Career Counseling and Psychotherapy: False Dichotomies and Recommended Remedies

Abstract

This paper addresses counseling psychology's ongoing concerns about the role of career counseling. First, a series of artificial distinctions exacerbating the rift between career and personal counseling are discussed. Of particular concern is the failure on the part of counselors, possibly associated with declining interest in the career realm, to properly assess and treat career-related concerns. Arguments for the continuing importance of career development and counseling are presented in the context of the increasing acknowledgement of the work/mental health interface within applied psychology and ethical imperatives to provide needed services to our clients. Second, some possible remedies for the current state of affairs are advanced, including enhancement of the theoretical basis of career research, improving our training in career assessment and counseling, and the integration of some recent trends in psychotherapy research.