Career Transitions Caused by Chronic Illness: A Career Construction Perspective

Purpose: People living with chronic illness face significant challenges with employment. This study explores the impact of participating in the Career Construction Interview (CCI) on the career exploration of individuals facing a forced career transition due to the onset or exacerbation of a chronic illness.Method: An instrumental multiple case study design was used in this qualitative study. A pur-poseful, homogeneous sample of three female adults was used to gain multiple perspective of forced career transitions. The participants were within 2 years of their diagnosis or exacerbation of one or more chronic health conditions and had to change their career because of the impact of their condition(s).Results: Eight open codes and five axial codes were discovered through the process of constant comparative analysis. For this study one open code (CCI experience) and five axial codes will be discussed.Conclusions: This study found patterns related to chronic illness and career and that the Career Construction Interview was helpful to the participants in assisting them with making decisions about potential careers and options for employment. Implications for rehabilitation counseling practice and suggestions for future research.