Vocational dreams and the nuclear self: a grounded theoretical model on the relationship between dreams and the vocational choice process
Vocational dreams and the nuclear self: a grounded theoretical model on the relationship between dreams and the vocational choice process
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Issue Date
1986
Authors
Herrmann, Steven B.
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Abstract
This thesis is based on a grounded theoretical model of the relationship between dreams and the vocational choice process. The data is derived from ten interviews. On the basis of these reports, I postulate that vocational dreams in early adulthood are formative factors in career decision making and give the individual a sense of purpose and greater meaning in life. The dream material also showed a clustering of vocational images around the appearance of an organizing symbol, which I refer to as the nuclear symbol. This symbol was found to form the core constituent of the participants' early ambitions and idealized goals: Their nuclear self. Contained within these dreams was the appearance of an emotional wound that was formed in relation to the nuclear self. Furthermore, I found that these dreams seemed to form a potential means of self-healing for the participants. I recommend that a follow-up study be done, which may determine whether vocational dreams can be predictive of future career choices and how they can be more directly utilized in the clinical application of psychotherapy.
Description
The author requests that no student photocopy any portion of this thesis and that no one quote any portion without the expressed consent of the author, Steve Herrmann.