Factors Affecting the Occupational and Educational Aspirations of Children and Adolescents

Recent legislative changes have increased the need for effective career development programs in K-12 schools. The School to Work Opportunities Act (SWOA, 1994), for example, placed emphasis on students' future occupations and created a demand for guidance and training aimed at helping students make the transition from high school to the world of work (VonVillas, 1995). At the same time, economic and demographic trends have made the implementation of comprehensive, career guidance programs an increasingly complex task for school counselors (Ladd, 1998). Rapid technological advances have made some form of postsecondary education almost a necessity for students entering today's job market (Valadez, 1998). In addition, many forecasters predict that the nation's economic future depends on higher levels of educational attainment within those segments of society currently possessing the lowest levels of education (Mau, 1995). These trends, combined with the increasing diversity of K-12 students in the 21st century (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1990), will require career guidance services that prepare students from a wide range of racial, cultural, and socio-economic backgrounds for postsecondary options that meet the unique needs of each student as well as the needs of the job market and the national economy Given the need to prepare students for these changing social and economic conditions, it is apparent that career guidance programs should not be limited to the high school years (Hossler & Maple, 1993). Although school career programs have historically concentrated on high school students-who, it was assumed, had more realistic views of career choices and options than younger students (Cook et al., 1996-career education is now recognized as an integral part of guidance programs at the middle school and elementary levels as well (Murrow-Taylor, Folz, Ellis, & Culbertson, 1999). Thus, school counselors at all grade levels are concerned with the factors influencing students' educational and occupational aspirations. Nonetheless, when compared to the vast amount of research and theory related to adult career development, the roles of childhood and adolescence in the career development process remain relatively unexamined (Trice, Hughes, Odom, Woods, & McClellan, 1995). In addition, the increasing diversity of elementary and middle school students requires understanding the role of racial, cultural, and socio-economic influences on early career development (Mau, 1995). The purpose of this article is to review the research literature on factors affecting the educational and occupational aspirations of children and adolescents. Following the literature review, the implications of the research for school counselors are discussed, along with specific recommendations for addressing the career development needs of elementary, middle school, and high school students. Finally, recommendations for future research in this area are presented. Review at Literature Conventional wisdom suggests that plans for postsecondary education and employment are typically not crystallized until high school (Hossler & Maple, 1993). Similarly, the development of career and lifestyle goals is a process traditionally ascribed to the middle to late college years (Chickering & Reisser, 1993). However, a review of theory and recent research related to educational and occupational aspirations reveals that important career development processes may occur well before adolescence. In fact, tentative college plans may be formed in early elementary school (Ring,1994), with career preferences evident as early as kindergarten (Trice & King, 1991). Factors affecting the development of occupational and educational aspirations during childhood and adolescence are examined below. Occupational Aspirations Although the earliest theories of career development largely ignored childhood and adolescence, the importance of early developmental processes has gradually and increasingly been acknowledged in the career development literature. …