Vocational interest measures across Africa: a scoping review

ABSTRACT

A scoping review of peer-reviewed academic literature on career interest measures for the African adolescents was conducted. The aim was to determine current knowledge and future research. Measuring learners’ career interests during high school is imperative to promote a positive start to their career trajectory. A sample of 10 articles (2012–2022) from four databases was analysed. The results indicate that research is lacking and conducted mainly by one author utilising the Career Interest Profile, Maree Career Matrix and Career Adapt-Abilities Scale – South African Form. Integrative approaches, mixing methodologies and referencing the unique African context in measurement were common characteristics of studies. It is concluded that more research should be conducted on African adolescents to develop context-sensitive career interest measures.

KEYWORDS:

• Africa
• African samples
• career counselling
• career interest
• vocational interest

Introduction

Vocational research has been a central topic of interest in various disciplines for the past few decades, leading to tremendous advancements in vocational interest methodology (Etzel et al., 2019). Measures designed to determine vocational interests and predict suitable occupations generally include items to assess respondents’ probability of liking different occupations, school subjects, leisure and work activities (Ashton, 2018). Consequently, stakeholders such as parents, teachers and counsellors are encouraged to consider a learner’s abilities and interests when providing career guidance (Mukembo et al., 2014). Insight into these interests is imperative for educational, occupational and goal-oriented behaviour in specific life domains (Stoll & Trautwein, 2017). Career interest can be mitigated by a career counsellor’s field recommendations and tests (Maree, 2019). Adolescence is an appropriate age to determine vocational interests as it can motivate learners to participate in career development activities and refine vocational interests and their identity (Blustein, 2006). Additionally, career counselling in adolescence can assist young people in forming dimensions like optimism, hope (Santisi et al., 2021), self-efficacy, career adaptability and general ideas about work (Zammitti et al., 2020). Therefore, instruments are administered to students at a young age, during which study or subject adjustments can be made (Maree, 2012), and the youth’s contribution to the global and national economy can be promoted (Maree, 2013a).

Today African youth is better educated and want better employment than their parents (Fox & Gandhi, 2021). However, they are faced with various challenges to realise their career aspirations, such as a lack of skills (forcing them to return to school) and high job competition as the number of job seekers often outweighs the available opportunities prompting youth to start businesses of their own (Fox & Gandhi, 2021). Skills mismatch is becoming a greater problem as African countries grow their economies, and students are often disappointed to find their education cannot allow them to reach their career goals (OECD, 2018). Fox and Gandhi (2021) highlight the imperative role of improving the African youth’s cognitive skills and preparedness for entering the labour market to combat these difficulties. Currently, it is estimated that a quarter of the global population will be from the African continent in 2030 (United Nations, 2019), this along with the rising worldwide underemployment and unemployment highlights the lack of and need for new career counselling advancements (International Labour Organization, 2017).

In African countries such as South Africa, career counselling traditionally consists of psychometric instruments that match a person’s values, personality and abilities to a specific career (Human & Human, 2016), personal goals and interests (Zopiatis et al., 2016). However, very few African youths, receive proper career counselling, leading to students at university without clarity on what their studies will entail or what their future employment may look like leading to student dropouts (Maree, 2012). The lack of career counselling is especially evident in previously disadvantaged groups, for which intervention programmes that focus on the person and the context they find themselves are lacking (Human & Human, 2016; Maree, 2012). Using Western measures for career counselling in non-standardised, non-white and non-Western populations has been widely criticised (Hobololo, 2020; Watson, 2013), and only a handful of career interest measures apply to the African population (Maree, 2013b). Consequently, efforts are encouraged to consider participants’ context, such as their culture’s role in career assessment (Leong & Pearce, 2014; Stead & Watson, 2017; Watson & McMahon, 2013).

