LGBTQ+ youth: Careers threats and interventions

Abstract

In an era of rapid development, the world is showing greater openness towards diversity and inclusiveness. There is also an increasing amount of career-related research that has shed light on the LGBTQ+ population. Still, the literature reports many career issues that concern young LGBTQ+ individuals. The current article aimed to highlight the contributing issues that might impact young LGBTQ+ groups’ career development, mental health, and well-being – in particular, the issues of workplace hostility, the costs of self-identity disclosure, self-identity confusion, and inadequate career counselling and guidance services. These issues are discussed through the lens of three major career theories: Super’s life-span, life-space theory, Gottfredson’s circumscription and compromise theory, and Krumboltz’s social learning theory. The aim was to equip career counsellors with a better understanding of the challenges facing LGBTQ+ youth and to suggest potentially useful interventions.