Psychological peculiarities of the professional self-determination of social orphans in senior adolescence

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the psychological peculiarities of the professional self-determination of social orphans in senior adolescence. Two hundred sixty orphans aged 14–16, residing in Central Kazakhstan, were examined to determine the aptitude of orphan asylum adolescents to certain professions. Statistical analysis of male and female groups (p ≤ 0.002) found differences in the following characteristics. The typical spheres for girls were ‘individual-individual’ and ‘individual-imagery’. They focused on communication in professional activity and creativity. The typical spheres for girls were ‘individual-machinery’ and ‘individual – semiotic system’. Statistical differences were found in such professional spheres as law, transport, pedagogy, service sector, engineering, and electric engineering. The results of this study can be used in professional consultations and trainings for successful employment of social orphans.


Introduction
For adolescents, the choice of a profession is an important psychological and ethical choice that implies certain responsibilities, since adolescents gain a clear understanding of the fact that the intension and fullness of their conscientious adult life depends on their correct choice of their profession (Rojewski & Kim, 2003).
Currently, there are no criteria for determining the professional self-determination of orphan asylum students; in addition, there are no mechanisms to bring this process to life or realize their psychological content. This impedes psychological support of orphan asylum students in their choice of profession (Wood & Goba, 2011).
Adolescents, who for various reasons have found themselves without the guardianship of their parents, are under the jurisdiction of the state. They undergo rehabilitation and receive care in the form of social guardianship and conditions for socialization in special social protection institutions -boarding schools, foster homes, aid centers or social protection organizations.
A frequently raised issue concerns the reformation of the state education system, with a view to rendering socio-pedagogical assistance and support to institutions that work with orphans and children deprived of parental care (Shakhmanova, 2010).
The professional self-determination of senior pupils is well developed in psychology; however, there is currently a gap in Kazakh psychological science in the part that deals with a special investigation of the professional self-determination of orphan children.
The studies show that the motivational sphere of adolescents with deviant behavior and adolescents without parental care is characterized by focus on the failure avoidance, predominance of external motives of choice of profession, lack of awareness of their values and motives (Aron, 2015;Nota, Soresi, Ferrari, & Wehmeyer, 2011).
Thus, the problem of professional self-determination of adolescents in orphan asylums requires special attention due to the need for finding effective ways of organizing activities that would help prepare orphans for an adequate choice of a profession in the future.
The purpose of this study was to investigate the psychological peculiarities of the professional self-determination of social orphans in senior adolescence.
Obtained empirical data can be used in the scientifically substantiated development of programs for psychological and pedagogical support of the professional establishment of senior adolescents. The results of the study elaborate the content of the psychological and pedagogical work on the professional orientation of senior orphan asylum students; the results can also be used in professional consultations and trainings for successful employment of social orphans.

