A Model for
Evaluating the Effectiveness of
Cognitive Reframes of Dysfunctional
Career Thoughts
Technical Report 36 - Revised
Darrin L. Carr, M.S.
June 26, 2004
Center
for the Study of Technology in Counseling and
(850) 644-6431 (voice) (850) 644-3273 (FAX)
http://www.career.fsu.edu/techcenter
Copyright
© 2004 by
All Rights Reserved
Darrin
L. Carr is a Research Assistant, Instructor, and Career Advisor at The Career
Center and a doctoral student in the Combined Program in Counseling Psychology
and School Psychology at The Florida State University. The author wishes to
thank Drs. Gary W. Peterson, Robert C. Reardon, Janet G. Lenz, and James P.
Sampson, Jr. for their participation in this project. Inquiries and comments
should be addressed to Darrin Carr, at dcarr@admin.fsu.edu.
Table of Contents
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Career Problem Solving, Indecisiveness, and Dysfunctional Career Thoughts |
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Cognitive Information Processing (CIP) Theory: A Descriptive and Supportive Tool |
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Appendix A: Systematic Cognitive Errors/Distortions Identified by Aaron Beck |
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Appendix B: Instructions for Think Aloud Protocol |
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Appendix C: Instrument to Assess Model Reliability |
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Appendix D: Procedure for Finalization of Schema |
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Appendix E: Raw Data from Structured Interviews Sorted by Emergent Categories |
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Appendix F: Individual Learning Plan |
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Many high school students, post-secondary students, and adults of working age have difficulty making career decisions. Dysfunctional thinking about themselves, their options, and their decision-making abilities have been shown to contribute to indecision, anxiety, and depression, which may in turn inhibit career development. While assessment instruments such as the Career Thoughts Inventory (CTI) and Workbook can be used by practitioners and clients to identify, challenge, and alter dysfunctional career statements no model exists for evaluating the quality of clients’ reframed thoughts, which result from such interventions. Such a schema may be helpful in determining the effectiveness of cognitive restructuring treatments like the CTI Workbook and other cognitive restructuring exercises. Furthermore, this schema may also be a useful tool in teaching practitioners and clients how to evaluate their thoughts and create more effective reframes. This report documents the creation and preliminary evaluation of such a model based upon the clinical judgments of a panel of “expert” career counselors.
A Model for Evaluating the Effectiveness of
Cognitive Reframes of Dysfunctional
Career Thoughts: Technical Report 36
Difficulty making career transitions is not uncommon for both adolescents and adults. For example, in interviews conducted with 1,000 youth transitioning from school to work, Mortimer, Zimmer-Gembeck, Holmes, and Shanahan (2002) identified themes of unfulfilled expectations and postponement of career-related decisions. Interview participants rarely referred to guidance practitioners as positive and constructive influences on their decision making. Similarly, “…many mid-life career changers must deal with the frustrations of having their core issues glossed over or even ignored…” by job search professionals (Behrens & Altman, 2000, p. 44). During their three year qualitative study, Behrens and Altman found that 95% of 92 mid-life career changers professed a lack of confidence in their ability to find mid-life career satisfaction and felt that their desire to explore such core issues was rebuffed by job search experts. The authors recommended that, “By helping them to conquer their fears, correct erroneous beliefs, and become aware of and revise negative self-talk…,” practitioners can help mid-life job seekers to “…find the energy to network and project the confidence to interview successfully.”
These career decision-makers, regardless of age, believe their needs are being ignored by practitioners and other career development professionals. This may in part be due to practitioners perceiving themselves as unprepared to help clients address the core issue of dysfunctional cognitions that complicate career choices. For example, at one college career center both anecdotal and qualitative data have been collected on the difficulties experienced by student practitioners using an assessment and intervention for dysfunctional career thinking with clients (Etheridge, in progress). It is not surprising that expert practitioners have been shown to have more complex schemata than those of novices for intervening with clients (Martin, Slemon, Hiebert, Hallberg, & Cummings, 1989). However, it is somewhat surprising that experts may have difficulty defining and communicating their sophisticated yet tacit schemata to practitioner trainees and clients.
One possible method of closing this gap in expertise between practitioners, practitioner-trainees, and clients, may be to develop an “expert model” for evaluating the effectiveness of client reframes of dysfunctional career related cognitions. In an attempt to offer such an expert model, this paper will briefly review the relevant theory base, describe a combined qualitative/ quantitative methodology and its derived results, and discuss these findings with respect to the empirical literature. This paper will then close with a discussion of the implications of the derived expert model for the delivery of career services, practitioner training, and additional research.