To address cultural differences, researchers have argued for using both qualitative and quantitative measures (De Bruin & De Bruin, 2006; Maree, 2013a). Quantitative career measures can consist of standardised tests and scores, for example, the widely used South African Directed Search (SDS). Alternatively, quantitative measures can also be unstandardised surveys, such as the career interests determined in an Uganda sample by Mukembo et al. (2014). For qualitative measures, clients play a more active role in career assessment, which can reflect factors like cultural and societal environmental barriers, such as in the case of the My System of Career Influences (MSCI) (McMahon et al., 2005; Watson & McMahon, 2013). Various career theories and measures have been designed or adapted specifically for the African context. For example, Menon et al. (2012) assessed the career interests of Zambian adolescents by creating a career interest survey from the Strong Interest Inventory and Guidance Division Survey (Oklahoma Department of Career Education, 2005). Morgan e al. (2015) tested Holland’s circumplex in geographic regions East – South and Western Africa, found some cross-cultural applications, and encouraged further research. Rabie and Naidoo (2021) proved the validity of an isiXhosa version of the South African Career Interest Inventory, also grounded in Holland’s theory (Holland, 1985), in a sample of secondary school learners. The Career Interest Profile (CIP) consists of numeric and narrative measures to assist in career choices tested by Maree and Sommerville (2008) and deemed relevant for South African samples. Measures can also follow emic or etic approaches to assessment. The emic approach is seen as the most appropriate approach to diverse populations and is rare in the African context, according to Laher and Cockroft (2017). The South African Personality Inventory (SAPI) is an example of such a measure. On the other hand, Etic measures are widely used international measures such as the NEO Personality Inventory (Laher & Cockcroft, 2013). Researchers have argued for and against using emic and etic measures in Africa. However, Shuttleworth-Jordan (1996) warns against “reinventing the wheel” and encourages researchers to instead adapt or standardise existing measures to different contexts (Laher & Cockcroft, 2013).

Currently, the scope of applying career interest measures in African research has not been reported. However, previous reviews on somewhat similar topics have been conducted. Bemath (2020) conducted a narrative review of person-centred career interest approaches and found that there were various challenges in the use thereof for the context of South Africa. Challenges were highlighted for measures such as the SAPI (Van Eeden & Mantsha, 2007), Maree Career Matrix and the South African Career Interest Inventory (Morgan et al., 2015a) that were criticised as having bias, small, unrepresentative, homogenous samples and lacked further exploration (Bemath, 2020). The Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) also provides a list of various classified and reviewed psychometric tests for career counselling that may be used within South Africa specifically (HPCSA, 2017). Schreuder and Coetzee (2015) reviewed South African organisational research trends from 1970 to 2011. They found career assessment to be one of the proportionally dominant trends in South African scientific journals that require more research. Despite the contributions of these studies, they do not provide insight into the application and sample construction of research utilising career interest measures in Africa as a whole. Thus, a review to determine the scope of the available literature on career interest measures developed over the past ten years is therefore merited to determine if more can be done to increase employability and limit skills mismatch in Africa.

Choosing a career is an essential life choice a person can make and is often made early in life, thereby determining a person’s life trajectory (Rabie et al., 2021), university course enrolment and career outcomes (Hulleman et al., 2008; Nugent et al., 2015). Currently, African youth are experiencing a skills mismatch between their education, skills and available jobs whilst facing rising unemployment and underemployment (Worldbank, 2021). Therefore, research has encouraged attention to aspects of career development for adolescents (Coetzee & Beukes, 2010) to inform them of careers they would like to pursue (Zunker, 2006) while they can still change career trajectories. Having insight into these aspects can promote career resilience, adaptability, and employability and assist in finding decent work (Hartung & Santilli, 2018). Researchers have designed and adapted Western career interest measures to the unique African context. These measures have been widely criticised and debated by researchers such as Hobololo (2020), who still argue that African-rooted career theories are needed. However, despite previously conducted reviews (see Bemath, 2020), insight into the scope of these types of career interest measures used to provide counselling to adolescents in the African context is lacking. Thus, amid one of the fastest-growing populations globally, unemployment issues and debates on the use of career measures in African samples, a view of current research may help identify the way forward. A review of the literature can also identify research gaps which may further the applicability and norming of these measures in the African context.

