Conflicts in Career Thinking: Analytic Advisors and Intuitive Students.

Student and academic advisors' thinking toward career decisions was examined according to an analytic-intuitive criterion, emphasizing a distinction between logical-rational thought and a more intuitive, reflexive mode. Results showed that advisors' conception of an ideal career strategy and of sophomore students' actual career orientation was relatively analytic. Advisors tend to view career choice more analytically than students. This misperception of student thinking appears to be a source of conflict between students and advisor. Other data suggests that a high percentage of students believe advisor's analytic orientation interferes with helpful counseling and satisfactory career decision. Purely rational career strategies appear to be a source of alienation for students, especially during the middle college years. This suggests that career counselors should take care that they do not override students' feeling and personal commitments with analytic-rational career strategies and "objective" career information. (Author)