Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-fscjk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-29T11:04:48.957Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

School to Work Transition: Behavioural Counselling Approaches to the Problem of Finding Jobs for Unemployed Adolescents

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 October 2014

Gregory C. Murphy*
Affiliation:
Phillip Institute of Technology
James A. Athanasou
Affiliation:
Human Resources Division, Department of Industrial Relations and Employment
*
Psychology Department, Phillip Institute of Technology, Plenty Road, Bundoora Vic. 3083
Get access

Abstract

Institutional responses to high rates of youth unemployment in Western industrialized nations have been marked by costly labour market programs, career education services and systems of skill formation. The success of these responses has not been easy to demonstrate, and such programs ignore the fact that in imperfect labour markets the essential activity that does seem to be strongly related to successful job acquisition for any individual is that of structured job finding. Job-finding clubs (which use behavioural techniques to develop high levels of skill in obtaining jobs) have been demonstrated, both in the United States and in Australia, to be capable of significantly increasing the rates of employment among participating club members. The effectiveness and utility of this behavioural approach is outlined.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 1987

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Athanasou, J. (1980). “Implementation of a behaviourally-based job placement program within vocational guidance”. Paper presented at the Third Australian Behaviour Modification Association Conference, Melbourne, 05 1980.Google Scholar
Athanasou, J., & Hickey, M. (1986). “Implementation of a job-finding club in vocational counselling”. Research report. N.S.W. Department of Industrial Relations.Google Scholar
Australian Bureau of Statistics (1986). Successful and unsuccessful job search experience, Australia, 06 1986, Preliminary. Catalogue No. 6244.0.Google Scholar
Azrin, N., Flores, T., & Kaplan, S. (1975). Job-finding club: a group assisted program for obtaining employment. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 13, 1727.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Azrin, N. H., Philip, R. A., Thienes-Hontos, P., & Besadel, V. A. (1980). Comparative evaluation of the job club program with welfare recipients. Journal of Vocational Behaviour, 16, 133145.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blakers, C. (1978). School and work. Canberra: Australia National University Press.Google Scholar
Bureau of Labour Market Research (1986). Unemployment and the labour market. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.Google Scholar
Department of Employment and Industrial Relations (1986). Programs 1986–87. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.Google Scholar
Kimeldorf, M. (1986). The job hunt: A modern test of survival. Journal of Employment Counselling, 03, 3136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lathrop, R. (1977). Who's hiring who. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press.Google Scholar
Murphy, G. (1986). Final report: The school–work transition project. Phillip Institute of Technology research and development grant No. 83/85. P.I.T., Bundoora, Vic. 3083.Google Scholar
Richman, D. (1982). A comprehensive skills program for job-finding with the hard-core unemployed. In O'Brien, R., Dickinson, A. & Rosow, M. (eds), Industrial Behaviour Modification. New York: Pergamon Press.Google Scholar
Steinberg, L. (1982). Jumping off the work experience bandwagon. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 11(3), 183205.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wolf, M. (1978). Social validity. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 11, 203214.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed