Enlisted service members' transition into the civilian world of work: a cognitive information processing approach

Career Development Quarterly, March, 2008 by Elysia V. Clemens, Amy S. Milsom

Occupational Knowledge

Occupational knowledge is stored as declarative (i.e., factual) knowledge (e.g., military police maintain order on U.S. Army posts), and schemas serve as a means for organizing this declarative knowledge (Eggen & Kauchak, 2003). The development of occupational knowledge consists of two primary processes: schema generalization and schema specialization (Peterson et al., 2002). Schema generalization involves connecting specific occupations to more abstract work-related constructs. For example, military police are like lawyers because they work together to maintain law and order. Schema specialization is the converse of schema generalization (Peterson et al., 2002); information becomes more specific. For example, Garrison Military Police serve as law enforcement on bases, whereas Line Military Police are combat trained and deployable. The occupational knowledge base includes what clients know about careers and is developed through education and research. Ideas generated through previous work experience, education or training, self-knowledge assessments, and client self-report should direct the exploration and development of occupational knowledge (Zunker & Norris, 1998).

Decision-Making Skills and the CASVE Cycle

In CIP, the CASVE cycle serves as a basis for assisting clients with decision making (Peterson et al., 2002; Sampson, Peterson, Lenz, & Reardon, 1992). CASVE is an acronym for five stages: communication, analysis, synthesis, valuing, and execution (Peterson et al., 2002; Sampson et al., 1992). The communication stage involves articulating the gap or career problem and includes focus on external demands as well as internal affective, behavioral, and psychological states. For example, in this stage, someone might say, "I just cleared the army. I am overwhelmed because I don't know where I want to live or what kind of job I can do." The analysis stage consists of developing or expanding self- and occupational knowledge. Next, the synthesis stage is the "elaboration [and] crystallization" (Peterson et al., 2002, p. 325) of occupation alternatives. Clients expand their list of potential avenues for work or additional training then narrow their focus to a reasonable number of alternatives. The valuing stage includes the evaluation of alternatives, determining viability of potential options, and prioritizing career opportunities. During this stage, clients carefully attend to how their values interact with career choices. Finally, the execution stage involves generating an action plan for closing the gap and pursuing clients' first choice toward career development and their desired lifestyle. The CASVE cycle is often executed through the development and implementation of an Individual Learning Plan (ILP), which is discussed in more detail later.

Peterson et al. (2002) structured the implementation of the CIP paradigm in a seven-step delivery sequence. The following case study demonstrates the application of CIP to a client transitioning out of the U.S. Army and experiencing a career problem.