An age-graded model for career development education

Career development is defined as including self-awareness, career-awareness, and career decision making components. This paper attempts then to provide a framework by which educators interested in stimulating career development can choose the learning experiences most likely to have payoffs for different age youth. Eight stages of child development are described in terms of the major behavioral orientation of the child in each. Career development themes are then suggested for each stage along with sample activities and experiences for each theme. Finally, instructional media are recommended for each stage and related to the themes and activities suggested earlier.     

Examining the Potential of Community-Based After-School Programs for Latino Youth

Results are presented from two pilot studies examining the potential influence of community-based after-school programs (ASPs) on regionally diverse Latino youth of varying ages. Study 1 examined relations between dimensions of ASP attendance and content, and ethnic identity development, and self-worth in urban Latino adolescents. In this study, higher ratings of the ASP’s emphasis on ethnic socialization were associated with a more developed ethnic identity, while greater intensity of ASP participation and perceptions of ASP quality were associated with higher levels of self-worth. Study 2 examined relations between ASP participation and development of concentration and emotion regulation skills in rural Latino grade-school youth. In this study, youth who regularly attended the ASP demonstrated significantly better concentration and regulation skills than those who did not regularly attend, if they exhibited preexisting concentration and regulation problems. Findings illustrate how ASPs with varying strategies, activities, and assessment tools can be evaluated in the interest of designing future large-scale investigations into ASPs and Latino positive youth development.     

The Cultural Adaptation of a Transition Program for Latino Families of Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder

During the transition to adulthood, effective and culturally relevant supports are critical for families of youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There is a dearth of documented program development and research on supports for Spanish-speaking Latino families during this life stage. The present work describes the cultural adaptation process of an evidence-based transition program for Latino families of youth with ASD. A model of the actions necessary to meaningfully conduct a cultural adaptation in this context is described. After implementing the culturally adapted program titled Juntos en la Transición with five Spanish-speaking families, parents reported high social validity of the program through surveys and interviews. The cultural adaptation process followed in this work is important for the further development of programs that address the transition needs of Latino youth with ASD and their families. Our impressions may also be useful to those who aim to develop culturally sensitive and ecologically valid multifamily group intervention programs for families from cultural and linguistic minority groups.     

Empowering Change Agents: Youth Organizing Groups as Sites for Sociopolitical Development

In addition to social action campaigns, some youth organizing groups provide formative learning experiences which engage youth in relevant sociopolitical issues through critical approaches. These groups support sociopolitical development (SPD), a self and socially‐oriented process which influences youth personally, politically, and professionally into adulthood. This study explored how youth organizing experiences influenced SPD in the professional domain, applying an empowerment lens. Phenomenologically‐based interviews were conducted with former sexual health education youth organizers and adult program staff. Former youth participants chose socially‐oriented career paths influenced by the group's empowering approach to sexual health education and advocacy. They related meaningful sociopolitical learning experiences (e.g., interpersonal, educational, and civic engagement) to empowerment outcomes (e.g., political efficacy, critical awareness, and participatory behaviors) which informed career decisions. Professionally, participants sought to empower others as the group empowered them, drawing upon youth organizing social and human capital as they worked toward this aim. Combining sociopolitical and empowerment theorizing, the study adds to what is known about how purposefully designed youth organizing experiences support long‐term development outcomes for individuals. Viewed as socially‐oriented career development sites, youth organizing groups build capacity for social change beyond the groups themselves. Implications for youth organizing scholars and practitioners are provided.     

