FAMILY MATTERSFamily Influence in Career

Development

Robert C. Chope, Ph.D.San Francisco State University

rcchope@sfsu.edu

Good Morning Madison!!

The Doyles

Like father like son Father, Judge James Doyle, ran

unsuccessfully for governor in 1954

Purpose of Presentation Provide an argument for exploring in depth

family issues in career development. Create a means to organize information and

ask personal and family related questions as an aid to the career development process.

Show how cultural expectations, class, and ethnicity add to our understanding of family influences.

Illustrate how the family can contribute to career development.

Part I

Provide an argument for exploring in depth family issues in career development

Illustrations

Four examples illustrate the point

Jack London Mother Knows

Best

Zak Unger

Same story100 Years Later

Wendy Wasserstein

Mother’sDisappointment

George Wein Father’sDisapproval

The Data Are In

Family Matters

What do families want? Fame?

Al Franken, Joshua Bell, Vincent Van Gogh Chuck Ross resubmitted Jerry Kosinski’s

Steps which one the 1969 Nat. Book Award Income stability? Happiness? Community involvement? Don’t do what I did!!

Families influence career choices – why not …

Accentuate the positive Understand the negative Let the career choice unfold like a

story And have the client create a

narrative

Don’t Work Alone, Use the Family

Family of origin affects how people choose a career path Background, history, mobility, support,

conflicts, nurturing and exposure to new ideas

Families and significant others can be used in the career development process

Counselors are in the village, on the team

Family Influence Versus Happenstance

John Krumboltz and his career development

Serendipity Theory Describe three events of

happenstance The use of mentors

Name three important mentors

New Models

In and out economy-Actor modelOrganizational matrices reduce

linearityNever ending job search-Dental modelBuffet-Walk on ModelProject driven work-Portfolio career

modelImagination and Creativity are key

Part II

The purpose of Part II: To create a means to organize

information. To ask personal and family related

questions as an aid to the career development process.

Biography, Blogs and Tweets

A nation of biographers Create chronicles and memory books Create web sites reflecting interest

like a family history site Create a blog to discuss anything

from food to politics Keep the personal network tuned in

with face book, twitter, linked in, et al.

E-Portfolios and Journaling

Just write Discover a focus Contribute daily Look at the journey Give the details (like James Boswell

and Samuel Johnson) Let others comment with postings

New Focus on Context

Peers , teachers, coaches, community officials, and others

Families and interaction patterns The need to know yourself and

your context before you know your career

New Contextual Approaches

Creating narratives, contextualizing career development and utilizing constructivism give added meaning to the counseling process

Family Dictates: Family Histories Can Be Filled With Intrigue

Struggle may ensue Two well-known examples

Andre Agassi Rachel Naomi Remen

Andre Agassi

Reinventing success

Portrait of Andre Agassi

His Story “Open” Hated tennis but played to please father Anxiety/pressure/dropped from school Turned pro to a life he hated His drug use shows how counselors must

treat more than the career decision He was able to make his career his own

Rachel Naomi Remen

The Jewish Doctor finds wiggle room

Savickas’ Career Styles Interview

Models-Who do you admire? Why? Books-Favorite book? Why? Magazines? (Web sites?) TV (Games?) Movies-Which on a stranded island Leisure-Free time activities School subjects

Career Styles (cont)

Mottos-Do you have a motto or favorite saying?

Ambitions What do your parents want? (What do your friends want?) What are your ambitions? What do you day dream about?

Career Styles (cont)

Decisions- Describe an important decision you have made and how you were able to make it.Counseling moves from “fit” to belonging, from similarity to uniqueness, from interests to career path, discovering the “hidden reasons” that guide the story.

Systematic Methods for Gathering Information

Genogram Retrospective Questionnaires

Career Genogram

Picture the origin of family career expectations and congruence

Family success and failure Patterns of career choice Contextual influences and genetics

Some Questions With the Genogram

Who do you identify with? Whose aspirations are similar to

yours? What are the dominant values? Are there myths, ghosts, legends? Are there secrets? What are the interactions like? What are the pressures?

Retrospective Questionnaires

Amundson’s Significant Other Questionnaire

Taylor’s Family Work History Family Constellation Questionnaire Chope’s Family Protocol

Chope Protocol

What kind of career related information does the family provide?

