Career Development Quarterly, 67(4), 357–364. https://doi.org/10.1002/cdq.12204
45.
MylonasK.GariA.PanagiotopoulouP.GeorgiadiE.ValchevV.PapazoglouS.BrkichM. (2011). Bias in terms of culture: Work values country-clustering for 33 European countries and person-job fit factor equivalence testing for four European countries. In DeutchJ.BoehnkeM.KühnenU.BoehnkeK. (Eds.), Rendering borders obsolete: Cross-cultural and cultural psychology as an interdisciplinary, multi-method endeavor (pp. 142–157). International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology. ISBN: 978-0-9845627-2-5. Accessed via www.iaccp.org.
46.
NilesS. G.GuttierezD. (2019). Career counselling with soul. In MareeJ. (Ed.), Handbook of innovative career counselling (pp. 633–645). Springer.
47.
NotaL.RossierJ. (eds.). (2015). Handbook of life design: From practice to theory and from theory to practice. Hogrefe Publishing.
48.
NotaL.SantilliS.SoresiS. (2016). A life-design-based online career intervention for early adolescents: Description and initial analysis. The Career Development Quarterly, 64(1), 4–19. https://doi.org/10.1002/cdq.12037
49.
ObiO. (2015). Constructionist career counseling of undergraduate students: An experimental evaluation. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 88, 215–219. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2015.03.009
50.
OsbornD.SidesR.BrownC. (2020). Comparing career development outcomes among undergraduate students in cognitive information processing theory-based versus human relations courses. The Career Development Quarterly, 68(1), 32–47. https://doi.org/10.1002/cdq.12211
51.
OzlemU. (2019). The effects of career interventions on university students’ levels of career decision-making self-efficacy: A meta-analytic review. Australian Journal Of Career Development, 28(3), 223–233. https://doi.org/10.1177/1038416219857567
52.
Peila-ShusterJ. (2016). Supporting student transitions: Integrating life design, career construction, happenstance, and hope. South African Journal of Higher Education, 30(3), 54–67. https://doi.org/10.20853/30-3-633
53.
PerdrixS.StaufferS.MasdonatiJ.MassoudiK.RossierJ. (2012). Effectiveness of career counseling: A one-year follow-up. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 80(2), 565–578. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2011.08.011
54.
PicardF. (2012). Reducing academic and career indecision: The effectiveness of a first-year college program. The Online Journal of Counselling and Education, 1(3), 70–82.
55.
PorfeliE. J.SavickasM. L. (2012). Career adapt-abilities scale – USA form: Psychometric properties and relation to vocational identity. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 80(3), 748–753. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2012.01.009
56.
RehfussM. C. (2009). The future career autobiography: A narrative measure of career intervention effectiveness. The Career Development Quarterly, 58(1), 82–90. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-0045.2009.tb00177.x
57.
RehfussM.Di FabioA. (2012). Validating the future career autobiography as a measure of narrative change. Journal of Career Assessment, 20(4), 452–462. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072712450005
58.
ReidH. (2016). Usefulness and truthfulness: Reviewing the limitations and promoting the benefits of constructivist approaches for career counselling. In McMahonM.PattonW. (Eds.), Career counselling: Constructivist approaches. Routledge.
59.
ReidH. L.WestL. (2011). “Telling tales”: Using narrative in career guidance. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 78(2), 174–183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2010.10.001
60.
RossierJ.CardosoP. M.DuarteM. E. (2021). The narrative turn in career development theories: An integrative perspective. In RobertsonP.HooleyT.McCashP. (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of career development (pp. 169–180). Oxford University Press.
61.
RottinghausP.EshelmanA.GoreJ.KellerK.SchneiderM.HarrisK. (2016). Measuring change in career counseling: Validation of the career futures inventory-revised. International Journal for Educational And Vocational Guidance, 17(1), 61–75. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10775-016-9329-7
62.
RottinghausP. J.BuelowK.MatyjaA.SchneiderM. (2012). The career futures inventory-revised: Assessing multiple dimensions of career adaptability. Journal of Career Assessment, 20(2), 123–139. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072711420849
63.
SampsonJ. P.PetersonG. W.OsbornD. S.HaydenS. C. (2015). Using career theory to integrate qualitative and quantitative career assessment. In McMahonM.WatsonM. (Eds.), Career assessment: Qualitative approaches (pp. 181–190). Sense.
64.
SantilliS.GinevraM. C.Di MaggioI.SoresiS.NotaL. (2021). In the same boat? An online group career counseling with a group of young adults in the time of COVID-19. International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, 22(5), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10775-021-09505-z
65.