Family Dynamics and Changes in Sibling of Origin Relationship After Lesbian and Gay Sexual Orientation Disclosure

Despite the knowledge that the entire family system plays a role in the development of an individual, research on the disclosure of LG sexual orientation to the family of origin is mostly concentrated on the parental reaction. Siblings are rarely a focus of such research. Thus, the purpose of this qualitative study was to provide an understanding of the experiences of 14 heterosexual biological siblings of LG persons after they learn that their sister or brother is LG. More specifically, this study explored the changing family dynamics with a focus on the sibling of a LG sister or brother and the ways in which sexual orientation disclosure affects the sibling relationship. Data analysis identified ten themes: personal reaction to disclosure, suspecting sibling was LG based on stereotyping, protectiveness/concern, gay equals being different, anger/disappointment in how parent(s) handled LG sibling coming out, sibling relationship changes, increased comfort with having a LG sibling, disclosure of LG sibling sexual orientation to others, dealing with and challenging heterosexism, and changes to self as a result of sibling sexual orientation.     

Acculturation and Latino Adolescent Mental Health: Integration of Individual,Environmental, and Family Influences

In order to address the mental health disparities that exist for Latino adolescents in the United States, psychologists must understand specific factors that contribute to the high risk of mental health problems in Latino youth. Given the significant percentage of Latino youth who are immigrants or the children of immigrants, acculturation is a key factor in understanding mental health among this population. However, limitations in the conceptualization and measurement of acculturation have led to conflicting findings in the literature. Thus, the goal of the current review is to examine and critique research linking acculturation and mental health outcomes for Latino youth, as well as to integrate individual, environmental, and family influences of this relationship. An integrated theoretical model is presented and implications for clinical practice and future directions are discussed.     

Adding Career Biographies and Career Narratives to Career Interest Inventories

This study with 20 adults explored adding career biographies and career narrative writing to the career interest assessment report process. Participants reported that biographies and narratives helped them identify themes to consider how their career plans fit their personal lifestyle, meaning making, and values. This study offers 1 way to incorporate narratives and story to explore the self and self‐in‐context to activate meaning‐making processes in career interest assessment reports. Until career interest assessment reports include career biographies and a process for writing career narratives, only career counselors can offer this type of service to clients.     

Examining Latino Family Participation in Treatment for Childhood ADHD: The Role of Parental Cultural Factors and Perceptions

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common mental health disorder in childhood. Unfortunately, Latino youth and their families are at increased risk of demonstrating poor treatment outcomes. The current study examined the impact of parental cultural factors and perceptions on Latino family participation in a psychosocial intervention for childhood ADHD. Sixty-one Latino youth and at least one of their primary parents and teachers participated in the current study. Results indicated that parental acculturation, attitudes regarding treatment, and baseline severity of child symptomatology and functional impairment were related to treatment participation outcomes. Implications and future directions are discussed.     

The Role of Family in Latino Males’ Occupational Identity Development: A Thematic Analysis Based on Participants’ Occupation Outcomes

The continued growth of the Latino population in the United States is reshaping the nation’s workforce. Given that the majority of Latino children are raised in circumstances that limit their psychosocial development and success in the labor market, and given that Latino men continually lag behind their female peers in educational attainment, understanding how this population develops an occupational identity vis-à-vis their family contexts has become increasingly important. This study, utilizing a qualitative design, retrospectively explored the occupational identity development experiences vis-à-vis family of Latino boys born, raised, and living in California. Following a constructivist grounded theory approach, the purpose of the study was to generate a middle range theory of how Latino boys develop an occupational identity in the home that also explains the divergence of working-class and white-collar occupational paths. Interviews with Latino Americans were conducted using semi-structured interviewing techniques. Nine themes emerged from the data that, when pieced together, produce a model of the occupational identity development trajectories of the participants. Implications of the findings include a need for continued research into the Latino concept of family and parent roles.     

Challenges to the Career Development of Urban Racial and Ethnic Minority Youth: Implications for Vocational Intervention

Urban racial and ethnic minority youth experience a variety of internal and external challenges to their career development. This article discusses several potential barriers to successful career attainment experienced by racial and ethnic minority youth and identifies a series of recommendations that vocational counselors may wish to consider in addressing the career development needs of this population.     