Literature review
Problems that are related to the professional qualities and skills and the ability to form a personality within a profession have been and remain relevant in the sphere of social sciences and other Individualities. The main issues that were studied before the early twentieth century concerned vocational training (Grigorovich, 2009). Such concepts as instrument of labor, labor conduct, intrinsic functional capacities of a professional, and his or her individual originality began drawing more attention, as did the problems related to studying workers. These issues were formulated and elaborated in social psychology and labor psychology only in the twentieth century.
A personality can find an optimal fit for its personal qualities only in a specific occupation, which means that professional success and satisfaction with one's profession depend on how well one's personal qualities match the requirements of the chosen occupation (Parsons, 1909). In 1908, Parsons founded the first vocational guidance center (Vocational Bureau), the goal whereof was to help young people to choose a profession and prepare for professional activities. The distinguishing feature of this bureau was that its assistance was free. Eighty men and women visited the bureau over a short period of time to seek help in choosing a profession.
Professional development comes down to studying the individual's personality type, where the professional environment and the choice of an occupation depends on the type of personality, development of the person's intelligence, and self-esteem. Personality types were distinguished from the perspective of professional orientation and a 'Personality Type' diagnostic method was suggested, which determined the professional interest, attitudes, and motivation. The basis for the choice of a profession are the personality's individual features (Holland, 1973).
The choice of a profession is determined by one's professional self-determination, while professional development is characterized by a 'sequence of qualitatively specific phases' that differ in both form and content of 'individual impulses to professional desires' . The choice of a profession is a lengthy and irreversible process, since previous decisions limit one's prospects and possibilities; this process ends in a compromise between external and internal factors (Ginsburg, 1995).
When conditions change, the choice of a profession can change, too, since the individual features of any personality can match several occupations, rather than a single profession. If a person receives assistance in his or her professional undertakings, if certain interests and abilities are developed in a person, then his or her professional development is manageable during its early stages. Awakening, investigation, consolidation, preservation, and decline -these are the stages that characterize the professionalization process. At the age of 15-24, which corresponds to the investigation stage, young people take professional samples -they attempt to apply various professional roles to themselves while relying on their potential abilities (Super, 1957).
Psychological diagnostic tools were been developed to help young people choose their profession. It became one of the first practical toolsets, which was called the Career Maturity Inventory (Crites, 1978). A version of the Career Decision-Making Profile (CDMP), in which decisions had to be based on a multidimensional profile that consisted of 11 dimensions, was tested on adolescents in northeastern Italy (Ginevra, Nota, Soresi, & Gati, 2012).
The choice of a profession is affected by sexual dimorphism: men have better sublimation abilities than women do, since social interests are more pronounced in them than in the opposite sex (Freud, 1990).
Factors that determine the Individual behavior are the feeling of inferiority and aspiration to superiority. Since these mechanisms are important and fundamental (even gender-related differences are not as significant), their role in the choice of a profession and professional realization is also important (Adler, 1995).
When choosing a profession, women are guided primarily by a 'masculinity complex' , which is formed by an unconscious aspiration to have qualities that are inherent in men. This is the stimulating factor for their fulfillment in professional activity (Horney, 1991). Men envy women over their ability to bear children, which encourages them to actively engage in the professional sphere; however, cultural traditions also affect the choice of a profession, which is especially typical for eastern countries.
Individualistic psychologists believe professional development to be a component of general personal development. They believe it is impossible to force and manipulate an adolescent in his or her choice of a profession. Each subject is essentially Individuale and the assumption is that each person is born to do good and his or her right to labor and professional activity are a manifestation of his or her self-expression, independence, and personal freedom.
At present, the problem of professional self-determination is being studied from various perspectives. For instance, the career advancement of urban adolescents is related to professional hope and professional identity (Diemer & Blustein, 2007), and the effect of the cultural level (Thwala, 2013). In addition, the problem of self-determination is related to psychological growth and wellbeing (Krabbenborg, Boersma, van der Veld, Vollebergh, & Wolf, 2017).
While in foreign psychology, professional self-determination was affected by genetic prerequisites, motivation, needs, and individual features of a person, in post-Soviet countries, this problem was viewed from the perspective of the dominating paradigm.
In Soviet psychology, there are a number of opinions in regards to personal and professional self-determination. However, the history of the country's development made its own amendments. Firstly, the ideology-based attitude of the USSR to psychological science. The problem of professional activity was developed primarily within the framework of a new branch of psychology -psychotechnics and this school acquired the name 'psychotechnical approach' , which became popular in the 1920s-1930s. The main element of the self-determination process is selectivity, in which the object is exposed to outside influence. Self-determination is an activity that the person engages in, a need to take a certain stance, and an internal factor. This means that the activity-related essence of the 'self-determination' concept is expressed by 'internal conditions' that transform external influences, in other words, the person's ability to determine independently its own attitudes in the surrounding world, which ensures the conscientious choice of a profession (Rubinstein, 1998).
The relationship between an individual and his or her life's activity is active and purposeful and is part of his or her professional self-determination, where finding one's own 'way of life' and establishing one's own views of one's life is self-determination. Within the system of social relationships, the individual takes a certain stance that affects his or her self-determination (Abulkhanova-Slavskaya, 1991).
The concept of 'self-determination' implies that an individual has to be independent; therefore, it is necessary to understand the essence of such independence and the nature of the individual's internal activity, which is inextricably connected with the concepts of 'motivation' , 'will' , and 'action' .
Self-determination can be both professional and personal and is included in the so-called field of life. The field of life consists of three temporal dimensions -the past, the present, and the future -as well as the real space of activity (relevant and potential), which includes individual meanings and values (Ginsburg, 1995).
The way of life in a society, in which the individual lives and whether he or she depends on economic, social, environmental, and political factors that define the life of the social and professional group, to which a specific individual belongs, reflects the specific features that are typical for life self-determination. If the individual develops him-or herself and has his or her own position, this reflects life self-determination.
It is also worth noting the aspiration to the best examples and ideals, such as the 'elite orientations' of a self-determining individual.
Since adults spend most of their time at work, the choice of a profession, which becomes the main activity in life, is largely related to personal self-determination.
It is worth noting that adolescents often imitate adults and their behavior. Therefore, when choosing a profession, boys prefer the professions that 'real men' have, while girls focus on the professions of 'true and real women' (Kumru, Carlo, Mestre, & Samper, 2012).
Boys believe that such professions as astronaut, businessman, and border guard are the professions of true men -composed, cool, and courageous. Meanwhile, girls dream of becoming models, actresses, and televisions presenters, in other words, they choose the professions of charming and attractive women.
Nowadays, professional orientation in Kazakhstan depends on the prestige of this or that profession, which is formed under the influence of the Internet and television.
The professional self-determination of social orphans has its specific peculiarities. On the one hand, senior adolescents strive to live independently, on the other hand, they are afraid of this independence, since they realize the difficulties that come with independent life without the state's social guardianship. In orphan asylums, this process is superficial, the peculiarities and abilities of adolescents are neglected, their desires and intentions are ignored, and the main path for them is to choose the professions that are available in the nearest colleges.
Orphan asylum children are less socialized, they are poorly motivated to choose a profession, their cognitive skills are underdeveloped, and they are unaware of the modern living conditions beyond the orphan asylum. All this exacerbates the problem of the professional choice and makes the process of their professional self-determination more difficult.
In orphan asylum children, the prevailing motivation is that of the present and nearest future. Their professional self-determination is hindered by the adolescents' individual and psychological peculiarities, the social situation, and conditions of education that are typically found in social institutions.

