The Decision-Making Process
The Decision-Making Process
Decision Making
The previous topic addressed problem solving. This resource contrasts problem solving with decision making and highlights important steps in effective decision making.
Decision Making vs. Problem Solving
Whereas problem solving involves the discovery of a correct response to a situation that is new and unique to an individual, decision making is the interpretive process that leads to the selection of a response from among a number of “known” alternative responses. Decision making, then involves the “weighing” of alternative responses to a situation in terms of their desirability and potential costs and payoffs (“Career Development Service,” 1976). Many decisions involve an element of risk, in that one seldom knows if a given decision will lead to positive outcomes. The point is to make the best possible decisions of which one is capable – and to learn from one’s mistakes, as well.
Decision theory brings together psychology, statistics, philosophy, and mathematics to analyze the decision-making process. Descriptive, prescriptive, and normative are three main areas of decision theory and each studies a different type of decision making. Decision making can be regarded as the cognitive process of selection from two or more alternative choices. There are four consumer decision-making models: economic model, passive model, cognitive model, and emotional model (“Four Views,” 2014).
The Decision-Making Process
The 7-Step Decision-Making Model was developed by Rick Roberts of the University of North Florida career services. It was designed for those who wanted a decision-making model to help with choosing a career path or deciding what to do about a job offer. An important factor in the model is information gathering (“7 Steps,” n.d.).
Review the following resources for more information:
The 7 Steps to Effective Decision Making: https://www.umassd.edu/fycm/decision-making/process/
Areas of Decision Making
The 7 Steps
• Identify the decision to be made – Exactly what are you trying to decide?
• Gather Information – Such as for careers or majors in college: What are the strengths, weaknesses, skills, values, and interests?
• Identify options – List the various choices so far.
• Weigh the evidence – About each alternative, the pros, cons, and risks of each alternative.
• Choose among the alternatives – Generally, this is the most difficult step.
• Take action – May be necessary to loop back and gather more information.
• Review your decision – And implement it.
Since the typical intern has already chosen a major and minor, the purpose of the internship is to crystallize connections between one’s major and the world of work. As Durham (1977) expresses it, “More than any other single decision you can make, your choice of a career will shape your personality, your mind, your living habits, and your health” (p. 3). Thus, an internship provides a safe way of exploring various links between one’s college major and related occupations.
There are two important steps in choosing the right career: knowing oneself and knowing the world of work. Knowing oneself means recognizing one’s aptitudes (or abilities), preferences, and interests. There are several interest inventories that are available. One example is the Kuder Preference Record; another is the Strong-Campbell Vocational Interest Inventory, based on John Holland’s classification system. Holland believes that there are six types of career fields, each of which is correlated with a particular type of personality (see Michelozzi [1980] for a review of these). For example, the typical social sciences major probably would fit into Holland’s social type – these careers deal primarily with people. Workers should be good with people, concerned with their problems, or at least comfortable providing services to them (Michelozzi, 1980).
Knowing the world of work means knowing what one can expect from a particular career and knowing about salaries as well as intangibles. One method that Durham (1977) recommends is to interview at least five people in a career that is being considered; these people should be asked what they like and dislike about their job. They can also be asked about the nature of their work, as well as entry requirements. Other questions to ask might involve working conditions, personal satisfaction, prestige, personal abilities, availability, and responsibility (Westbrook, 1978). It is also recommended that the student consult the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, which is updated every two years, as well as the Dictionary of Occupational Titles, which describes roughly 47,000 jobs.
Conclusion
Making the right decision about career selection can be daunting. That is one reason why internships are so important; they allow the student to try out potential career settings without a long-term obligation. Still, it is important to apply these principles of logical decision making to help the person make the best decision for that point in time.
References
Career development service [booklet]. (1976). Palmer Publications.
Durham, L. (1977). 100 careers: How to pick the one that’s best for you. Prentice-Hall.
Four views of consumer decision making. (2014, March 27). WordPress. Retrieved from https://huanghui19911017.wordpress.com/2014/03/27/four-views-of-consumer-decision-making-2/
Lucidchart (n.d.) 7 Steps of the Decision-Making Process. https://www.lucidchart.com/blog/decision-making-process-steps.
Michelozzi, B. N. (1980). Coming alive from nine to five. Mayfield Publishing Company.
7 steps to effective decision making. University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. https://www.umassd.edu/fycm/decision-making/process/
Westbrook, B. W. (1978). Career development needs of adults. American Personnel and Guidance Association.
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