Sexual values among Latino youth: measurement development using a culturally based approach

Latino youth in the United States are at higher risk for negative sexual outcomes compared to their European American counterparts. Adherence to traditional sexual values may protect against or increase their risk. Past studies have generally utilized proxy measures, such as acculturation, to assess sexual values. The objective of the current study was to develop and test culturally based sexual values measures among Latino youth. Focus groups and qualitative interviews were conducted to generate themes related to sexual values. Six measures were developed: three related to gender role norms (Sexual Talk as Disrespectful, Satisfaction of Sexual Needs as Important, Female Virginity as Important) and three related to comfort regarding sexuality (Comfort with Sexual Communication, Sexual Comfort, and Sexual Self-Acceptance). The scales' psychometric properties were assessed in a sample of 694 sexually active young Latinos. Results indicate that these measures conformed to single-factor scales and displayed acceptable reliabilities. Correlations with conceptually related measures were in hypothesized directions. Findings suggest it is feasible to directly assess sexual values in a valid and reliable manner. The measures presented in the current article represent tools for such assessment.     

Latino Family Participation in Youth Mental Health Services: Treatment Retention,Engagement, and Response

Although researchers have identified a multitude of factors that contribute to family participation in mental health services, few studies have examined them specifically for Latino youth and their families in the U.S., a population that continues to experience significant disparities related to the availability, accessibility, and quality of mental health services. Latino youth and their families are at greater risk of dropping out of treatment prematurely and demonstrating poor treatment engagement, both of which have subsequent negative effects on treatment response outcomes. In order to help to guide efforts to improve the accessibility and quality of mental health services for Latino youth and their families, the current paper integrates modern conceptualization of family participation in youth mental health services and provides a summary of contextual factors within an ecological framework (Bronfenbrenner in The ecology of human development: experiments by nature and design, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1979). The current review aims to integrate empirical research on the impact of various contextual factors across multiple levels (i.e., culture, community, mental health system, family, parent/caregiver, and child/adolescent) on Latino family participation in youth mental health services, including treatment retention, engagement, and response. Clinical implications will be discussed, and an integrated, conceptual model will be presented. Not only does this model help to demonstrate the way in which existing literature is conceptually linked, but it also helps to highlight factors and underlying processes that health care providers, administrators, and policy makers must consider in working to improve mental health services for Latino youth and their families living in the U.S.     

The relationship of ethnic identity, career decision-making self-efficacy and outcome expectations among Latino/a high school students

This study explored the relation of ethnic identity to two determinants of career interests identified by social-cognitive career theory (SCCT): self-efficacy and outcome expectations. For a sample of 128 Latino/a ninth graders, the results indicated that ethnic identity had a direct and positive relationship to career decision-making self-efficacy, while its association with career planning outcome expectations was mediated by self-efficacy. These results offer support for consideration of the role of ethnic identity in self-exploration and vocational guidance with Latino/a adolescents. Limitations, implications for counseling, and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

The Parental Schoolwork Support Measure-Youth: development and psychometric evaluation

Parental involvement in school-related tasks is associated with a number of positive outcomes across ethnic groups. However, a growing literature suggests that unique forms of involvement and barriers exist among linguistic minority Latino families. The Parental Schoolwork Support Measure-Youth (PSSM-Y) is introduced in this study along with the psychometric properties found with a sample of 133 Latino youth in Grades 5 through 7 from a public school in a low-income urban neighborhood. Exploratory factor analyses indicated the presence of three factors called direct support, language and support, and indirect support, which together accounted for 66.3% of the common variance in the 16-item version. Strong internal consistency and test-retest coefficients were found for the PSSM-Y in this sample. In addition, schoolwork support was correlated with youth depression, economic pressure, loneliness, and familism in the expected directions. The findings are discussed in terms of the potential utility of this measure for future school-based studies of Latino students and youth of immigrant backgrounds in the United States.     