Career Problem Solving, Indecisiveness, and Dysfunctional Career Thoughts
Two fundamental realities of career problem solving are that it can be a cognitively complex and affectively unsettling task. Bruner (1985) pointed out that ordinary problems are often poorly defined; have multiple, interdependent goals; and shifting standards of success. Similarly, individuals attempting to resolve career problems are faced with ambiguous cues, interdependent alternatives, and uncertain outcomes. Furthermore, solving one career problem, usually creates only new problems requiring the client’s attention (Peterson, Sampson, & Reardon, 1991; Peterson, Sampson, Lenz, & Reardon, 2002; Sampson, Reardon, Peterson, & Lenz, 2004).
Because of this high level of cognitive complexity, many clients (like the previously mentioned transitioning adolescents and adults) have difficulty working through the career problem-solving process. However, it is the indecisive client who is generally thought to have a maladaptive approach to problem solving accompanied by a dysfunctional level of anxiety (Gordon, 1998; Peterson, Sampson, Jr., Reardon, & Lenz, 1996; Peterson et al., 1991; Sampson et al., 2004). The high anxiety of the indecisive client limits cognitive capacity and motivation for career choice. Intensifying emotion has been found to further bias recall and perception, thus creating a self-perpetuating cycle of increasing cognitive dysfunction and affect (Freeman, Pretzer, Fleming, & Simon, 1990). Such a reciprocal relationship between negative thinking and mood is supported by the available evidence in empirical studies by Teasdale and other investigators (Marzillier, 1986).
The conceptual evolution of career indecision has been described by Savickas (1995) as moving from a dichotomy, to a one-dimensional continuum, to a multidimensional concept. For example, in undergraduate college students, career indecision has been found to be a, “…complex problem space of both cognitive and affective variables that are in themselves highly interrelated and ostensibly interactive. Vocational identity, state and trait anxiety, locus of control, depression, and dysfunctional career thoughts are all significantly associated with the state of career indecision and with each other” (Saunders, Peterson, Sampson, & Reardon, 2000, p. 294). Specifically, Saunders found that dysfunctional career thoughts captured significant amounts of independent variation in career indecision (Saunders, 1998).
Cognitive Information Processing Theory: A Descriptive and Supportive Tool
In an effort to describe and intervene in the career choice process, numerous theories of career problem solving and decision making have been created. One theory which considers the effect of dysfunctional thoughts and accompanying negative affect on choice is the Cognitive Information Processing Approach to Problem Solving and Decision Making (CIP) (Peterson et al., 1996; Peterson et al., 1991; Peterson et al., 2002; Sampson et al., 2004). Similar to other theories of career development, CIP Theory describes the content and process of career choice. In this instance, the Pyramid of Information Processing Domains defines three content domains of knowledge, decision-making skills, and executive processing skills (Figure 1). The process component of CIP Theory is the five step CASVE cycle contained within the decision-making skills domain (Figure 2).
However, what is somewhat unique about CIP Theory is the Executive Processing Domain, which emphasizes the importance of metacognitive skills (Figure 1)(Peterson et al., 1991; Peterson et al., 2002; Reardon, Lenz, Sampson, & Peterson, 2000; Sampson et al., 2004). Assisting indecisive clients to become aware of their cognitive distortions requires that clients be aware of their metacognitions, that is to be able to “think about their thoughts.” The concept of metacognition has many different labels in the literature. These labels have included the executive processes of Belmont and Butterfield (1977) and what Gagne and Briggs (1974) called cognitive strategies. According to Wells (2000, p. 6), “…metacognition is defined as any knowledge or cognitive process that is involved in the appraisal, monitoring, or control of cognition.”
Several studies have found that young children possess limited metacognitive knowledge and ability (Flavell, 1979); thus, we must practice and develop metacognitive skills as we mature. Learning to use these metacognitive skills helps individuals “…to orchestrate cognitive aspects of problem solving” (Paris & Winograd, 1990, p. 18). Specifically, metacognitions can lead individuals to: 1) establish new goals and revise or abandon previous goals; 2) add to, delete from, or revise their metacognitive knowledge; or 3) activate strategies that generate additional cognitive or metacognitive goals (Flavell, 1979). When such metacognitive skills are limited, dysfunctional thoughts may be frequent and subsequent efforts to resolve the content or process problems of career choice are hindered.
CIP Theory outlines three kinds of overlapping metacognitive skills which can be learned by clients as a means to becoming more effective career decision makers: self-awareness, self-talk, and monitoring and control