Bronfenbrenner (1979, 1993) identifies three conditions of eco-
logically valid research. These conditions are not just related to
methods but must remain central to theorizing as well. Extending
these conditions to explanations, the conditions are that the expla-
nation must (1) maintain the integrity of real-life situations, (2) be
faithful to social and cultural contexts, and (3) be consistent with
the person’s description of experiences and events. The explanation
set out in this chapter meets these conditions by (1) identifying goal-
directed action as the central unit of our approach, thus maintain-
ing the integrity of real-life situations, (2) recognizing the structural,
functional, and meaning properties of context that incorporate the
social and cultural contexts, and (3) using language and concepts
that are close to human experience and localized at the level of ac-
tion, project, or career. Thus the cultural, gender, and intergenera-
tional validity of the explanation is based on the same conditions
and can be addressed in particular.
Culture and Career
The theme of this chapter represents the substantial relationship
between career and culture; context subsumes culture. We have al-
ready suggested that career is enacted in a given time and place. It is
linked to a culture and a history. Career includes plans, intentions,
goals, and actions that incorporate time and place in both their speci-
ficity and breadth. Boesch (1991) is particularly insightful on this
point when he refers to action as situated in a cultural field. Similarly,
career is situated in a cultural field, and it is this field that affords and
constrains career possibilities. Because of the complexity of career and
its extension over time, culture is more explicit in career than in a
single action. For example, we can think of some actions that might
have similar meanings in different cultures, but it is much more diffi-
cult to imagine careers having the same meaning in different cultures.
The contextual explanation of career also addresses the in-
creased ethnic diversity of societies in which career is constructed
and career services are provided. Leong and Hartung (2000) use the
termmulticultural mind-setto highlight the contrast with an earlier
224 CAREER CHOICE AND DEVELOPMENT