I've just come across a new career theory. I find myself quite excited by this as I haven't found anything very new in the last decade or so. 2005 I think was a bit of a bumper year for career theories - Savickas published Career Construction, Ibarra further developed her Identity Theory, Patton and McMahon published a book on Systems Theory and Maniero and Sullivan introduced the Kaleidoscope Model. But I'm not sure that I've come across anything very new since then.
So this is a theory from Taiwan, and although it's been around for a few years, most of the papers published which look at this are published in Chinese and this is the first time I've heard of it.
The model is grounded philosophically in the Classic of Changes which is an ancient Chinese text. I had a brief look to find out what this was and didn't get terribly far with it, but the theory is interesting and potentially quite valuable even without an understanding of the underpinning philosophy.
One of my repeated frustrations with career theories is their tendency to focus on one narrow element or angle. Perhaps this is inevitable, but given how incredibly complex career choices and paths are, it makes the theories less applicable. New theories often seems to be developed in opposition to other theories, rather than building on them, which then leaves the practitioner (and client) with the huge challenge of trying to integrate those which seem to be most relevant in any context.
The Virtue Existential Career Model (VEC) brings together two broad paradigms of career theory (modern and post-modern) and also proposes four key elements of career practice.
The authors describe the modern theories as the Yang theories, and suggest that they are focused on using rational strategies to develop career plans which lead to high levels of person-environment fit. The focus for these traditional theories is on choosing and controlling, and the main virtue is striving for self-improvement.
The Yin theories then are the post-modern ones. These focus more on being open-minded and creative, and within this paradigm, career development relies on appreciating and adapting to change. The virtue here is embracing all aspects of humanity.
The VEC model incorporates both aspects. The authors agree with current criticisms of PE fit which highlight that matching approaches tend to assume stable individual characteristics and a stable world, but point out that matching can still be a valuable part of career thinking as long as it acknowledges the fluid nature of humanity.
The model suggests that career interventions should focus on two essential existential questions: our reason for being and our action for being and this focus on the fusion between experience and meaning is a core aspect of their model.
In terms of what this might mean for us in practice, the authors have four goals which will facilitate career development:
1. Having versatile views of reality and using this to construct various career possibilities
2. Appreciating and mastering both rational and intuitive cognitive decision making processes
3. Treasuring serendipity and making good use of curiosity and flexibility
4. Managing inevitable change and uncertainty.
This seems like a great framework for career education or employability takes the strengths of traditional career theories but applies them with an understanding of the contextual factors which influence our career paths today.
Liu, S. H., Lu, Y. J., Deng, C. P., Wang, C. H., Keh, F. B., & Tsai, Y. C. (2015). Social Practice of a Career Guidance Project Based on the Wisdom of the Classic of Changes. Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology, 9(02), 50-64.
