Improving Prediction of Career Adjustment With Measures of Career Development

In the first part of the article, the major findings and the problems of criterion-related validity research in the field of career development assessment are analyzed. Regarding predictive validity, it is shown that it is more difficult to prove mediumterm and long-term effects of career maturity on career adjustment than short-term effects, and that this is connected with shortcomings in research and theory. In the second part of the article, empirical evidence is provided for the assumption that self-concept orientation in choice of present major and realization of preferences might function as mediating factors between career development in school and career adjustment.