Adolescents’ Perceptions of Career Concern

Abstract

The Merriam-Webster (2003) definition states that a concern is an "uneasy state of blended interest, uncertainty and apprehension". Ginzberg and colleagues (1951) indicated a process of choosing an occupation concerning different periods of vocational choice. Super (1953; 1980) indicated that some concerns have a vocational basis and even created an instrument with an intent to measure individual’s stage of concerns in life (Super, Thompson, and Lindeman, 1988). Ginzberg (1952) and Super (1980) focused on the stage of adolescence as a critical period where students develop a sense of the future and become ready to plan and decide. Though the word ‘concern’ has been discussed by these authors, it appears that the term is anything but clear or well understood in the realm of career development.