Krumbolt's Theory

3347 Words14 Pages
Basic Assumptions of Krumboltz’s Theory This manuscript will explore a class assignment, “Career Development Theory Paper”. The assignment is an undertaking designed to increase counselors’ knowledge and understanding of career development theories, thus obtaining a better understanding of the application of these theories in an effort to better serve our consumers. This paper will discuss Krumboltz’s theory, which is comprised of the Social Learning Theory of Career Decision Making (SLTCDM), Learning Theory of Career Choice and Counseling (LTCC), and Planned Happenstance. The development of Krumboltz’s theory was preceded by a vast history of career development theories whose origins began in the early 1900s. The bulk of these theories did not reflect the true experiences encountered by individuals with disabilities, as suggested by Parker & Szymanski: “…almost no systemic attention was paid to conceptualizing the career development of persons with disabilities until the middle 1960s” (2003, p. 92). At this early stage of career development theory, most theories reflected on the middle-class, White males of that era and did not address the unique circumstances faced by people with disabilities and minorities. Frank Parsons is credited with the development of the first career development theory known as trait-and-factory theory (1909). Parsons’ theory suggests that career choice is a one-time event consisting of the following three-step process: “(a) gaining information about the person, (b) gaining information about the world of work, and (c) matching these two to arrive at an appropriate occupation for that person (Parker & Szymanski, 2003, p. 92). Believing that career planning/development is a continuous lifetime process, Krumboltz rejected the trait-and-factor theory and instead developed the Social Learning Theory of Career Decision Making, which
Open Document