Psychology of Working Theory With Refugee Persons: Applications for Career Counseling

Abstract

The world is facing the largest number of displaced persons in history, with many refugee persons seeking safety in the United States. Among many challenges, refugee persons may face difficulty when navigating the world of work in the United States. We conceptualize career-related barriers for refugee persons residing in the United States, including economic constraints, acculturation challenges, and health disparities. Given these challenges, we describe the relevance of psychology of working theory as a potential theoretical model from which to conceptualize career concerns in refugee persons. Finally, based on previous research, we provide implications for counselors working with refugee persons with vocational concerns, as well as suggested areas for future research.

Young refugees’ and asylum seekers’ career choices: a qualitative investigation

“…Among their various life plans, their career plans appeared to be a priority for many participants-as a first condition for starting a family, for example. As already mentioned, the participants identified French proficiency as the main barrier to their integration, and more specifically to the realization of their career plans, which is in line with Massengale's et al (2019) observations. Our results also indicate the existence of three distinct ways of constructing future career plans: Vocation seekers are driven by their interests in specific occupational fields and their searches for vocations.…”

Labour market integration of young refugees and asylum seekers: a look at perceived barriers and resources

“…Applied in the migration field, the journey of life can become an opportunity for refugees and asylum seekers to tell stories that are different from those they have, to that point, been forced to tell during the asylum procedure. Furthermore, telling stories that they have intentionally or unintentionally forgotten can allow them to reconnect with positive narratives of achievement and skills and help them see themselves as resilient survivors, rather than as disempowered persons (Massengale et al, 2019). This may enable them to put more emphasis on their resources and strengths than on issues related to their flight (Abkherz & McMahon, 2017).…”

“…This enculturation creates an internal equilibrium, which is disturbed when people migrate to a country with a different culture. Hence, alongside with the help of integration programmes acting at the contextual level, raising critical consciousness at the individual level may help them develop a sense of self-determination and social connectedness (Massengale et al, 2019). This in turn could prompt them to establish a new equilibrium by integrating into the cultural orientation of the host country.…”

Beyond job placement: careers for refugees

“…Related to the latter theoretical orientation, Campion (2018) focused on the link between refugees' career adaptability and their labor market integration and proposed a job-search model for refugees that incorporates career adaptability, and personal and structural barriers to improve labor market integration. Massengale et al (2020) outlined key concepts from the psychology of working theory (Blustein et al, 2019), counselor tasks, and career interventions for supporting refugee populations to overcome systemic barriers and secure decent work. Yoon et al (2019) offered an example of designing and evaluating a career development program for refugees, based on Hope-Action Theory (Amundson et al, 2020).…”