A diagnostic taxonomy of adult career problems

Abstract This study focused on the differential diagnosis of adult career development problems. The study was accomplished through four major activities: a literature review of adult career development research, a descriptive analysis of adult career problems, a formulation of alternative taxonomic models, and a pilot validation study. The outcome of this study, a diagnostic taxonomy of adult career problems, is presented below. The taxonomy consists of four major problem categories: (1) problems in career decision making, (2) problems in implementing career plans, (3) problems in organizational/institutional performance, and (4) problems in organizational/institutional adaptation. Category descriptions and examples are also presented.