Developing Career Guidance Program

for Delinquent Youth

Michael F. Pavlak

A number of programs have been

developed in recent years to provide
support, training, and guidance to economically disadvantaged and
career
handicapped youth. Federal programs such as the Youth Employment and Dem-
onstration Training Project Act, the Comprehensive Employment and Training
Act, and now the Job Partnership Act have focused on the problems economi-
cally disadvantaged youth have as they prepare for entry into the work
world. Similarly, private sector research has provided evidence which
shows the efficacy of vocational training and career counseling in assist-
ing disadvantaged youth in increasing their level of career maturity
(Hamdani, 1977), occupational knowledge and self-esteem (Otte & Sharpe,
1979), and in securing jobs (Palmo, Buechle & Osswald, 1980; Redfering &
Cook, 1980). The career development needs of handicapped youth also have
been recognized and addressed through federal legislation such as the Re-
habilitation Act Amendment of 1973 and the Education for Handicapped Chil-
dren Act of 1975 and through private sector programs (Brolin & Kokaska,
1979; Dahl & Appleby, 1981; Weisgerber, 1980).
While the career development and training needs of economically dis-
advantaged and handicapped youth have been and continue to be served, one
population that has received relatively little attention regarding prepa-
ration for entry into the work world is delinquent youth. Like disadvan-
taged and handicapped youth, delinquent youth are faced with a number of
problems that can impede their career development and lead to unemployment.
Those problems that are especially prevalent in the lives of delinquent
youth include: truancy, psychosocial deprivation, impoverished living
conditions, a dysfunctional family, a lack of successfully employed adult

Michael F. Pavlak is Career Counseling Consultant and Director of

Career Counseling at Parmadale-St. Anthony Youth Services Village, Parma,
Ohio.

111
or peer group models, a police record, placement in a correctional institu-
tion, low self-concept, lack of motivation, difficulty in orientation to
the future, and employer discrimination.

Career theorists suggest that factors such as childhood experiences,

the emotional climate of the home and genetic influences (Roe & Siegelman,
1964), environmental pressure and the quantity and quality of education
(Ginzberg, Ginsburg, Axelrad & Herma, 1951), the socioeconomic status of
the parents, adult role models, and self-concept (Super, 1955, 1969), and
environmental conditions and events (Krumboltz, Mitchell & Gelatt, 1975)
influence and shape an individual’s career development. Given that an in-
dividual’s career development is formed by internal and external forces,
it stands that the multiplicity of problems that face delinquent youth can
mitigate against their acquiring the values, knowledge, and skills that
produce effective career behaviors. Thus, it is not unusual to find that
delinquent youth have not given consideration to their career plans, nor
have they received much help from others in their career development.

A primary purpose of removing youth from their natural setting and

placing them in an institutional treatment facility or a community-based
alternative such as a group home is to have their presenting problems re-
mediated and to help them acquire a variety of daily living, social, and
academic skills which may not have been present when they were first
placed. Additional skills and knowledge also can be achieved, however,
when youth are in placement. Because placement outside of their own home
may be, in many cases, the first and perhaps last chance for them to begin
to acquire the skills necessary to enter and be successful in the work
world, it is imperative that residential treatment facilities address their
career development needs.

This article describes the development and implementation of a career

guidance program for delinquent youth who are in residential treatment set-
tings. The program uses an individualized career guidance plan and the
staff of the agency to serve as career guidance facilitators/implementors.
The program’s purpose is to assist delinquent youth in: acquiring knowledge
of their personal strengths and weaknesses, interests and values; using
career exploratory resources to expand their view of the work world; learn-
ing and applying a decision-making process purposefully and realistically;
acquiring the behaviors necessary to work cooperatively with others; devel-
oping the skills necessary for a specific occupation; and acquiring the be-
haviors needed to search for, and maintain, a job. The program is flexible
enough to help meet the career-related needs of youth, regardless of age or
presenting problem, who enter a placement site. It also is flexible enough
to be adapted to any placement site’s treatment processes (.e.g., token
economy, behavioral contracting, milieu therapy).

PROGRAM PLANNING

Prior to the actual implementation of a system-wide career guidance

program, a number of preparations must be made. Regardless of the size
of the treatment facility, the number of youth it serves, and the level
of training of the staff, careful planning will be necessary if significant

112
and positive changes are to occur. Inevitably, change will be uncomfort-
able for staff. However, cooperation from and coordination among staff,
in making contributions to the career guidance program, can be attained
by making them aware of the goals toward which their efforts may be di-
rected and by helping them adopt the attitudes, gain the knowledge, and
develop the strategies to accomplish such goals within their own disci-
plines (Herr & Cramer, 1979).
The first step in planning a career guidance program is to obtain the
support of the agency’s administration. Approaching the administration
with a proposal which begins with a small number of staff and youth may
facilitate the acceptance of the program. Following acceptance, a coordi-
nating committee comprised of members of the administration, counselors,
social workers, child-care workers, classroom teachers, parents, tutors,
residents, and community and business representatives is formed to design,
help implement, and evaluate the program. Responsibilities for committee
members include: developing a program philosophy, specifying program goals
and objectives, selecting program processes, identifying personnel who can
contribute to program processes, selecting evaluation procedures, setting
timelines, securing funds, purchasing materials, and evaluating the pro-
gress of the program.

