Relationships among Career Thoughts, Career Interests, and Career Decision State

This study investigated the relationships among negative career thoughts, profile elevation and differentiation scores on the Self-Directed Search, and career decision state, including level of decidedness and satisfaction with choice. Participants were 226 undergraduate students enrolled in a career course. Measures included the Career Thoughts Inventory (CTI) for career thoughts, the Self-Directed Search (SDS) for profile elevation and differentiation, the Occupational Alternatives Question (OAQ) for career decidedness, and the Satisfaction with Choice item for level of satisfaction with career choice. A series of multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine the amount of variance accounted for by negative career thoughts (i.e., decision-making confusion, commitment anxiety, and external conflict) in profile elevation, differentiation, career decidedness, and satisfaction with choice. Negative career thoughts were found to account for a significant amount of variance in profile elevation, career decidedness, and satisfaction with choice. Findings suggest the need to fully explore negative thinking that interferes with clients making effective career decisions.