An Investigation of the Career Development of High School Adolescents with Hearing Impairments in New Zealand

Although the need for better-skilled workers has been signaled by the marketplace, people with hearing impairments generally are employed in unskilled or semiskilled jobs. They are, therefore, at heightened risk of unemployment and underemployment. Compounding this risk are the levels of vocational preparation and job awareness of adolescents with hearing impairments, which are generally considered inadequate. With a view to improving prevocational programs for hearing impaired adolescents, the researcher collected information on career awareness and vocational maturity. Significant differences were identified between hearing impaired and hearing adolescents on a range of career measures. In particular, adolescents with hearing impairments were identified as having less career awareness.