The Life‐Design Group: A Case Study Assessment

Abstract

The life‐design group (LDG) comprises an intervention designed to aid career specialists in helping groups of individuals work through career problems, transitions, and traumas. In this article, the authors describe the LDG and present case study results for 3 undergraduate students who were struggling with gaining movement in their career trajectories. Results indicated decreases in career uncertainty and indecision and increases in readiness for making academic major and career decisions. Although the LDG originated in a higher education setting, the LDG has application possibilities across the spectrum of career counseling clients.

Innovative Moments in Career Construction Counseling: Proposal for an Integrative Model

“…Research on CCC with both individuals and groups has shown a significant increase in vocational certainty (Cardoso et al, , ; Obi, ), career decision‐making self‐efficacy (Cardoso et al, ; Di Fabio & Maree, ), and career adaptability (Barclay & Stoltz, ; Santilli, Nota, & Hartung, ), as well as a decrease in anxiety and feelings of insecurity (Obi, ).…”

“…During the intervention, a client and a counselor form a collaborative relationship, and, through a life‐designing dialogue focused on the reconstruction of meanings, the client's problematic vocational experiences are addressed and the counselor assists the client in resolving his or her career concerns. Research has shown the effectiveness of CCC in achieving these goals (Barclay & Stoltz, ; Cardoso, Janeiro, & Duarte, ; Di Fabio & Maree, ; Obi, ; Rehfuss, Del Corso, Glavin, & Wykes, ). In addition, counseling process research on narrative innovation (Cardoso, Gonçalves, Duarte, Silva, & Alves, ; Cardoso, Silva, Gonçalves, & Duarte, , ) has provided some clues to understanding the process of change during CCC.…”

Creative Use of the Career Construction Interview

“…The thememapping process developed and used by Barclay (2017), Barclay and Stoltz (2015, 2016a, 2016b), and Stoltz and Barclay (2015, in press) in their own career counseling work is beneficial to this process and engages students visually in following the CCI process of identifying patterns and themes in the story and constructing the life portrait. Instructors will want to allow plenty of time for questions from students.…”

“…Likewise, Barclay, Stoltz, and Wolff (2011) delivered a framework for using the CCI in a group setting. Later, Barclay and Stoltz (2016a, 2016b, 2016c) refined the framework and produced initial research supporting the use of the CCI in a group setting. A recent study also supported use of the MCS in a group‐based setting with middle school students (Santilli, Nota, & Hartung, 2019).…”

Introduction to the Special Issue: Advancing Career Intervention for Life Design

“…Suzanne Savickas and Tracy Lara () then offer an interview with former National Career Development Association and American Counseling Association president Lee Richmond to demonstrate how biographical life portraiture promotes clients’ self‐reflection to comprehend continuity and coherence in their life‐career stories. Closing the special issue, Susan Barclay and Kevin Stoltz () introduce and examine a life‐design‐based group career counseling approach, drawing support for its use in promoting career decidedness and educational and occupational choice readiness.…”