To determine the specific career needs of youth, as well as the spe-

cific needs of staff in relation to what knowledge and skills they will re-
quire to become contributors, a needs assessment can be conducted. Data
received from such an assessment can provide the basis for program goals
and objectives and for inservice training programs. Consideration also
should be given at this time to the method of measurement that will be used
to determine if the total program is meeting its goals and whether the indi-
vidual processes designed to accomplish the specific behavioral objectives
are effective.

One of the most important phases in the development of a system-wide

career guidance program is the inservice training that the staff receives.
Through inservice training the staff participates in the decisions that
will affect their work roles, and thus they will be better able to develop
strategies to serve the career development needs of youth with whom they
work. Prior to the inservice workshops, special consideration should be
given to the selection of trainers, who the participants will be, the lo-
cation and time of the workshops, and the activities and instructional ma-
terials that will be used. Topics to be covered in the workshops may in-
clude: problems that impede the career development of delinquent youth,
career development theory and research, career guidance--a shared re-
sponsibility, instructional strategies, career guidance resources and
materials, evaluation instruments, and defining goals and objectives.
Ultimately, the workshop participants should have an understanding
of the relationship between career guidance and the needs of delinquent
youth, be aware of how they can assist in the career development of de-
linquent youth, and gain the knowledge and develop the strategies neces-
sary to contribute to the development of delinquent youth. Because a va-
riety of new skills may be needed, ongoing workshops for staff are sug-
gested.

113
 After the inservice workshops are completed, the coordinating com-
mittee can combine the input they received from the needs assessment with
the responses from the workshop participants, and begin to write the career
guidance plan. When the plan is completed, it is presented to the adminis-
tration and staff for approval. Granted approval, the committee can then
begin to purchase materials and equipment, secure the assistance of com-
munity and business groups, and begin additional staff training.

THE CAREER GUIDANCE PLAN

The
system-wide career guidance program, described here, was developed
for large residential treatment center which serves approximately 230 de-
a
linquent youth. Because the youth who enter the center vary in age, psycho-
logical, intellectual and social development, and educational and career-
maturity levels, a program was needed to assist them in acquiring career-
related knowledge, values, and skills that they had not previously pos-
sessed.

Figure 1. The Career Guidance Plan

114
Assessment

The assessment of individuals in most facilities for delinquent youth

is limited to intelligence and personality testing. While this information
is important, a variety of tests specific to career guidance also are
needed to help individuals gain a more accurate picture of their potentials
and increase their awareness of what opportunities exist for them in the
work world. The data gathered from these tests not only helps define the
career development needs of these youth, but also helps formulate career
guidance goals and objectives for them. Furthermore, such data can be em-
ployed to &dquo;stimulate, broaden, and provide focus to career exploration;
second, to stimulate exploration of self in relation to career; and third,
to provide ’what if’ information with respect to various career choice
options&dquo; (Prediger, 1974, p. 21).
Upon entry into this program, the young people are given the General
Aptitude Test Battery, Wide Range Interest-Opinion Test, Career Maturity
Inventory, Work Values Inventory, and the Tennessee Self Concept Scale.
Other aptitude tests such as the Differential Aptitude Tests, Daily Vo-
cational Tests, Appraisal of Occupational Aptitudes, or the Vocational
Planning Inventory also could be used. Their interests also could be as-
sessed by the Ohio Vocational Interest Inventory, Strong-Campbell Interest
Inventory, California Occupational Preference Survey, Minnesota Vocational
Interests Inventory, or the Vocational Preference Inventory. In addition,
career maturity could be measured by the Career Development Inventory
while work values could be measured by the Survey of Work Values and the
Hall Occupational Orientation Inventory. Following this assessment, staff,
who have been trained to record specific work-related behaviors, observe
and record the residents’ daily behavior in such areas as: following di-
rections, remaining in the work area, accepting criticism from a super-
visor, and attitudes toward work.
A summary of the youths’ academic, personal, and work history is then
prepared. This report highlights both career-related strengths and
weaknesses. The information is then presented to the career guidance team
(child-care staff, counselor, educators, social worker) who will be working
closely with these youths. One member of the team, who is designated the
career coordinator, is responsible to work on an individual basis with each
youth in implementing, monitoring, and updating that youth’s career plan.
After the test results are interpreted to the residents, the guidance team
reconvenes with the residents, and, from this meeting, goals and objectives
are agreed upon.