Aims of the study

This scoping review aimed to map the available evidence and identify gaps in research on career interest measures used in African adolescent populations (Arksey & O’Malley, 2005; Tricco et al., 2016; Munn et al., 2018). To achieve this aim, the following research question was addressed: What types of measures have been used to determine the career interests in African adolescents?

Based on the posed research question and general objective, the following specific objectives were explored:

1. Identify measures used to determine career interest in Africa.

2. Report the population characteristics of career interest measures.

3. Identify measure characteristics.

4. Identify research gaps in the application of career interest measures for the African context.

Methodology

A review method was followed in this study. Reviews are considered essential as they take stock of what research has been conducted and determine the position of future work (Sutton et al., 2019).

Method

This study utilised a scoping review design following the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Manual for evidence synthesis methodology and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses extension for scoping review (PRISMA-ScR). Thus, this proposal served as the review protocol (Peters et al., 2020). Scoping reviews identify new and specific research questions by searching the available and emerging research (Peters et al., 2020). This research design is applicable to the identified aim as it allows for mapping available evidence and identifying research gaps. The philosophical assumption that was followed in this study was pragmatism. Pragmatism focuses on using the best method for a specific research question (Patton & McMahon, 2014) and creates shared meaning and joint action (Moseholm & Fetters, 2017). By following this philosophical assumption, the researcher aimed to solve a practical problem in the real world (Kaushik & Walsh, 2019), namely gaining insight into career interest measures used for the African population.

Participants

Based on the research objective’s PCC (Population, Concept and Context), the following eligibility criteria were followed to identify relevant articles. Only measures applied in the African adolescent population, with their main focus (concept) being the design, use or validation of a career or vocational interest measure were included. Studies were also only included if they had been conducted in the African continent/geographical location (context). Lastly, this scoping review considered articles utilising any research method (e.g. review, quantitative or qualitative research methods) published in English within the time frame of 2012-2022. The types of evidence sources were academic articles published in peer-reviewed journals as this study aimed to show research gaps for academic interest and are therefore appropriate for the study aim (Peters et al., 2020). No limits were placed on the methods or designs used in articles in order to include all types of career interest measures (qualitative and quantitative).

Data collection

The following large bibliographic databases were consulted for data collection: EbscoHost, ScienceDirect, Scopus and Google Scholar. Search terms were: “career” OR “vocational” AND/ OR “Africa”, “choice”, “counselling”, “guidance”, “interest learners”, “interest”, “interest measures”, “interest testing”, “Holland’s theory”, “high school”. Additionally, in order to ensure an inclusive search of all African countries the following search terms were also used in conjunction with each African country (e.g. “Zimbabwe” AND/OR) in Google Scholar, the largest database of academic resources (Gusenbauer, 2019): “job”, “interest”, “career”, “adolescent”, “vocational”, “learner”, “student”.

All identified citations were logged into the citation manager Zotero and duplicates were removed following the search (Zotero, 2023). The full text of Zotero logged articles were assessed in detail against the inclusion criteria. Those articles that did not meet the inclusion criteria were listed, and reasons for their exclusion were documented. Two reviewers collected articles as per the scoping review design (Peters et al., 2020). Disagreements between reviewers were recorded and resolved through discussion or the assistance of a third reviewer. The search strategy was presented in the PRISMA-ScR flow diagram (Tricco et al., 2018). Data were extracted from the included articles by the researchers using a data extraction or “charting sheet” (Appendix 1, Table A1) (Peters et al., 2020), which included specific details regarding the PCC and findings relevant to the review objectives. The reviewers piloted the data extraction sheet during the initial stages of the search strategy (Arksey & O’Malley, 2005; Armstrong et al., 2011; Valaitis et al., 2012). Modifications were made if necessary to the draft extraction sheet and iterated throughout the review process. Any changes were documented (Figure A1).

