Abstract
Psychometrics—the science and technology of measuring psychological constructs—is a definitive feature of vocational psychology and career development. For a century, vocational psychology has produced and refined measures for research and practices in diverse industry sectors, including education, training, selection, and recruitment. We overview the philosophical foundations of post-positivism in contrast to an anti-psychometrics discourse emanating from critical scholarship so as to raise concerns that this critical commentary threatens the public’s understanding of psychometrics, their ethical use, and utility. It is time for psychology to advocate for its science and technology, and push back against the iconoclastic rhetoric of its protagonists in the struggle for knowledge/power.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership. (2011). Australian professional standards for teachers. Retrieved 22 March, 2016, from http://www.aitsl.edu.au/australian-professional-standards-for-teachers/standards/list
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership. (2016). What do we know about early career teacher attrition rates in Australia? Melbourne: Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership.
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership. (2017). Initial teacher education: Data report 2017. Retrieved 22 April, 2018, from https://www.aitsl.edu.au/docs/default-source/research-evidence/ite-data-report/2017/ite-data-report-2017.pdf
Bahr, N., & Ferreira, J.-A. (2018, April 16). Seven reasons people no longer want to be teachers. The Conversation. Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/seven-reasons-people-no-longer-want-to-be-teachers-94580
Berger, P., & Luckmann, T. (1966). The social construction of reality: A treatise in the sociology of knowledge. Middlesex: Penguin Books.
Blustein, D. L. (2001). Extending the reach of vocational psychology: Toward an inclusive and integrative psychology of working. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 59(2), 171–182. https://doi.org/10.1006/jvbe.2001.1823.
Brott, P. E. (2001). The storied approach: A postmodern perspective for career counseling. The Career Development Quarterly, 49, 304–313. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-0045.2001.tb00958.x.
Department of Education & Training. (2017). Undergraduate applications, offers and acceptances 2017. Retrieved from https://docs.education.gov.au/node/46066
Foucault, M. (1994). The birth of the clinic (A. M. S, Smith, Vintage Books, Ed., Trans.). New York: Random House (Original work published 1973).
Gergen, K. J. (1992). Toward a postmodern psychology. In S. Kvale (Ed.), Psychology and postmodernism (pp. 17–30). London: Sage.
Gergen, K. J. (2001). Psychological science in a postmodern context. American Psychologist, 56(10), 803–813. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.56.10.803.
Gitlin, A. D., & Ingerski, J. (2018). Rewriting critical pedagogy for public schools: Technological possibilities. The International Journal of Critical Pedagogy, 9(1), 7–27.
Gore, J., Barron, R. J., Holmes, K., & Smith, M. (2016). Who says we are not attracting the best and brightest? Teacher selection and the aspirations of Australian school students. The Australian Educational Researcher, 43(5), 527–549. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-016-0221-8.
Hardy, I. (2015). A logic of enumeration: The nature and effects of national literacy and numeracy testing in Australia. Journal of Education Policy, 30(3), 335–362. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680939.2014.945964.
Hardy, I. (2016, December 14). NAPLAN results: Moving beyond our obsession with numbers. The Conversation. Retrieved from: https://theconversation.com/naplan-results-moving-beyond-our-obsession-with-numbers-70331
Hume, D. (1748/2007). In S. Buckle (Ed.), An enquiry concerning human understanding. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Jackson, J., Adams, R. J., & Turner, R. (2017, November 24). Evidence-based education needs standardised assessment. The Conversation. Retrieved from: https://theconversation.com/evidence-based-education-needs-standardised-assessment-87937
Kellner, D. (2003). Toward a critical theory of education∗. Democracy & Nature, 9(1), 51–64. https://doi.org/10.1080/1085566032000074940.
Knoester, M., & Au, W. (2017). Standardized testing and school segregation: Like tinder for fire? Race Ethnicity and Education, 20(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2015.1121474.
Kvale, S. (Ed.). (1992). Psychology and postmodernism. London: Sage Publications.
Lewis, S., & Hardy, I. (2015). Funding, reputation and targets: The discursive logics of high-stakes testing. Cambridge Journal of Education, 45(2), 245–264. https://doi.org/10.1080/0305764X.2014.936826.
Lingard, B., & Sellar, S. (2013). ‘Catalyst data’: Perverse systemic effects of audit and accountability in Australian schooling. Journal of Education Policy, 28(5), 634–656. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680939.2012.758815.
Lyotard, J.-F. (1979/1984). The postmodern condition: A report on knowledge. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
McAdams, D. P. (1997). The case for unity in the (post)modern self. A modest proposal. In R. D. Ashmore & L. Jussim (Eds.), Self and identity. Fundamental issues (pp. 46–78). New York: Oxford University Press.
