All of this is to say that the developmental approach shares with
the differential approach an interest in how individuals fit into dif-
ferent occupations at a particular point in their lives. Yet the devel-
opmental approach emphasizes how individuals fit work into their
lives. Harry Dexter Kitson, one of the first vocational psychologists,
recognized the potential value that life history research might add to
vocational guidance. Kitson (1926) proposed that researchers study
vocational histories, which eventually propelled his protégé, Donald
Super, to launch an influential program of research to construct and
test his theory of vocational development. This commitment to
learning about how careers unfold led, in due course, to three of
Super’s major contributions: the Career Pattern Study, a classic
book, and a theory of vocational development (Savickas, 1994a).
The momentous Career Pattern Study (Super, 1985) followed the
careers of one hundred 9th-grade students for more than twenty
years and produced four books, scores of journal articles, three psy-
chometric inventories, and dozens of dissertations. The second
major product was an authoritative book titled The Psychology of
Careersin which Super (1957) refocused vocational psychology by
expanding its attention to occupational choice as an event to in-
clude career decision making as a process. The third product of
Super’s study of careers was his journal article titled “A Theory of
Vocational Development” (Super, 1953).
Career Construction Theory
The ten propositions in Super’s original (1953) statement of voca-
tional development theory have been repeatedly modified for clar-
ity and expanded to incorporate new research (Super & Bachrach,
1957; Super, 1981; Super, 1984; Bell, Super, & Dunn, 1988; Super,
1990; Super, Savickas, & Super, 1996). Students of career devel-
opment should read Super’s initial (1953), definitive (1984), and
final (1990) statements of his theory, as well as Salomone’s (1996)
critique of the theory’s evolution. The developmental theory of
A DEVELOPMENTAL THEORY OF VOCATIONAL BEHAVIOR 153