Data analysis

The extracted data were analysed through content analysis and coding of data to form categories and frequency counts (Peters et al., 2020). Content analysis aims to create content categories in a systematic and replicable manner (Stemler, 2001) to describe aspects such as people, places, actions and events (Nieuwenhuis, 2016). Four stages of content analysis for review studies were followed (Gaur & Kumar, 2018): data collection, coding, analysis and interpretation of codes (Duriau et al., 2007).

Research procedure

After receiving ethical clearance, the researchers applied the scoping review framework designed by Arksey and O’Malley (2005) and enhanced by Peters et al. (2020). The search strategy consisted of a three-step process, as Peters et al. (2020) identified. First, the researcher conducted a relevant limited search regarding the research topic of at least two online databases. The identified titles, abstracts, and text terms used to describe relevant articles were analysed from this initial search. A second search was then conducted using these identified terms across all databases. Lastly, the reference lists of identified reports, those selected by full text, were checked for more relevant sources.

Rigour

The recommendations to perform a quality scoping review identified by Khalil et al. (2021) was followed in this study. First, the scoping review was performed by trained researchers. Two reviewers conducted the review; Dr Scholtz is a registered research psychologist with the HPCSA with a certificate in undertaking scoping reviews from The University of Adelaide and various published reviews (first reviewer). The second reviewer Prof de Beer is an experienced published researcher and registered industrial and research psychologist with the HPCSA. Secondly, the reviewers carefully considered if the aim of the study fits within the objective of a scoping review. This study aimed to identify gaps for further research within career interest measures for Africa, which is one of the six reasons for conducting a scoping review (Munn et al., 2018). Furthermore, the reviewers also read extensively on the scoping review method to ensure it is suitable for the study objective (Khalil et al., 2021).

Additionally, the online tool by Munn et al. (2018) (https://whatreviewisrightforyou.knowledgetranslation.net/) was used to discern if a scoping review is an appropriate review for the study aim. Thirdly, as reviewers can experience difficulty in selecting studies to include in their analysis, clear guidelines provided by the JBI for scoping reviews were followed. The fourth recommendation by Khalil et al. (2021) is for researchers to plan their presentation of data for their audience carefully. This scoping review has presented data through tables and a narrative description of these tables. Khalil et al. (2021) also recommend reviewers follow transparent and replicable methodologies to ensure quality, for which the chosen reporting system (PRISMA-ScR) was used. Lastly, the reviewers stayed true to the aim of the scoping review by being cognizant of its limitations of not providing enough depth and critical appraisal to inform policy to the same extent as systematic reviews (Khalil et al., 2021).

Results

A final sample of 10 articles were included for data analysis, and the characteristics of measures used to determine African adolescents’ career interests are presented in Tables A2 to A4. The following findings are evident from the collected sample:

Table A2. Measure characteristics.

Authors	Name	Focus	Language	Theory
Ajayi et al., 2022	Career interest and career decision-making scales	Career interests and career decision-making	ns	Super (1957) and Holland’s theory
Alika & Egbochuku, 2012	Bakare’s vocational interest inventory	Career interest, SES of parents and school re-entry	ns	Holland’s theory
Ekore, 2014	ns	Career interest and reasons for interest	ns	ns
Maree & Taylor, 2016	MCM, CIP	Measure development	English and Afrikaans	Holland's Theory, South African Vocational Interest Inventory (SAVII), Kuder’s (1977) 10-fold conceptualisation of distinguishable stereotype career interest categories, and Rothwell and Miller’s conceptualisation of 12 stereotypical career preferences were also considered.
Maree, 2018	SAT-L, JPQ, RMIB, SSHA, SAVII, CIP	Career interest and life design	English	ns
Maree, 2020a	MCM, CIP, CAAS-South Africa	Self – and career construction	English	Trait-and-factor theory, developmental theory, and social learning theory. Differential, developmental, and storied approaches.
Maree, 2020b	MCM, CIP	Self – and career construction	Afrikaans	Savickas (2019a, 2019b), Guichard (2009), Adler (1958), Cochran (1992, 2011), Jung (1977), Tiedeman (1964), Tiedeman and Miller-Tiedeman (1985).
Maree	MCM, CIP	Career interest and career reflection/self	English	Holland’s theory, Adler (1958), Jung (1977), Savickas (2005), and other scholars’ views on qualitative/narrative/storied (career) counselling
Rabie et al., 2021	SACII, CMI-C	Career interest and career maturity	English and Afrikaans (available in isiXhosa)	Holland, Savickas and Porfeli (2012)
Ruiters & Maree, 2022	CAAS, The life-design counselling process, Lifeline, Career Construction Interview (CCI), Early Recollections Technique (ERT), The Career Interest Profile (Ver 6).	Career adaptability and career decision-making process	English	Self, life and career construction theory (Savickas, 2019a)