Patton, W., & McMahon, M. (2014). Career development and systems theory: Connecting theory and practice (3rd ed.). Rotterdam: Sense Publishers.
Pierce, R., Chick, H., & Gordon, I. (2013). Teachers’ perceptions of the factors influencing their engagement with statistical reports on student achievement data. Australian Journal of Education, 57(3), 237–255. https://doi.org/10.1177/0004944113496176.
Pierce, R., Chick, H., Watson, J., Les, M., & Dalton, M. (2014). A statistical literacy hierarchy for interpreting educational system data. Australian Journal of Education, 58(2), 195–217. https://doi.org/10.1177/0004944114530067.
Polkinghorne, D. E. (1992). Postmodern epistemology of practice. In S. Kvale (Ed.), Psychology and postmodernism (pp. 146–165). London: Sage.
Popper, K. (1935/2005). The logic of scientific discovery. London: Routledge.
Prilleltensky, I. (1997). Values, assumptions, and practices: Assessing the moral implications of psychological discourse and action. American Psychologist, 52(5), 517–535. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.52.5.517.
Prilleltensky, I. (1998). Values and assumptions about values and assumptions. American Psychologist, 53(3), 325–326. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066x.53.3.325.
Ragusa, A. T., & Bousfield, K. (2017). ‘It’s not the test, it’s how it’s used!’ Critical analysis of public response to NAPLAN and MySchool Senate Inquiry. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 38(3), 265–286. https://doi.org/10.1080/01425692.2015.1073100.
Richardson, M. S. (1993). Work in people’s lives: A location for counseling psychologists. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 40(4), 425–433. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0167.40.4.425.
Richardson, M. S. (2000). A new perspective for counsellors: From ideologies to empowerment through work and relationship practices. In A. Collin & R. A. Young (Eds.), The future of career (pp. 197–211). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Riddle, S. (2013, May 14). NAPLAN only measures a fraction of literacy learning. The Conversation. Retrieved from: https://theconversation.com/naplan-only-measures-a-fraction-of-literacy-learning-14078
Savickas, M. (1992). New directions in career assessment. In D. H. Montross & C. J. Shinkman (Eds.), Career development: Theory and practice (pp. 336–355). Springfield: Charles C Thomas Publisher.
Savickas, M. (1993). Career counseling in the postmodern era. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy: An International Quarterly, 7(3), 205–215.
Savickas, M. (1994). Vocational psychology in the postmodern era: Comment on Richardson (1993). Journal of Counseling Psychology, 41, 105–107. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0167.41.1.105.
Savickas, M. (1995). Current theoretical issues in vocational psychology: Convergence, divergence and schism. In W. B. Walsh & S. H. Osipow (Eds.), Handbook of vocational psychology: Theory, research and practice (2nd ed., pp. 1–34). Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Savickas, M. (2001). Toward a comprehensive theory of career development: Dispositions, concerns, and narratives. In F. T. L. Leong & A. Barak (Eds.), Contemporary models in vocational psychology: A volume in honor of Samuel H. Osipow (pp. 295–320). Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Shine, K. (2015). Are Australian teachers making the grade? A study of news coverage of NAPLAN testing. Media International Australia, 154(1), 25–33. https://doi.org/10.1177/1329878x1515400105.
Sriprakash, A., & Loughland, T. (2014, August 20). Testing democracy: NAPLAN produces culture of compliance. The Conversation. Retrieved from: https://theconversation.com/testing-democracy-naplan-produces-culture-of-compliance-30651
The Senate. (2010). Administration and reporting of NAPLAN testing. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia.
Thompson, G., & Cook, I. (2014). Manipulating the data: Teaching and NAPLAN in the control society. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 35(1), 129–142. https://doi.org/10.1080/01596306.2012.739472.
Weldon, P. R. (2015). The teacher workforce in Australia: Supply, demand and data issues. Melbourne: Australian Council for Educational Research.
Young, R. A., & Collin, A. (2004). Introduction: Constructivism and social constructionism in the career field. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 64(3), 373–388. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2003.12.005.
Young, R. A., & Popadiuk, N. E. (2012). Social constructionist theories in vocational psychology. In P. McIlveen & D. E. Schultheiss (Eds.), Social constructionism in vocational psychology and career development (pp. 9–28). Rotterdam: Sense Publishers.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
McIlveen, P., Perera, H.N. (2019). Abuse and Misuse of Psychometrics as a Threat to Vocational Psychology. In: Athanasou, J.A., Perera, H.N. (eds) International Handbook of Career Guidance. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-25153-6_33
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-25153-6_33
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-25152-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-25153-6
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)