Formation of an Individual Contract

Once the assessment data have been gathered and analyzed, the indi-
vidual goals and objectives for the residents are formulated. The guidance
team and the residents discuss what specific objectives need to be met, who
will assist the residents in meeting their objectives, what guidance tech-
niques will be used, what evaluation measures will be used, and what the
timetable will be for the completion of the objectives. An individual con-
tract, listing the above categories, is then agreed upon, and, depending on
the needs of the individual, goals and objectives will be assigned under

115
the headings of career awareness, exploration, and/or preparation. A
sample of possible goals and objectives are listed below.
Awareness:

Goal
1. To increase the youth’s awareness
of his/her career-related self-
characteristics.
Objective
1. The youth verbally differentiates
his/her self-characteristics (e.g.,
interests, abilities, values) and
states occupations that might pro-
vide outlets for each.

2. To help the youth become aware
of the educational/training
opportunities available to him/
her.
2. The youth lists five occupations
that can be achieved with a high
school diploma, a 2-year college
degree, a 4-year college degree,
and military training.

Exploration:
Goal Objective
1. To help the youth become aware 1. After a field trip to a work site
of different working conditions. the youth can list the differences
in work conditions observed on the
site.

2. To increase the youth’s knowledge 2. The youth can identify and define
of available training sources. five forms of continuing education
following high school.

Preparation:
Goal Objective
1. To assist the youth in acquiring 1. Givena daily task to perform the
appropriate work habits and youth will be on time for the task
behaviors. and will remain in the work area
until the task is completed.

2. To assist the youth in acquiring 2. The youth will be able to correctly

job-seeking behaviors. fill out the questions on a job
application form.
Given special consideration when the goals and objectives are defined
are the projected length of stay of the youth and the youth’s age. Speci-
fically, the objectives chosen for a youth must be in accord with that indi-
vidual’s length of stay which may be from several months to several years.
Similarly, the youth’s age will influence what objectives are emphasized,
as an 18-year-old youth facing discharge may find the objectives of seeking
and securing employment to be more important than would a 14-year-old youth.

116
 The career coordinator meets weekly with the youth to insure mainte-
nance of the contract. Monthly evaluations are conducted by the guidance
team and the youth to either determine completion of the objectives and to
formulate new goals and objectives, or change the guidance techniques so
that the objectives are met.

Implement Strategies
The position of this paper is that many persons can, and do, contribute
to the career development of youth. The career guidance plan, described
here, is a shared responsibility of the staff, and it is through the staff’s
contributions that each youth may be involved in a variety of career
guidance activities.
A major part of the individual contract is the identification of the
activities that will assist the youth in meeting his/her objectives and
the identification of the staff member(s) who will facilitate those ac-
tivities. Listed below are a variety of techniques that the staff may
implement that can facilitate a youth’s career development.
Activities Staff Responsible
Community-action projects Business/industry representatives,
community leaders
Work-related field trips Child-care worker, counselor

Work experience programs Business/industry representatives,

agency support staff (e.g., mainte-
nance, dietary)
Mini courses Agency support staff, business/indus-
try representatives, child-care worker
Field trips to colleges/technical Child-care worker, educators, counse-
schools lor

Career clubs Child-care worker, educators, counse-

lor

Work simulation Agency support staff, child-care

worker, counselor

Developing bulletin boards Educators, counselor, child-care

worker

Shadowing workers Agency support staff, counselor,

child-care worker

Publishing career newsletter Educators, child-care worker, counse-

lor

117
Evaluation and Deciding if the Contract is Met

As previously discussed, the career coordinator and each youth meet

on a weekly basis to discuss the progress that has been made in achieving
each objective. Each month, the guidance team and the youth meet to dis-
cuss which objectives have been met, which guidance techniques need to be
changed or added so that unmet objectives may be achieved, and/or what new
objectives should be added.
The manner in which the objectives are evaluated vary. Because many
of the objectives are written in performance terms, the youth’s observable
behavior is evaluated via a Likert-type scale or a checklist by the staff.
Other possible methods of evaluation include: an opinion survey asking the
youth how his/her behavior has changed as a result of the program; an atti-
tude scale asking the youth what his/her attitude is about himself/herself,
career exploration, or work; changes in school attendance and/or grades,
work performance, or other quantitative indices related to the career
guidance goals; and scores on published standardized instruments such as
the Career Maturity Inventory, Career Development Inventory, Work Values
Inventory, and the Tennessee Self Concept Scale. Such instruments, if ad-
ministered at the beginning of the contract, may be readministered at this
point and the results compared with the first set of data, as in a pretest-
posttest design.
Completion of the Contract and Discharge Planning
Given that the youth’s length of stay in the facility determines, in
part, the career-related goals and objectives that are formulated for that
youth, there is a direct relationship between the youth’s discharge date
and the completion of the contract. Once it has been decided that the
youth is to be discharged, attention is given to preparing the youth to
implement choices he/she has made. These choices may include: returning
to school, selecting and enrolling in a trade school, joining the armed
forces, entering a two-year or four-year college, entering a federally
funded training program, or working in a part- or full-time job.