*ns = Not stated

*Information presented as reported in articles

Table A4. Article characteristics.

Authors	Journal	Method	Design	Data collection
Ajayi et al., 2022	Athens Journal of Education	Quantitative	Correlational survey research design	Questionnaires
Alika & Egbochuku, 2012	Research in Education	Quantitative	descriptive survey	Questionnaires
Ekore, 2014	Journal of Sociology and Education in Africa	Quantitative and qualitative	survey research design	Questionnaires
Maree & Taylor, 2016	South African Journal of Psychology	ns	ns	Questionnaires
Maree, 2018	Early Child Development and Care	Qualitative and quantitative	Single-case study design	Questionnaires and autobiography
Maree, 2020	Journal of Psychology in Africa	Mixed-method	QUAL + quant design: explorative, descriptive, instrumental, single-case study approach	Questionnaires, autobiography and reports
Maree, 2020	British Journal of Guidance & Counselling	Quantitative and qualitative	Explorative, descriptive, instrumental, single case-study approach	Questionnaires, autobiography and reports
Maree, 2020b	Journal of Psychology in Africa	Mixed-method	QUAL + quant	Questionnaires, autobiography and reports
Rabie et al., 2021	The Journal for Specialists in Group Work	Quantitative and qualitative	ns	Questionnaires and workshop with standardised booklet
Ruiters & Maree, 2022	South African Journal of Higher Education	Mixed-method	Qual + quan mixed-methods	Interview, visual aid, genogram and questionnaire

*ns = Not stated

*Information presented as reported in articles

Measure characteristics. The most commonly published career interest measures for African adolescents are the Career Interest Profile (CIP), Maree Career Matrix (MCM) and Career Adapt-Abilities Scale – South African Form (CAAS) (See Table A2). Holland’s Theory and a combination of Savickas and Porfeli (2011, 2012) or Savickas (2005; 2019a, 2019b), were the career interest theories cited by most authors. More than half of the articles were authored or co-authored by the same author (e.g. Maree, 2020a; Maree & Taylor, 2016). Overall, studies reported favourable results for measures and career interventions. For example, Rabie et al. (2021) found that their group-based career measure and workshop significantly improved learners’ career adaptability and decision-making. Maree (2020a, 2020b) supported and recommended using an integrative measure in career counselling to enhance learners’ narratability and reflexivity. Articles on measure validity and psychometric properties reported their positive outcomes and applicability to large African samples (e.g. Maree & Taylor, 2016; Ruiters & Maree, 2022). Measures focused on various aspects in addition to measuring career interest, for example, self-construction, career maturation, career decision (e.g. Rabie et al., 2021) or factors that could influence career choice (Alika & Egbochuku, 2012; Ekore, 2014). Two articles explicitly reported on the validation and development of measures, namely the MCM and CAAS (Maree & Taylor, 2016; Rabie et al., 2021), whereas other studies shortly described the validity and reliability of measures for their aims and sample groups.

Sample characteristics. With regards to other sample characteristics (Table A3), the reviewed sample indicated that African adolescents were mainly sampled using convenience or purposive sampling with the exception of Ajayi et al. (2022), Alika and Egbochuku (2012) and Ekore (2014) that utilised techniques such as snowball or random sampling. Most of the articles sampled from public schools (e.g. Ekore, 2014), while the remainder of the articles used samples from authors’ private practice (Maree, 2020). Sample sizes ranged from one participant (e.g. Maree, 2020) to 1106 participants (e.g. Maree & Taylor, 2016).

