The Observational Era

A Start of Something New
From the mid-1800s to the early 1900s, the United States experienced rapid growth and saw the start of the Progressive Movement, which was brought on by the Industrial Revolution. With such a rapid change occurring in Western culture, people's understanding of people and their vocations changed dramatically.

This movement brought autonomy that did not exist prior to this time. People had more options over their career choices, which led to a demand for a deeper understanding of how individuals related to their chosen careers.

There became a need for vocational guidance.

A Deeper Understanding
Early on in this movement, psychology professionals explored ways to provide vocational services to people through analysis. Much of this analysis came through different pseudosciences that examined one's physical appearance. This soon came under much scrutiny and was mostly discredited.

During the height of the Progressive Movement, the term "Vocational Guidance" became popular. The book Choosing a Vocation, written by Frank Parsons, became the foundation for this field of study. Frank Parson, sometimes recognized as the father of vocational guidance, focused on studying the individual, surveying different occupations, and matching the individual with an occupation. While this seems like an obvious approach, it was revolutionary for its time.

There became a need for continuity when it came to analysis. Therefore, some started to depend on different mental tests to examine one's aptitude in a field. This relatively new practice spread quickly at the start of WWI. The First Great War used these intellectual tests to place soldiers in different fields. Post WWI, these intellectual tests grew rapidly in popularity in schools and the workforce.

Main Ideas
The main theory that started to arise from this era was the Trait-Factor Theory. It finds its roots during this era but it did not become fully formed until the 1940's. Its purpose was to match one's traits with the requirements of a certain occupation. As other theories have developed, this sentiment has remained and is still the ultimate goal today. At its foundation, this theory examines an individual and their abilities concerning a vocation. It was not merely a means to an end based on test results.

While the theory developed over time, during the Observational Era, it focused on assessing an individual's abilities. The data from these assessments provided information that would predict job satisfaction. Then, through an individual's strengths, they were matched to a vocation.

Theories began to develop from these practices. However, the end of WWI brought about the beginning of a new era for this field of study; the Empirical Era.