DEVELOPING A THEORY-BASED MEASURE OF CAREER DECISION-MAKING - THE DECISIONAL PROCESS INVENTORY

The present study describes the development and an initial assessment of the psychometric properties of the Decisional Process Inventory (DP I). The DPI served as an empirical test of Gestalt therapy homeostasis theory for conceptualizing and facilitating career development and de cision-making. The inventory is intended to assess career decidedness or individual level of progress toward reaching a career-decided state . The DPI consists of 70 items that address respondents' perceptions a nd experiences of the career decision-making process. Participants res ponded to the DPI (n = 248), the Career Decision Scale (CDS; Osipow, C arney, Winer, Yanico, and Koschier, 1976) (n = 242), the Occupational Alternatives Question (OAQ; Zener and Schnuelle, 1976) (n = 244), and the Gestalt Contact Styles Questionnaire-Revised (GSCQ-R; Woldt & Kepn er, 1986) (n = 243). Results supported the content validity of the ite ms and criterion-related validity of the inventory. Seven factors rela ted to the career decision-making process are described.