Table A3. Sample characteristics.

Authors	Sample language	Age range	Race	Male	Female	Missing	Sample size	Sampling method	Geographic
Ajayi et al., 2022	ns	ns	ns	ns	ns		204	Stratified random sampling	Cape Winelands
Alika & Egbochuku, 2012	ns	12 to 16	ns	0	100%	0	360	Simple random sampling	ns
Ekore, 2014	ns	16.03	ns	49.1	50.9	0	860	Snowball and purposive sampling	ns
Maree & Taylor, 2016	Afr:12.2%, Eng: 15.1%, Ndebele: 5.5%, Sepedi: 12.2%, Sesostho: 2.6%, Swati: 3.0%, Tsonga: 2.7%, Tswana: 19.8%, Venda: 1.2%, Xhosa: 2.9%, Zulu: 8.4%, Other:3.1%, Missing: 11.3%	ns	ns	39.90%	48.80%	11.30%	1106	Purposive	Mpumalanga and North-West
Maree, 2018	Afrikaans	14	ns	100%	0		1	Purposive	ns
Maree, 2020	English	17	ns	100%	0		1	Convenience	ns
Maree, 2020a	English	14	ns	0	100%	0	1	Purposive	Gauteng
Maree, 2020b	Afrikaans	17	ns	100%	0		1	Purposive	Gauteng
Rabie et al., 2021	Afrikaans: 52.0%, isiXhosa: 38.0%, English: 6.7%. Remaining sample comprised of isiZulu, isiNdebele, Northern – and Southern Sesotho, Setswana, and Tshivenda.	13–19	Mixed-Race: 54.6%, Black African: 43.7%, White: 0.6%; Indian/Asian: 0.6%.	43.00%	56.90%	0%	1229	Convenience	Edo State, South-South geopolitical zone
Ruiters & Maree, 2022	ns	18	ns	100%	0		1	Purposive	Niger-Delta region

South Africa contributed the most career interest studies with adolescents from mostly North-West and Gauteng provinces. Despite searching for each African country specifically, only two studies were included from another country, Nigeria (Alika & Egbochuku, 2012; Ekore, 2014). Age was an important excluding factor as many studies combined adolescents with other age groups or included high school samples where learners were older than 19 years (e.g. Morgan et al., 2021; Rabie & Naidoo, 2021). Furthermore, larger samples generally consisted of female learners, and male learners were more prevalent in individual participant studies. The study aims to determine the sample sizes; for example, Rabie et al. (2021) specifically addressed the need for mass career guidance due to the severe lack of resources and, consequently, a large number of career-uninformed South African learners. On the other hand, Maree (2020a; 2020b) conducted an intensive one-on-one personal career assessment to address career interest in specific or unique case studies.

Individual measures were prevalent in private practice, whereas group-based measures were used within the public or school context. Those participants from private practice received more integrated intensive career guidance, whereas groups mostly received quantitative measures to determine their career interests and to validate career measures (e.g. Ajayi et al., 2022). Participants were aged 13–19 years, and fourteen different home languages were identified in the learner samples, of which Afrikaans, English and isiXhosa were the most common, whereas some studies (e.g. Alika & Egbochuku, 2012; Ekore, 2014) omitted information on language entirely. Despite the diversity of home languages, most measures were only available in English, with three in Afrikaans and one in isiXhosa.

Integrated research methods. The research methods applied for conducting the included studies are presented in Table A4. The sample indicates that a more holistic and integrative approach is followed using career interest measures, as most studies applied qualitative and quantitative research methods or mixed-method designs. For example, Maree (2020a) and Maree (2020b) combined focus groups or autobiographies with questionnaires and Ekore (2014) included qualitative and quantitative questions in their survey. Five studies focused on integrating various measures and techniques to provide holistic career guidance or to explore reasons for specific career decisions. Rabie et al. (2021) combined qualitative and quantitative measures by administering a questionnaire to learners and following that questionnaire with a focus group.

