| Abstract: | An earlier research integration of the career-counseling literature (Oliver & Spokane, 1981; Spokane & Oliver, 1983) found moderate effect sizes for various career interventions but did not explore the relations between specific study characteristics. The present study extended the data base of Spokane and Oliver and used more sophisticated coding and analysis procedures to examine the relations between study characteristics and outcomes. Two hundred forty treatment–control comparisons resulted from 58 studies containing 7,311 subjects. Class interventions were the most effective but required the greatest number of intervention hours. Four indexes of the relative efficacy of different career intervention modes revealed that individual counseling produced more client gain per hour (or session) than any other intervention mode. Intensity of treatment was the only significant contributor to outcome magnitude. Contrary to earlier reviews, there were clear differences in effectiveness among intervention modes, a finding that ought to be considered in treatment selection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