What kind of tangible assistance is provided?

What kind of emotional support is provided?

Chope Protocol (cont)

Is your client concerned about the impact of the career choice on the family?

What disruptive events affected your client or other members of the family?

What are the actions of the family members who are asked to help and the actions of those not asked to help?

What Were the Disruptions?

Untimely moves Tragedies Homelessness Incarceration Divorce Military service Non events

How Does the Family Help?

In Summary

Career information possibilities, alternatives, traditions

Emotional support Emotional pressure Available resources Networks

Part III

The purpose of Part III: Show how cultural expectations,

environment, class, and ethnicity add to understanding family influence.

Diversity

Cultural expectations Examples

The Korean one year old The Thai Monk

Considering Multicultural Context

Multiethnic and diversified groups remain worse off than white peers

Diminished employment opportunities are a significant source of stress

Cultural Stressors

Biological stressPhysical stressPsychological stressFamily stressSocial stressCultural stress

Other Considerations

Younger family members access global information

Loss of filial pietyDesire for autonomy, self

expression, and individually oriented achievement

Many witnessed family career reconstruction

Ten Issues for Understanding Family

Influence

1 Cultural Identity

Cultural identity in a multicolored world is complicated

What is the impact of assimilation?Look at the questions asked about

President Obama

2 Acculturation Modes

Acculturation vs. enculturationPride vs. shameInclusion vs. separationAdopting new values vs. holding on

to indigenous values

3 Demographic Environment

What is the nature of the population in the area where the client resides and how representative is it of the client's culture?

4 Diversity within Cultural Groupings

Counselors need to be sensitive to variations within a culture.

A broad categorization like "Latino/a" or "Hispanic" can be South American, Central American, Iberian, Cuban, Caribbean, Mexican and other cultures.

Middle Eastern ethnic groups share many similarities in culture and traditions but have many differences including language (e.g. Arabic, Persian, Farsi, Iraqi, and Armenian) as well as differences in religion.

5 Legal Status

This is likely to be a sensitive topic for many immigrants. The documentation status of a person and the family has important implications on career decision making. Legal services referrals may be appropriate in certain circumstances.

6 Language

Language is an important source of identity for people.

Dialect may represent identity.

Language your client uses at home may not be used at work or in school.

7 Religion

Religious values may play an important role in career choices.

People who follow a non mainstream religion may feel uncomfortable on the job.

8 Attitudes About WorkThe worldview of the family and culture should be addressed. Some families want their children to earn money and be independent. Others want them to achieve. Others want them to refrain from drawing attention to themselves.

9 Rules in the Family System

Families may have different rules about the power and the influence of the extended family. Grandparents, aunts, cousins, and uncles may have a role regarding career selection and education different from other cultures. Confronting or disagreeing with parents can be seen as a sign of disrespect.

10 Gender StereotypesMost cultures have gender stereotypes regarding the roles that men and women play relative to work, educational experiences, and family responsibilities.

Career counselors should be aware of the differential expectations regarding appropriateness of jobs for each gender.

A most interesting question is how a woman’s success affects the family relationship.

Part IV

How the family can contribute to career development?

Alan & Louis

Modeling

Ryan Sadowski

Why is this important?

Group Decision MakingNetworking---Relocating

Linked in, Facebook, My Space, Twitter

Family knows you Reflect on past—photos, letters,

report cards, vacations, events, who you were

Mattering

People need to feel that they matter-it is why we visit loved ones at holidays and in hospitals

Lowers depression and anxiety and increases wellness

Fantasy has power—Cold Mountain Practical advice is given, ideas are

generated

But families can hurt

Destroy creativity Demand that you know what you

are doing before getting started Demand that you not offend Demand that everything is run

through them first Criticize every step of the way

Indecision results

How families can help

Listen more, judge less Support risk taking Forge new connections Prevent career indecision Promote positive career beliefs

Integrating families, teachers and counselors

Work with English teachers to craft assignments about family experiences with work.

Have the stories become a part of the students’ career planning files.

Use technology like Youtube to find varieties of career experience

Conclusion

Exploring family influence allows for a deeper appreciation of the uniqueness of all clients and the cultures they came from and are now part of.

Being aware of differential pressures on people and their responses to them makes a counselor culturally sensitive and effective.