Integrative career measurement or guidance was seen as a way of staying relevant for young people and children (Maree, 2020). The diverse African context of the sampled population was also identified as a reason to utilise measures that cater to individuals’ unique context and development (Maree & Che, 2020 as cited in Ruiters & Maree, 2022). Authors’ weight and consideration of cultural aspects unique to the African context regarding measures varied. For example, studies discussed participants’ Socio-Economic Status, health and environment (Alika & Egbochuku, 2012; Ekore, 2014). Rabie et al. (2021) adapted their measure to an African language. They implemented the measure in a group format to address the tremendous need for career guidance in resource-constricted communities in South Africa. Rabie et al. (2021) also cited the need to move away from Eurocentric views of adolescent development to explore African adolescents’ career interests. Ruiters and Maree (2022) focused on the African adolescent context and supported their focus by reporting racial, economic and social differences similar to previous Apartheid for Black learners. Authors further highlighted the importance of career studies for Africa by referring to the unique South African context and challenges learners face due to unemployment, career exposure and knowledge and illiteracy (see Rabie et al., 2021).

Regarding one-on-one or private practice studies, participants’ health and unique personal individual contexts were discussed and integrated into the interpretation of results (e.g. Maree, 2020a; 2020b). The Nigerian study called for vocational counsellors to provide more attention to the vocational interests of female learners as they may be hindered from re-entering schools due to religious and cultural contexts. Studies on African adolescent career interest measures were also primarily published in education and psychology journals.

Discussion

The current study aimed to explore the extent of research on career interest measures for adolescents in Africa. The findings indicate that studies in the last ten years were predominantly published on South African samples and single or co-authored by Jacobus G. Maree (See Table A2). Consequently, many articles reported using the same measures, such as the CIP or MCM. According to Maree (2016) and Hartung (2013), research on South African career decisions is limited. This study shows that research on adolescent career interests remains scant in South Africa and that the situation is even direr in the remainder of Africa (see Alika & Egbochuku, 2012; Ekore, 2014). The lack of research from other African countries may be due to Africa only contributing 1% to the global knowledge economy, while South Africa is among the countries that contribute the bulk of publications (Deumeijer et al., 2018). Research in Africa is called to be more active in the global knowledge economy, considering the continent’s population growth and cultural variability (George, 2015; Kolk & Rivera-Santos, 2018).

Career counselling within an individuals’ unique context and development is ideal for African countries such as South Africa (Maree & Che, 2020). Researchers of the current sample acknowledged participants’ unique African context by referring to, for example, the country’s past, economic and disadvantaged situation (Rabie et al., 2021), education system and gender views (Alika & Egbochuku, 2012). Assisting African adolescents in identifying career interests was not only seen as an economic intervention but also an intervention to help adolescents in their specific cultural or environmental contexts, for example, to hinder adolescents in Nigeria against anti-social behaviour in certain regions (Ekore, 2014) and school dropout due to gender norms (Alika & Egbochuku, 2012). According to Kolk and Rivera-Santos (2018), highlighting the context in African countries is in stark contrast to Western research, where the context is often omitted.

According to Kolk and Rivera-Santos (2018), the unique African context can also play a determining role in utilising an adapted method for data collection (Kolk & Rivera-Santos, 2018). This study concurs with Kolk and Rivera-Santos (2018), as researchers in this sample often identified the African context and other individual contexts as a reason for utilising integrative research methods. The combination of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies for career interest research also contrasts this research to industrial and organisational psychology (I-O psychology), favouring quantitative methodology (Pratt & Bonaccio, 2016). Moreover, this widespread use of mixed and qualitative methods contrasts I-O psychology research in South Africa (Scholtz et al., 2020). Utilising qualitative research for African studies is seen as appropriate for qualitative research as a flexible method that can more effectively present African thinking and being (Landman & Yates, 2017). The sampled articles concluded that integrating qualitative and quantitative methods were more effective for career counselling. This integration also aligns with global trends in career counselling that utilise integrative research (McMahon & Watson, 2015). Integrative career counselling also provided researchers with additional tools to discover other factors influencing career interest within the African context, such as parents and the environment (e.g. Ekore, 2014).

