meaning from the realm of knowledge because they cannot be empir-
ically determined. The assumptions of the social constructionists posi-
tion are as follows:
- All aspects of the universe are interconnected; it is impossible
to separate figure from ground, subject from object, people
from their environments. - There are no absolutes; thus human functioning cannot be
reduced to laws or principles, and cause and effect cannot
be inferred. - Human behavior can only be understood in the context in
which it occurs. - The subjective frame of reference of human beings is the only
legitimate source of knowledge. Events occur outside human
beings. As individuals understand their environments and
participate in these events, they define themselves and their
environments.
Passmore (1967) undoubtedly overstates the case when he
asserts that positivism is dead in science. Patton (1997), a long-time
advocate of the constructivist position, admits that the research
methodologies associated with both positions have a place. So log-
ical positivism is very much alive, at least among the theorists and
researchers who focus on career development and occupational
choice.
The disparate philosophical positions that underpin many of
the current theories of occupational choice and career development
cannot be bridged as easily as Osipow (1990) suggests if the theo-
ries are based on different philosophical positions. However, given
that his observations focus on theories that were predicated on log-
ical positivist philosophy, perhaps the possibility of developing an
integrated theory within the logical positivist frame of reference
exists. Is this possible? Dawis (1994) addresses this issue. He writes,
“Although theory convergence and even theory integration is pos-
14 CAREER CHOICE AND DEVELOPMENT