Career indecision is a complex phenomenon and there is evidence that undecided individuals do not constitute a homogenous group. Although there is some controversy about the different types of career undecided individuals, there has been a relative consensus that simple or developmental indecision, which corresponds to a developmentally appropriate exploration of alternatives, can be distinguished from generalized indecision, which reflects difficulties in the decision-making process in other aspects of the individuals' lives. Although generalized indecision as been associated with high levels of anxiety, external locus of control, low self-esteem, low levels of psychological separation towards parents, and inadequate identity formation, studies of the construct have been limited by small sample sizes. The present study examined the contributions of the above predictors to generalized indecision with a sample of 345 secondary school students. Overall, the regression equation accounted for 50% of the variance in generalized indecision scores and trait anxiety emerged as the strongest single predictor. Implications for career counseling are discussed.

Lopez and Andrews (1987) interpreted career indecision as an indicator of the inadequate psychological separation of adolescents from their parents. However, various empirical studies have not managed to clearly demonstrated evidence of a relationship between systemic family variables and career indecision. This investigation, which involves a sample of 418 adolescents of both sexes in the 12th grade of secondary school, analyzed the relationship between conflictual and emotional independence and two dimensions of career indecision: developmental indecision and generalized indecision. As a principal methodology of statistical analysis, a canonical correlation analysis, one for each gender, was used. There were no relationships between the two sets of variables. The results were interpreted in light of the fact that some subjects could be classified as foreclosure in terms of identity status. A model of career decision status is proposed.

Research on career indecision has emphasized the need to distinguish between normative indecision, which corresponds to a developmentally-appropriate state, and indecisiveness, a persistent problem in making decisions across multiple dimensions. This distinction is important in order to design appropriate interventions. These two types of indecision are related with two dimensions (decidedundecided and decisiveness-indecisiveness) that, if conceptualized as orthogonal, result in a diagnostic scheme with four groups (high or low in career decidedness and high or low in indecisiveness). The aim of this study was to test whether the four groups could be distinguished from each other with regard to cognitive and affective variables that have been used in career indecision research. A descriptive discriminant analysis was employed with a sample of secondary school students. The grouping variable effects of two significant functions are described and implications for career counseling and future research are discussed.

Career indecision is a complex phenomenon and an increasing number of authors have proposed that undecided individuals do not form a group with homogeneous characteristics. This study examines career decision statuses among a sample of 362 12th-grade Portuguese students. A cluster-analytical procedure, based on a battery of instruments designed to assess career and personality dimensions, was employed to understand the heterogeneous groupings that underlie the concept of career indecision. Three groups of career decision statuses were identified and their characteristics described. Finally, implications for career counseling interventions are discussed.Keywords career decision statuses, career indecision, taxonomy of career problems, cluster analysis, adolescence According to Kelly and Lee (2002), career indecision is, next to interests, the single most important construct in the field of vocational psychology and a classic topic of research (Borgen, 1991). Crites (1969), for instance, identified several studies on career indecision published in the 1930s. The vast number of studies on career indecision could be explained by the high prevalence of undecided students in secondary schools and colleges, who seek career counseling in order to formulate career plans (Corkin, Arbona, Coleman, & Ramirez, 2008;Forner, 2007).Initially, research on career indecision attempted to identify variables that could distinguish between decided and undecided individuals. The main goal was to understand the causes that lead to difficulties in career decision making and design appropriate interventions in order to assist undecided individuals. This differential approach to career indecision produced results that were, in general, ambiguous and inconclusive (for a review, see Forner, 2007;Santos, 2007;Slaney, 1988). For example, in some studies, academic achievement favored career-decided individuals (Lunneborg, 1976), whereas in others this relationship was precisely the opposite (Lewallen, 1995).

This study examined the relevance of the Goal Instability Scale-Portuguese Adaptation (GIS-P) on the vocational identity and career certainty of 375 10th-, 11th-, and 12th-grade Portuguese high schoolers. After translating the GIS-P, confirmatory factor analysis was used to examine the factorial unidimensionality and reliability of the construct. A multitrait-monomethod correlation matrix demonstrated convergent and divergent validity with personality, career, and social constructs. As expected, the GIS-P was a stronger predictor of vocational identity than global self-esteem and differentiated those students with postsecondary plans from those who were uncertain about their plans. This research supports the cultural relevance of the goal instability construct and of motivational determinants of academic and career adjustment with Portuguese students.

Higher education institutions intend to provide young people with a range of capabilities and skills that will prepare them to face transition into the labor market. In modern societies, however, marked by structural unemployment, forms of temporary work prevail, offering increasingly unstable conditions, lower security, and fewer social rights. At this critical historical and social juncture, it becomes important for both the research and social agenda to understand the meanings Portuguese higher education students attribute their transition from education to work. In Study 1, based on a sample of 712 Portuguese higher education students, words associated with the transition from higher education to work were collected and they were grouped by their semantic proximity. These semantic groups served to build items for a first version of the Scale of the Meanings of Transition from Higher Education to Work (SMTHEW). Study 2 was developed based on this version, with a sample of 546 participants. An exploratory factor analysis yielded a version of the SMTHEW consisting of four subscales (Professional Achievement, Uncertainty, Unemployment, and Professional Responsibility) with psychometric qualities we considered appropriate. In Study 3, based on data from 505 participants, a confirmatory factor analysis of the SMTHEW was conducted, defining thus its final version, which revealed appropriate levels of adjustment to the proposed model.

According to the self-psychology of Heinz Kohut, development of a healthy narcissism that is reflected in a secure sense of self, permits individuals to set and pursue meaningful life goals and maintain a sense ofwell-being, particularly in periods of transition and change. Based on this perspective, the primary purpose of this study was to assess the contribution of goal instability and self-esteem to the vocational identity of Portuguese high school students using a sample of 375 individuals. Additionally, the effect of gender and age on vocational identity was assessed. A regression equation accounted for 32% of the variance of the dependent variable with goal instability emerging as the strongest predictor. Implications for career theory and counseling are discussed.

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