Current status and future agenda for the theory, research, and practice of childhood career development.

This article reviews the current status and a future agenda for childhood career development theory, research, and practice. The fragmented nature of the current state of the literature is noted, and a call is made for a reexamination and reconsideration of the childhood developmental pathways of life's work. It is suggested that the study of children's work behavior be rooted in life contexts, most notably, families, communities, and schools.

What is the current state of knowledge in childhood career development, where is it going, and how will we get there? One might even beg the question by asking, "Who are the we that are getting where?" One way to answer these questions is to suggest that "we" are an ever-expanding interdisciplinary group of researchers, practitioners, community and business partners, policy makers, parents, and caregivers moving toward a reconsideration of childhood pathways to work. One of the most remarkable aspects of the current state of the literature is the notable absence of interdisciplinary communication and collaboration. The contemporary study of adult work behavior is rooted in the context of people's lives, that is, jobs, communities, and families. The study of children's work behavior must also be rooted in life contexts, most notably families, communities, and schools. Despite the observation that children spend the majority of their waking hours in school or engaged in school-related work, it seems ironic that so few investigations of children's work behavior have incorporated schools, academic work, or collaboration with educators. Embedding childhood career development within a meaningful and relevant developmental continuum does not necessitate importing concepts and constructs evident in the adolescent and adult literature into the childhood career development literature. Hence, studying adult career constructs in childhood populations (e.g., career maturity) may reflect a historical artifact whose time has come. This assertion does not imply that the theoretical, empirical, and practical literature on these vocationally relevant concepts have no use on the developmental horizon. Instead, it implies the need for a reexamination and reconsideration of the childhood developmental pathways of life's work. In this article, I review the current state of the literature on childhood career development with the aim of identifying strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities in support of a future agenda for theory, research, and practice.

Current State of the Childhood Career

Development Field

Theory

Although it is generally acknowledged that crucial career-related concepts and attitudes are first formed in childhood (e.g., Ginzberg, Ginsburg, Axelrad, & Herma, 1951; Super, 1957), career theorists have placed limited emphasis on childhood career development. Furthermore, existing theory building and research have been predominantly conducted with middle-class suburban youth, thus limiting knowledge of more diverse groups in terms of socioeconomic status and racial/ethnic background. In his life stage model, Super (1957) conceptualized career development as unfolding across the life span from birth to death. The first stage of his model, the Growth stage, concerns children from birth to age 14 years. Super (Super, Savickas, & Super, 1996) described four career development tasks thought to be central to the Growth stage: becoming concerned about the future, increasing personal control over one's life, developing an awareness of the importance of achieving in school and work, and acquiring competent work habits and attitudes. These tasks are assumed to be confronted across three substages: Fantasy (ages 4-10 years; needs are dominant and role playing is important), Interest (ages 11-12 years; likes are the major determinant of aspirations and activities), and Capacity (ages 13-14 years; abilities, training, and job requirements are considered).

Super's (1963) self-concept theory of vocational development also addressed the childhood years. This theory consisted of three elements of self-concept development: formation, translation, and implementation. First, formation, which focuses on exploration, identification with key figures, role playing, and reality testing, was thought to begin in childhood. Second, translation of the self-concept into occupational terms was assumed to occur through identification, experience, and awareness of one's attributes (e.g., interests and abilities). Third, implementation of self-concept, which refers to entry into training or one's first job, was identified as the element thought to emerge during late adolescence and young adulthood.