Despite the diversity of home languages across Africa, measures in this sample were mainly administered in English. Career interest measurement in a speech outside a participants’ home language can cause frustration, for which more measures in African languages are needed (Albien & Naidoo, 2016). However, most African countries have little to no formal education in their home languages (van Pinxteren, 2022). Thus, African learners may be more inclined to answer measures in their second-educated language, such as English, the most common second language in South African schools (Taylor & von Fintel, 2016). Rabie et al. (2021) provide some insight into the measurement language of African adolescents. Despite the isiXhosa versions of their career measure, all learners opted to complete the measure in English. This article, therefore, supports Ziegler and Bensch (2013) on the importance of thoroughly considering the intended user of a translated measure. Researchers and career counsellors thus seem to be in a difficult situation of needing to adapt measures to the African context whilst also considering African adolescents’ language abilities. This difficulty highlights the gap for more research on career interest measures that concur with African adolescents’ lived experiences.

Despite the importance of context for these studies, it is important to note that transparency on participants’ demographic information was lacking. Providing limited information on participant demographics may be due to logistical load or protecting participant identity (Moravcsik, 2020). However, transparency of basic demographics and contextual factors in African studies is imperative as this shows the unique context of African samples for further research, interventions and practice. Transparency will allow other researchers the opportunity to extend and confirm results (Moravcsik, 2020), which is sorely needed on the current topic.

The following limitations should be considered when interpreting the presented results. Firstly, only peer-reviewed academic articles from three databases were included in this study in accordance with the study's aim. Future research could consider including grey literature or other resources. Secondly, the inclusion criteria of the sample age excluded various articles that may provide additional insight into career counselling during high school. Future research may broaden their search to include all individuals in a particular high school grade regardless of age. Only one of the three databases, Google Scholar, was used to search the identified terms for each African country. Despite Google Scholar being the most comprehensive academic database, a similar search in other databases may deliver additional sources. Lastly, this study aimed to provide a broad view of available academic literature as per the aim of a scoping review; a systematic review may provide more in-depth insights. However, based on the results of this scoping review, a systematic review of the available literature is only feasible if a broader range of data sources could be used.

Conclusion

As per the scoping review design, the current study shows a severe gap in the available literature on African adolescents’ career interests. Maree (2012) called for more involvement from academia in addressing African high school learners’ career selection needs. The presented review indicates that Maree seems to be on a solo voyage in increasing research on the subject. Consequently, the available research is relatively homogeneous, where the same measure and theories are continuously followed in academic research. There is also a lack of evidence to measure adaptability regarding context and language or an attempt to explore the lived experiences of the African adolescent group to cater to their needs. Therefore, experts in career counselling are called to contribute to academic research on career interests for African adolescents.

Ethical approval

Ethical approval to conduct this study was obtained from the North-West University, South Africa (NWU-00551-21-A4).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available at https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.22116659.v1.

Additional information

Funding

No funding was received to conduct this study.

Notes on contributors

Salomé Elizabeth Scholtz

Dr Salomé Elizabeth Scholtz is a registered research psychologist with the Health Professions Council of South Africa. She holds a PhD in Psychology from the North-West University (NWU), Potchefstroom Campus, South Africa and is currently working as a postdoctoral fellow at the WorkWell Research Unit, NWU, South Africa. She has published various national and international research articles on topics of work and research methodology. Her main research interest is developing and applying research methodology within different cultural groups.

Appendix 1

Figure A1. PRISMA flow diagram.

Table A1. Draft charting items.

Charting item
1. Author/s
2. Publication year
3. Country of publication
4. Measure name
5. Aim/purpose
6. Sample size and demographics
7. Measure methodology
8. Measure type
9. Study method and design
10. Measure outcomes
11. Measure theory
12. Cultural considerations
13. Measure validity