BEHAVIORAL APPROACH

The term behavioral counseling was first introduced by John Krumboltz.

He suggested that counselors should remind themselves that the
purpose of their activity is to foster behavioral changes in clients; thus
all counseling is ultimately behavioral (Krumbotlz, 1969). From a
behavioristic perspective, counseling can be viewed as the systematic
use of procedures to reach mutually established therapeutic goals that
will resolve client concerns and conflicts (Thoresen, 1969).
Within the behavioral approach, there are four orientations to career
counseling:
1. Indirect- focuses on linguistic variables that precede and elicit
overt responses.
2. Direct- concentrates on the consequences of overt responses
regardless of their result.
3. Behavioral-Theoretic- pioneered by Goodstein, this approach
draws upon principles from learning theory to explain career
behaviors and to determine counseling methods changing them.
4. Behavioral-pragmatic- as developed by Krumboltz, the
behavioral-pragmatic approach inductively and empirically
identifies techniques that work to bring about behavioral
changes.
Krumboltz s Behaviorist Theory
Based in the social learning theory of Bandura, the behaviorist view of
career counseling holds that environment, education and life
experiences need not to be deterministic- alternatives always exist.
Exposure to the widest array of learning experiences must be
promoted. Viewing career decision making as a lifelong process, John
Krumboltz felt it should be taught in career counseling programs.
Krumboltz defined the following 7 general categories of client issues:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.

The problem is someone elses behavior

The problem is expressed as a feeling
The problem is the absence of a goal
The problem is a desired behavior is undesirable
The problem is the client does not know his behavior is
inappropriate
f. The problem is a choice conflict
g. The problem is a vested interest in not identifying any problem
Of these issues, the ones that most directly relate to career counseling
are:

 Indecision- absence of goal

Unrealism- an expresses feeling about unrealistic aspirations
Multi-potentiality- choice conflict among desirable alternatives

Methods of Behavioral Therapy

By eliminating anxiety associated with decision-making through
counter-conditioning, instrumental learning can occur. The client can
acquire responses needed to choose a career. Clients need to know
how to make career choices, which options are available to them and
the consequences of each.
Counseling Goals
o Altering maladaptive behavior
o Learning the decision-making process
o Preventing problems
Behavioral Techniques
o Adaptation or desensitization
o Inhibitory conditioning or internal inhibition
o Counter-conditioning
o Reinforcement
o Social modeling and vicarious learning
o Discrimination learning
Major elements of career counseling plan based on social
learning theory
Genetic Endowment and Special Abilities- Gender, physical
limitations, ethnicity, aptitudes, and intelligence
Environmental Conditions and Events- social and economic
factors (job and training opportunities, technological change and
state of the market
Learning Experience- Instrumental (education, formal training,
hands-on work) and associative (observational) experiences
Task Approach Skills- work habits, values and preferences,
perceptions, and understanding
Categories of outcomes resulting from interplay among the
previous components
Self-Observational
Generalizationrecognizing
differences
between oneself and others
Worldview Generalization- imaginatively casting oneself in
disparate social, psychological, and physical situations
Task Approach Skills- thinking and doing, adapting to new
circumstances

References:
https://books.google.com.ph/books?
id=l3lbBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA252&lpg=PA252&dq=krumboltz
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rumboltz'%20behavioral%20approach%20in%20career
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