Effects of a Career Decision-Making Group Counseling on Career Decision Difficulties and Basic Psychological Needs

This study examined the effectiveness of the researcher-developed Career Decision-Making Group Counseling Program in reducing career decision-making difficulties and supporting basic psychological needs among 10th-grade students (ages approximately 15–16). The study employed a randomized pretest–posttest–follow-up control group design. Thirty students with high levels of career decision-making difficulties were selected following screening and randomly assigned to the experimental group (7 girls, 8 boys) or the control group (8 girls, 7 boys). The experimental group participated in a 10-session group counseling program, whereas the control group received addiction-prevention education. Results indicated that the intervention significantly reduced overall career decision-making difficulties, F(1,28)=10.99, p<.001, as well as the lack of information, F(1,28)=15.64, p<.001, and inconsistent information, F(1,28)=9.36, p=.01. Findings suggest that the program is effective for reducing cognitive and informational barriers to career decision-making but does not substantially influence students’ basic psychological needs.