| The purpose of this study was to examine the construction of the meaning of work and careers for African American, low SES, middle school students, and to examine the process of how these meanings may occur. This approach to the examination of the meaning making of work is theory-oriented in its purpose (Haverkamp & Young, 2007), and seeks to develop a model of understanding of how this particular subgroup makes meaning of work. The participants included twenty four African American middle school students (12 male, 12 female) attending a charter school in a Midwestern city in which 80% or more of the students are low-income. The overarching theme related to meaning making of work was found to be "providing for others", which manifested in the context of values, life experiences, and the importance of relationships. Three categories emerged under the "providing for others" theme: "I'm responsible", "education is the ticket", "high aspirations" which connected to a fourth standalone category of "financial stability". Findings from this study lend support for Blustein's (2011) relational theory of work and relational cultural paradigms of vocational psychology (Schultheiss, 2007). Implications for the support the need for the development of constructivist-based career development intervention tools with applications for low-income middle school students' from diverse backgrounds are provided. |
