Career expectations and aspirations of youth with and without handicaps

Abstract

Youth with handicaps were found to have much lower career aspirations than their nonhandicapped peers. Discriminant function analyses demonstrated that each group had the same components contributing to their career expectations, and that handicapping status was not a significant factor. The results of an examination of other factors possibly contributing to these aspiration differences indicate that the youth with handicaps were more likely to be in vocational preparation streams and the nonhandicapped youth in academic streams. These differences had emerged by the sophomore year. It was also found that the expectations of parents, teachers, counselors, friends and relatives perceived by the students with handicaps were for the lower-status occupational outcomes. Implications of these findings were discussed in relation to the practice of streaming students with handicaps into areas that would lower their chances for success in later life.