Vol 6 No 1 (2023):
Special Issue: An APCDJ Retrospective
March 2023 Issue
Published: 2023-03-26
Editor's Note
Editor’s Note
Brian Hutchison, Founding Editor
Contributing to the science of career development is one of the great honors of my lifetime. The process of creating science is humbling. If you the reader were to begin a research project today, it is not unrealistic to think it would take one to three years before you saw an article describing it in print. This time span does not include the hours of study and practice it takes to learn the methods used to create a scientific contribution.
The science of career development is comprised of thousands of such works. Individuals and teams work diligently together for long periods of time completing a scientific process resulting in manuscripts that might become articles, books, or reports; their contribution to the greater body of career development knowledge. Throughout the past 142 years, thousands of such contributions formed the corpus of career development science and practice as we know it today.
The story of science is not often told. In this, my final issue as Editor of the Asia Pacific Career Development Journal, I would like to tell a science story through the initial nine issues of the journal. This is my attempt to honor the contributions that all of our authors have made to the practice of career development. There are so many other such stories.
Below you will find a list comprised of one article from each issue of the journal. Under each heading you will find an Editor’s Note where I share thoughts about how the article contributes to the science and practice of career development. The article can be found in its original form by clicking on the title link.
With the greatest gratitude,
Brian Hutchison, PhD, LPC, CCSCC
Vol 1 No 1 (Sept 2018)
Conceptual Model and Psychometric Validation of the Mindler Multidimensional Career Decision-Making Battery
Narender K. Chadha, Vandana G. ChopranEditor’s Note: Assessment is a core component of career development practice and the science behind assessment is what gives practitioners confidence in their tools. The lead article of the inaugural issue is a monumental contribution to the practice of career development in India. Drs. Chadha and Chopra provide an exceptional example of the science behind the Mindler Battery; India’s largest, most comprehensive career assessment system. In this article, they describe the conceptual model, test development, and validation process behind the Multidimensional Career Decision-Making Battery which is the keystone of the Mindler system.
Vol 2 No 1 (March 2019)
Assessing the Impact of Work Internships on Career Development among University Students in Hong Kong
Raysen Cheung, Qiuping Jin, Tszho TamEditor’s Note: How do we know that our techniques and interventions work? A common means of answering this question is the pre/post-test research design. This research design collects one set of data before an intervention or program before then collecting a second set of the same/ similar data at some point after completion so that the change can be measured using statistical analyses. Work internships are a common career intervention used at schools all over the world, yet we need scientific study to know the impact internships have on career development phenomena such as career exploration, career decidedness, vocational identity, and self-perceived employability. The research team of Dr. Cheung, Jin, and Tam provide us with this evidence.
Vol 2 No 2 (Sept 2019)
It Takes a Village: Meet the Singapore Career Development Tribe
Yvonne Kong-Ho, Jeremiah Wong, Andrew Er, Clarissa Hor, Gerald Tan, & James TanEditor’s Note: Research begins with research questions, yet research questions must come from somewhere. Conceptual work is the basis of every research study, and context is an important component of all practice-based research questions. This is why historical research is considered important evidence by the APCDJ Editorial Team. Singapore’s team of six practitioners aimed to capture an accurate historical record of career development in the country of Singapore using interviews, policy analysis, and historical records to tell the story of career development in their country. This valuable contribution will be cited in research specific to their country for years to come.
Vol 3 No 1 (March 2020)
Workplace Experiences of Transgender Individuals: A Scoping Review
Danielle C. Lefebvre and José F. DomeneEditor’s Note: Academic disciplines are built by asking research questions and collecting evidence that builds upon itself (or scaffolds) over time creating a body of knowledge. What happens when historically marginalized populations, or new concerns (e.g., technologies), arise creating new questions for science to explore? Historically, these emerging questions can go unrecognized potentially causing ineffective practice, or even harm. A scoping review is a useful research review tool that systematically explores existing publications to learn about the landscape of research about a particularly problem or population. The authors Lefebvre and Domene use this technique to bring to the fore important workplace information about transgender individuals, highlighting the little we do know and exposing the questions that must still be answered. In my view, this is an example of using science as advocacy.
Vol 3 No 2 (Sept 2020)
Editor’s Note: Ameryce Ang has been the most prolific scholar throughout APCDJ’s first 5 years, publishing three different empirical articles. My notes for two previous articles address conceptual models (see the Vol 2 No 2 Editor’s Note) and emerging issues and populations (see the Vol 3 No 1 Editor’s Note). In this article, Ang uses collected data to create a conceptual model for an underserved population, older workers. Specially, Ang explored how negative stereotypes towards their age interacts with other perceived disadvantages. This article really gets to the heart of science impacting practice through advocacy.
Vol 4 No 1 (March 2021)
Editor’s Note: High school is typically the most dynamic stage in one’s career development therefore it is when career development interventions can have some of the greatest impact. Schools, particularly high schools, are systems designed for the structured delivery of information and skills training. Chen delivers, in this article, an analysis designed to understand the taxonomic model of career development interventions within the Taiwanese context. This taxonomy furthers our understanding of school-based career intervention and its utility in specific school environments.
Vol 4 No 2 (Sept 2021)
Editor’s Note: The majority of articles in APCDJ are situated in a specific context, most often a country. A comprehensive understanding of career development requires us to understand the internationalization of career and career preparation. This conceptual article is an example of career development science striving to understand career mobility in a truly global context. Dr. Shao delivers a useful article that, while specific to Chinese international students, provides insights to expand our understanding of all international students’ career exploration and development.
Vol 5 No 1 (March 2022)
Work-Life Wellness Scale: Initial Test Development in a Sample of Remote Workers
Rebecca E. Como and José F. Domene
Editor’s Note: How does career development science change with the times? The pandemic magnified the fact of globalization, particularly as it pertains to work. Two key aspects of the post-pandemic world are found in this one article. First, an interest in employee wellness continues to expand as workers demand a better life after their Covid experience. Second, remote work has exploded in actuality, and our consciousness, as a viable option for many more workers. The initial development of an assessment tool designed to help us understand remote workers and their wellness is instrumental to the evolution of our career development practice.
Vol 5 No 2 (Sept 2022)
Chaos Theory of Careers: Standing Out Not Fitting In
Jim E.H. Bright, Robert G.L. Pryor, and Olivia PennieThe Asia Pacific Career Development Journal (APCDJ) is an international biannual publication dedicated to all career development and intervention related topics. It is the official journal of the Asia Pacific Career Development Association (APCDA; https://asiapacificcda.org/ The journal welcomes submissions focused on, but not limited to, the following topics: career counseling, individual and organizational career development, work and leisure, career education, career coaching, and career management.