Africentricity and Career Development of African Americans

Abstract

This article addresses career development as a special task in life‐span development. Career development is discussed as a counseling intervention based on Eurocentric concepts, a conceptualization that might not address the needs of African American clients. Specifically, it is argued that individual behavior is organized with respect to values, attitudes, and beliefs of a reference group, in this case, a cultural reference group. Career development for African Americans then, is conceptualized within a complementary framework termed Africentrism. A heuristic model is advanced for understanding the origins of culturally relevant values some African Americans hold toward work and careerism. Inclusion of these and similar culturally relevant values enables fuller service to this (and all) ethnic minority clients regardless of counselor's theoretical perspectives.