A Qualitative Analysis of Counseling Case Material: Listening to Our Clients

In this article, the case vignettes and discussants’ reactions from the series entitled “Getting Down to Cases” from the Career Development Quarterly were analyzed to identify themes pertaining to the overlap between work and interpersonal relationships. The most common theme, which was found in more than 50% of the cases, was the expression of interest on the part of the discussants for further information on the relationship lives of the clients. Other variant themes (i.e., themes that were identified in less than 50% but more than two of the cases) identified four areas pertaining to (a) the function of relational support in career development, (b) the motivational and conflictual nature of the work-relationship overlap, (c) the complexity of family roles in career decision making and work-based settings, and (d) the social and economic influences of the work/relationship interface. These findings were discussed in light of current theory and research.