The Evolution of Trait-and-Factor Career Counseling: A Person × Environment Fit Approach

This article illustrates how the trait-and-factor model of career counseling has evolved into a person × environment fit approach. Criticisms of the original model are presented and then rebutted by clarifying misconceptions and noting advances in theory and practice. Specifically, theoretical advances include the addition of dynamic assumptions underlying the model and the development of mature theories of career choice and adjustment. Counseling advances include use of more comprehensive diagnostic schemes, explication of the counseling process, and a more sophisticated understanding of counselor and client interactions. Finally, the role of differential diagnosis, problem-solving interventions, and psychometric information within this approach are clarified.