A Comprehensive Guide to Career Assessment (7th Edition) by Kevin Stoltz and Susan Bar- clay, Eds. 2019. National Career Development Association, Broken Arrow, OK.
Reviewed by: Dr. Janet Wall, Founder, Career Planning Academy
The purpose of this book is to provide foundational information about assessment issues, along with practice and research, and to provide a review of selected instruments.
The book itself contains two major parts. The first part is a section with content the editors and authors determined to be foundational information on career assessment. The second part is a selection of career assessment instrument reviews. Two additional parts are available to readers who purchase the online version/subscription. (More on that later.)
Part I, Foundations in Career Assessment, includes six chapters. The first chapter, History and Uses of Career Assessment is a review of the emergence and evolution of career development. This includes the historical and political content of career and vocational development, the career education period, the life design period which encompasses workforce development, persons with disabilities, and use of technology.
Chapter 2, Career Assessment: Perspectives on Trends and Issues, suggests that career assessment is generally considered part of the career counseling process and not a separate disconnected activity. The authors specify that career assessment is and must evolve along with the growing changes in the nature of work, the increasing importance of the knowledge economy, and the need for lifelong learning. It was stated that measuring such constructs as aptitude for teamwork, creativity, and comfort with cultural diversity are needed in this new world-of-work.
Chapter 3, Computer-Assisted Career Assessment, focuses on the ethical use of computer-assisted assessment, and that computer delivered assessment development should follow the same psychometric procedures as other instruments, and that users must adhere to the same standards in test selection, use, and interpretation. The benefits and limitations of these assessments are noted.
Chapter 4, Multicultural Considerations in Career Assessment, recognizes the growing diversity in institutions and workplaces and that users must exercise caution in using assessments with individuals and groups for whom the assessment may not be appropriate due to cultural, language, and other factors.
Chapter 5, Selecting and Understanding Career Assessment, lists the factors that should be considered in selecting an assessment, including technical factors such as reliability, validity, and norms.
The last chapter, Tests Administration, Interpretation and Communication of Results, discusses these issues within the integrative model of career counseling. Case examples are provided.
The remainder of the print version of the book includes reviews of fourteen qualitative instruments, three quantitative instruments, seven research instruments and three open-source instruments. The reviews generally contain an overview or description of the instrument, a literature review, technical information and considerations, use and interpretation, and a general evaluation of the instrument.
Parts II and III of this book are found online only.
Part II, Applied Career Assessment, includes seven chapters focusing on specific audiences of use including K-12, higher education, workforce and human resources, private practice, program evaluation, public policy and advocacy, and mental health.
Part III, Global Perspectives on Career Assessment, focuses on assessment in Asia, Australia, Canada, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and South Africa.
This book contains highly referenced information in each chapter, and well-documented historical context of assessment through time, the evolving world of work, and assessment issues in an increasing cultural, ethnic and racially diverse society. The content and writing style suggests that counselor educators and graduate students would be the most likely beneficiaries.
The additional use of assessments in specific contexts such as K-12, higher education, and private practice might be of additional use to those who purchase the annual subscription to the website. The same can be said for individuals who are interested in assessment in a particular geographical area.
It is unclear, and actually confusing, why some chapters and some instruments are included in the book and others not, and why some instruments are included in both the online and print versions. I could not find a rationale for inclusion or exclusion. At the current writing of this, the online version does not have many more extensive reviews than the book. Due to the nature of the search process, I was not able to accurately count how many more reviews were included.The editors suggest that more will eventually be added, although no timeline is given.
The search process seems a bit peculiar. As an example, searching for ability brought up a list of irrelevant items such as vocational preference, occupational stress, and workstyle instruments. I was disappointed that the book, particularly the foundational chapters and the actual reviews, do not seem to target general career practitioners, coaches, and other users who may not have extensive backgrounds in assessment, but are active users. The print book of around four hundred pages is available for $75 for association members and $99 for non-members. The online portion with additional chapters and reviews (but not including most of the content of the print version) sells for $125 (annually) for non-members and $60 (annually) for members.
Potential purchasers of this Guide will need to determine if there is sufficient benefit to pay an annual fee for the information provided, and even if the print version is important for one’s personal library.
Reviewed by Dr. Janet Wall, Founder of CEUonestop.com and Career Planning Academy, Arlington, VA. She can be contacted at careerfacilitator@janetwall.net. or through her LinkedIn profile at linkedin.com/in/careerfacilitator
This is republished with permission. Career Development Network Journal, Fall, 2019.
Thoughts About Career Development 