Self‐Help Career Services: A Case Report

Career centers use self-help services to maximize the cost-effectiveness of interventions while avoiding underserving or overserving clients. Self-help services aim to provide an immediate intervention, typically limited to one session lasting 20-40 minutes (Dozier, Sampson, Lenz, Peterson, & Reardon, 2015). This model of service delivery involves the self-guided use of information and instructional resources designed for use by individuals having high readiness for career decision making, as determined by an individual's career decision-making capability and complexity (Sampson, Reardon, Peterson, & Lenz, 2004). Self-help services are appropriate when a client makes a direct request for information with no sign of a problem, indicating a readiness to engage in the career decision-making process (Meyer-Griffith, Reardon, & Hartley, 2009). Most important, self-help services include the use of resources in an actual setting (e.g., a career center) or in a virtual setting (e.g., an Internet website), where it is possible to ask questions and receive support when needed (Sampson et al., 2004). Thus, self-help services may not occur in a completely counselor-free environment.To demonstrate the use of self-help career services, I offer a case report that describes the use of career theory to inform intervention while assessing client readiness for career decision making. Specifically, I describe a case in which a career adviser in a university setting used a theoretically focused self-help model of service delivery while interacting with a client. In so doing, the report aimed to demonstrate the effective translation of theory to practice, which is often recognized as a lacking yet vital need for the career development field (Sampson et al., 2014).The Case of AnnaThe SettingA comprehensive career center at a large research university in the southeastern United States provided the setting for this case report. The career center uses three levels of service delivery depending on client needs and readiness for career problem solving and decision making: direct, brief, and self-help (Sampson et al., 2004). Brief, staff-assisted and individual case-managed services are used with clients who have more complex career situations, whereas self-help services are used when the client has a high level of readiness in the judgment of the career adviser.Readiness is defined as an individual's capability to engage in the career learning process and is a key component in determining the level of service best suited for each client (Sampson, McClain, Musch, & Reardon, 2013). Many factors affect a person's readiness, such as negative metacognitions, lack of self-knowledge, or complexities within the decision-making process. The preliminary step for integrating a readiness appraisal into service delivery includes a brief screening upon meeting a client and preparing the client for his or her career decision making (Gati & Asulin-Peretz, 2011). This screening includes an initial interview to determine a client's personal characteristics, circumstances, level of self- and options knowledge, and previous experience with career services (Sampson et al., 2013). After building rapport and developing an understanding of the client's presenting concern, a career adviser determines the appropriate level of service delivery based on the client's readiness to engage in the career development process.A unique aspect of service delivery in this setting is that career advisers work from an integrated theoretical perspective that includes cognitive information processing (CIP) theory (Sampson et al., 2004) and Holland's (1997) RIASEC (Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional) theory. The career center uses a variety of tools, including the Career Thoughts Inventory (Sampson, Peterson, Lenz, Reardon, & Saunders, 1996), the Self-Directed Search (Holland, 1999), card sorts (e. …