Fortalezas Familiares Program: Building Sociocultural and Family Strengths in Latina Women with Depression and Their Families

The purpose of this article is to describe Fortalezas Familiares (FF; Family Strengths), a community‐based prevention program designed to address relational family processes and promote well‐being among Latino families when a mother has depression. Although depression in Latina women is becoming increasingly recognized, risk and protective mechanisms associated with children's outcomes when a mother has depression are not well understood for Latino families. We begin by reviewing the literature on risk and protective psychosocial mechanisms by which maternal depression may affect Latino youth, using family systems theory and a developmental psychopathology framework with an emphasis on sociocultural factors shaping family processes. Next, we describe the theoretical basis and development of the FF program, a community‐based 12‐week intervention for Latina immigrant women with depression, other caregivers, and their children. Throughout this article, we use a case study to illustrate a Latina mother's vulnerability to depression and the family's response to the FF program. Recommendations for future research and practice include consideration of sociocultural processes in shaping both outcomes of Latino families and their response to interventions.     

Longitudinal links between career adaptability and academic achievement in adolescence

Contemporary youth spend increasingly longer time in the educational system, where their career pursuits become closely intertwined with their educational goals. As career development is a life-long process, adolescents start working on their careers long before they engage in actual work behaviors. Therefore, in order for school to adaptively prepare youth for their future work lives, career adaptability and academic achievement should be reciprocally and positively linked throughout adolescence. To date, more longitudinal proof for these relations is needed. To address this shortcoming, we investigated cross-lagged associations between these two constructs in a three-wave longitudinal study, testing the moderating role of adolescents' gender, school type, and age. Participants were 1151 adolescents (41.3% boys), who completed the same paper-and-pencil measure three times across an academic year. Results showed positive reciprocal associations between career concern and academic achievement (i.e., Grand Point Average). This indicates that adolescents with a strong future orientation, who were already invested in career planning activities tended to perform better in school and vice-versa, high academic achievement further strengthened adolescents' positive outlooks on their vocational future. We also detected positive unidirectional links from academic achievement to career control and career confidence across one academic year. Interestingly, we did not find significant longitudinal links between career curiosity and academic achievement. These patterns of longitudinal relations applied equally to boys and girls, to those attending university-preparatory and work-bound schools, and to early-to-middle and middle-to-late adolescents. Research and applied implications of these findings are detailed.     

A Re-Examination of Risk and Resilience During Adolescence: Incorporating Culture and Diversity

We consider risk and resilience within the developmental contexts of youth of African, Asian, Latino, and Native American descent. Conceptual and definitional issues are explained in terms of the role that culture and diversity play in specifying risk and resilience factors for youth of African, Asian, Latino, and Native American descent. We promote a conceptual model of risk and resilience as multidimensional phenomenon. The relevance of culture and diversity in a developmental perspective of youth of African, Asian, Latino, and Native American descent is discussed in a manner that incorporates community psychology principles.     

A holistic perspective on career development in UK female soccer players: A negative case analysis

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to examine career experiences of UK-based female youth soccer players from a holistic perspective with a view to producing a grounded theory of factors contributing to career/talent development and transitions in UK youth female soccer.MethodologyA Grounded Theory methodology (Corbin & Strauss, 2008) was used. Negative case (Denzin, 1989) former female soccer players (N = 13), their best friend (N = 13), soccer coaches (N = 4), and teachers (N = 8) took part in semi-structured interviews about factors associated with talent development and career transitions in female youth soccer.ResultsMultiple social agents (players, team-mates, peers, teachers, parents and siblings) need to optimally interact to ensure that an optimal talent development and learning environment is created. This will provide a supportive holistic talent development environment, lead to adaptive player-level changes, and a greater chance of successful athletic and dual career development.ConclusionsThis study presents a rich understanding of the dual careers of players who did not make it in female soccer. By considering their perspectives alongside of a range of important social agents, we have been able to construct a substantive grounded theory of factors contributing to career/talent development and transitions in UK youth female soccer. As a result, these findings may contribute to policy and practice development in UK female youth soccer.