Abstract:
This research sets out a Perceptual-Judgemental-Reinforcement approach to job
choice under conditions of complexity and uncertainty. It investigates the claim that job
choices are based on seven implicit factors: such as the specific size of the occupation, the
proportion of employees working full-time, the earnings, the job prospects, gender dominance
in an occupation, the level of unemployment in the occupation and the predominant age
group in the job. Nine case studies involving choices from 25 randomly selected advertised
jobs are presented. Results indicated substantial idiosyncrasy in job choices. An individual
logistic regression analysis indicated no statistically significant influence of key labour market
indicators in any of the nine case studies. It was concluded that job choice was idiosyncratic;
that individuals lacked insight into their job choices and probably relied upon relatively
few unstated cues. The findings have direct implications for the relevance of occupational
information and for key issues in the delivery of vocational guidance.