Prior to discharge the guidance team and the youth meet for a final
evaluation and a summary of the objectives that the youth has met is formu-
lated. In addition, the youth is asked to formulate a short-term and a
long-term career plan. As much opportunity as possible is also provided
to test the possible consequences of different placement alternatives.

Placement and Follow-up

One of the major goals of the career guidance plan is to assist each
youth in acquiring the necessary career-related knowledge and skills to be
able to maintain placement at, and be successful in, a post-discharge site
whether it is high school, a part- or full-time job, a technical school,
college, or the armed forces. Thus, the placement phase of the career
guidance plan is concerned with implementing choices and adjusting to them.
The individual from the guidance team, who is responsible for assisting
the youth in placement, acts as a liaison between the agency and placement

118
site. Although the youth has participated in the career guidance program,
there is no guarantee he/she will be at a comparable level of career de-
velopment as the population at the placement site. Therefore, the liaison
person may need to discuss the competence level, goals, and personal charac-
teristics of the youth with representatives from the placement site.

Regarding follow-up, the liaison person assists the youth in retaining

his/her position at the placement site and in establishing plans to imple-
ment his/her long-term career plan. Also, feedback from the placement site
allows the agency to evaluate the effectiveness of its guidance program, as
well as the progress of the youth.

CONCLUSION

From a career development viewpoint, an individual’s employment history

and the career-related roles that the individual will assume during a life-
time depend, in large part, upon his/her previous career development. Be-
cause delinquent youth often have chaotic social, psychological, education-
al, and family histories which can impede their career development, it is
imperative that treatment facilities which serve such youth help them ac-
quire the skills, values, and knowledge necessary to compete in the work
world. Treatment facilities that work with delinquent populations must
not only assist in the remediation of youths’ presenting problems, but also
must help youth appraise their career-relevant capabilities, gain knowledge
of the work world, select goals consistent with their career capabilities,
plan for a career, and implement career-related decisions. By having such
knowledge and skills, they will be better prepared to make work a meaningful,
satisfying, and productive part of their lives.

REFERENCES

Brolin, D.E., & Kokaska, C.J. Career education for handicapped children
and youth. Columbus, Ohio: Charles E. Merrill Publishing Co., 1979.
Dahl, P.R., & Appleby, J.A. (Eds.). Career information delivery for handi-
capped individuals, Washington, D.C.: National Governors’ Associ-
ation, 1981.

Ginzberg, E., Ginsburg, S.W., Axelrad, S., & Herma, J.R. Occupational
choice: An approach to a general theory. New York: Columbia Univer-
sity Press, 1951.
Hamdani, Asma. Facilitating vocational development among disadvantaged
innercity adolescents. The Vocational Guidance Quarterly, 1977,
(1),
26 60-68.

Herr, E.L., & Cramer, S.H. Career guidance through the life span. Boston:
Little, Brown and Co., 1979.
Krumboltz, J.D., Mitchell, A., & Gelatt, H.G. Applications of social
learning theory of career selection. Focus on Guidance, 1975, 8
(3),
1-16.

119
Otte, F.L., & Sharpe, D.L. The effects of career exploration on self-
esteem, achievement motivation, and occupational knowledge. The
Vocational Guidance Quarterly, September 1979, pp. 63-70.

Palmo, H.J., Buechle, P., & Osswald, H. A career awareness program for
high school dropouts. Journal of Employment Counseling. June 1980,
pp. 277-287.

Prediger, D.J. The role of assessment in career guidance: A reappraisal.

Impact, 1974, pp. 3-4, 15-21.
Redfering, D.L., & Cook, D. Relationships among vocational training, in-
come, and job complexity of high school dropouts and high school
graduates. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 1980, 16, 158-162.
Roe, A., & Siegelman, M. The origin of interests. Washington, D.C.: Ameri-
can Personnel and Guidance Association, 1964.

Super, D.E. Dimensions and measurement of vocational maturity. Teachers

(3), 151-161.
College Record, 1955, 57
Super, D.E. Vocational development theory: Persons, positions, and
processes. The Counseling Psychologist, 1969, 1, 2-9.
Weisgerber, R.A. A special educator’s guide to vocational training.
Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas, 1980.

120