Practice and Research in Career Counseling and Development-2008

The Change-Inventory for Career Counseling - An Instrument for Measuring Counseling-Correlated Changes

Psychometric properties of a 23-item inventory that measures five correlates of career counseling for evaluation purposes are presented. The dimensions were developed bottom-up. The construction sample consisted of 3316 adult clients of public career counseling services in Switzerland, who were assessed within a naturalistic multicenter evaluation study with pre-post design. The inventory proved reliable (Cronbach's α between 0.72 and 0.82, McDonnald's ω between 0.73 and 0.81). Concerning validity, the dimensions were supported by exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (CFI = 0.910, SRMR = 0.044, RMSEA = 0.056). Configural, metric and scalar measurement invariance of gender (female vs. male) and age group (<30 vs. ≥30 years) was also supported. Pre-post changes are medium to large. Practical use and theoretical localization among related German-language instruments are discussed.

A Short Form of the Career Futures Inventory

The purpose of this study was to test the international transferability and structural validity of the Career Futures Inventory (CFI) in a sample of Australian university students ( N = 1,566). Exploratory factor analysis of the data from a random half-split of the sample supported a three-factor solution equivalent to the original CFI subscales, Career Optimism, Career Adaptability, and Perceived Knowledge. Confirmatory factor analysis of the data from the remaining random half-split supported the structural validity of a short form, the CFI-9. The subscales of the CFI-9 had acceptable internal consistencies and correlations with measures of academic major satisfaction, career choice satisfaction, and generalized self-efficacy. It was concluded that the properties of the CFI and the CFI-9 were sufficient to explore their application as measures of perceptions of employability. It was suggested that the CFI-9 has potential as a diagnostic screening tool for counseling and educational interventions.

Reconsidering Interests: The Next Big Idea in Career Counseling Theory Research and Practice

A population of people that are living longer and working longer invite a reconsideration of interests and interest measurement as individuals make substantial changes in their vocational and avocational pursuits later in life. The relationship of interests to vocational hope and childhood exposure to work is also discussed.