People with Special Needs and Career Development Based on Strength

Abstract

The present work deals with career counselling for people with special needs based on the paradigm of positive psychology, which is becoming increasingly relevant in counselling and therapeutic processes. It is an approach to counselling and working with clients based on the strengths of the individual and represents a paradigm shift – a departure from the approach based on deficits and weaknesses. The empirical study established the prevalence of this approach in Slovenian elementary and secondary school counsellors. The results show that this way of counselling is a new strategy for mobilising various internal sources of strength and a supportive environment, which improves the individual’s ability to achieve the best possible self-sufficient education and integration into professional and social life. However, in the case of counselling for persons with special needs, a balance needs to be achieved between a strength approach and others that focus on personal problems and weaknesses.

Keywords

• positive psychology
• career counselling
• people with special needs
• strengths