SavickasM. (2015). Life-designing with adults: Developmental individualization using biographical bricolage. In NotaL.RossierJ. (Eds.), Handbook of life design: From practice to theory and from theory to practice (pp. 135–149). Hogrefe.
66.
SavickasM. L. (2011). Career counseling. American Psychological Association.
67.
SavickasM. L.HartungP. J. (2012). My career story. Vocopher.
68.
SavickasM. L.NotaL.RossierJ.DauwalderJ.-P.DuarteM. E.GuichardJ.van VianenA. E. M. (2009). Life designing: A paradigm for career construction in the 21st century. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 75(3), 239–250. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2009.04.004
69.
SavickasM. L.PorfeliE. J. (2012). Career adapt-abilities scale: Construction, reliability, and measurement equivalence across 13 countries. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 80(3), 661–673. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2012.01.011
Sidiropoulou-DimakakouD.MikedakiK.ArgyropoulouK.KalirisA. (2018). A psychometric analysis of the Greek career adapt-abilities scale in university students. International Journal of Psychological Studies, 10(3), 95. https://doi.org/10.5539/ijps.v10n3p95
72.
Sidiropoulou-DimakakouS.MylonasK.ArgyropoulouK. (2015). Self-efficacy in career planning: A new approach to career exploration. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 11(2), 40–54.
73.
SovetL.AnnovazziC.GinevraM. C.KalirisA.LodiE. (2018). Life design in adolescence: The role of positive psychological resources. In Cohen-ScaliV.NotaL.RossierJ. (Eds.), New perspectives on career guidance and counseling in Europe. Building careers in changing and diverse societies (pp. 23–37). Springer International Publishing. eBOOK ISBN: 978-3-319-61476-2.
74.
SpokaneA. R.OliverL. W. (1983). The outcomes of vocational intervention. In WalshW. B.OsipowS. H. (Eds.), Handbook of vocational psychology (pp. 99–136). Erlbaum.
75.
SpokaneΑNguyenD. (2016). Progress and prospects in the evaluation of career assistance. Journal of Career Assessment, 24(1), 3–25. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072715579665
76.
StebletonM. J. (2010). Narrative-based career counseling perspectives in times of change: An analysis of strengths and limitations. Journal of Employment Counseling, 47, 64–78. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-1920.2010.tb00091.x
77.
TaylorK. M.BetzN. E. (1983). Applications of self-efficacy theory to the understanding and treatment of career indecision. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 22(1), 63–81.
78.
TolentinoL.GarciaP. R. J. M.LuV.RestubogS. L. D.BordiaP.PlewaC. (2014). Career adaptation: The relation of adaptability to goal orientation, proactive personality, and career optimism. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 84(1), 39–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2013.11.004
79.
Tuval-MashiachR. (2014). Life stories in context: Using the three-sphere context model to analyze amos’s narrative. Narrative Works: Issues, Investigations, & Interventions, 4(1), 125–145.
80.
VilhjálmsdóttirG. (2015). Career counseling and the uniqueness of the individual adolescent. In NotaL.RossierJ. (Eds.), Handbook of life design: From practice to theory and from theory to practice (pp. 103–116). Göttingen: Hogrefe.
81.
WatsonM. (2016). Career development in changing world contexts: Reconstructing the wheels of theory and practice. CEAV (Career Education Association of Victoria) e-Journal, 43(13), 18.
82.
WhistonS. C. (2002). Application of the principles: Career counseling and interventions. The Counseling Psychologist, 30(2), 218–237. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000002302002
83.
WhistonS. C.BrecheisenB. K.StephensJ. (2003). Does treatment modality affect career counseling effectiveness?Journal of Vocational Behavior, 62(3), 390–410. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0001-8791(02)00050-7
84.
WhistonS. C.RahardjaD. (2008). Vocational counseling process and outcome. In BrownS. D.LentR. W. (Eds.), Handbook of counseling psychology (pp. 444–461). Wiley.
85.
WhistonS. C.RoseC. S. (2015). Career counseling process and outcome. In HartungP. J.SavickasM. L.WalshW. B. (Eds.), APA handbook of career intervention, vol. 1. Foundations (pp. 43–60). American Psychological Association.
86.
WhistonS. C.SextonT. L.LasoffD. L. (1998). Career-intervention outcome. A replication and extension of Oliver and Spokane (1988). Journal of Counseling Psychology, 45(2), 150–165. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0167.45.2.150
87.
WhistonS.LiY.MittsN.WrightL. (2017). Effectiveness of career choice interventions: A meta-analytic replication and extension. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 100, 175–184. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2017.03.010
88.
YuenM.YauJ. (2015). Relation of career adaptability to meaning in life and connectedness among adolescents in Hong Kong. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 91, 147–156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2015.10.003