Materials and methods
The purpose of this study was to investigate the professional self-determination of social orphans in senior adolescence.
The study included 276 adolescents (58% girls and 42% boys) aged 14-16; 16 participants were excluded due to errors. The participants came from the Tanscholpan and Pionerskiy orphan asylums in Karaganda.
In order to determine the aptitude (predisposition) of a person to certain types of professions, we used Ye.A. Klimov's Differential Diagnostic Questionnaire (DDQ), A.Ye. Golomschtok's Map of Interests method, and a projection method -My Future, which yields additional and important information via content analysis (Karelin, 2007).
The statistical methods that enable finding the differences in the peculiarities of the professional self-determination of social orphans from orphan asylums included such methods as Student's t-test and the Mann-Whitney U test. These criteria allow analytically and statistically determining the significance of differences between the samples.
The study was conducted in both groups (when working with questionnaires) and individually when working with the My Future projection method, which consisted in writing a psychological essay and was processed via content analysis.
It was difficult to work with adolescents from orphan asylums, since they were reluctant to engage in conversation and were generally negative and irritable. In this case, we sought the help of a psychologist that worked at the institution. It is worth noting the lack of motivation and interest in the study in this category of adolescents.
When it comes to adolescents from foster homes, they were less reluctant to engage in conversation and were interested in the study. Participants from this group performed their tasks quicker and were more interested in having a conversation.
When compared to the group of adolescents from the orphan asylum, this group was interested in the results of the study.
The results of the study were given to the psychologists of the abovementioned institutions to help them in their future activities related to the professional orientation of adolescents.
The time of meetings and the working conditions were discussed beforehand with the psychologist. The study was conducted from September of 2015 to February of 2016.
In general, all objectives that were set before the study was commenced were accomplished, which yielded a large volume of data on the specificity of the professional self-determination of social orphans.

Results and discussion
According to Ye.A. Klimov's method, average results in the group were distributed as follows (presented graphically in Figure 1). Klimov Ye.A describes the typology of employment that depends on performance: Individual-Individual, Individual-Artistic image, Individual-Nature, Individual-Semiotic system, Individual-Machinery. Figure 1 shows that the dominating sphere in the group of adolescents is 'individual-individual' . The Individual-Individual sphere of employment includes social systems, communities, groups of people and job associated with upbringing, education, communication and service. The participants were interested in professions that allowed interacting with other people, rendering assistance and support, tending to people, etc. These includes such caring professions as teacher, doctor, social worker, speech therapist, Figure 1. distribution of professional spheres in the group. and special education teacher. Adolescents chose professions from the service sector: manager, stylist, make-up artist, banker, promoter, dealer, broker, and image-maker.
The second-most pronounced sphere is Individual-Artistic image that includes job positions, at which a person reflects real facts and phenomena in an artistic manner.
Adolescents are interested in creative professions that enable realizing creative ideas in various areas. Such professions include visual artists, designers, theater and ballet artists, showmen, DJs, and top-models.
The third-most pronounced sphere is Individual-Semiotic system. This means that adolescents are interested in professions that are related to information technologies, programming, and digital letter marks, including music specialties. These include mathematicians, information scientists, editors, linguists, draftspersons, and system administrators.
The fourth-most pronounced sphere is Individual-Machinery that is bound with service, machinery and/or equipment design and operation. Adolescents choose professions related to machines, vehicle driving, and device assembly and installation.
The last sphere in terms of its pronouncement is 'Individual-nature' . Adolescents seldom choose professions that are related to farming or animal husbandry.
A more detailed analysis of the professional interests in the group was conducted via A.Ye. Golomschtok's Map of Interests method.
In general, the figures that this method yielded were diverse, but we attempted to distinguish the main interests in the group.
The first place was held by 'machinery' -27% of the sample preferred this area. These adolescents were interested in working in the field of technical maintenance and figuring out various mechanisms.
The second place was held by 'pedagogy' -25% of the respondents found this field to be the most interesting one. These adolescents were interested in explaining something to their peers and interacting with other people.
The third place was held by 'chemistry' -22% of respondents preferred this field. They were interested in analyzing chemical substances in various states.
The next sphere, in which 20% of respondents were interested, was 'physics' . Adolescents were interested in the physical properties of objects and the nature of physical phenomena.
The following sphere was 'astronomy' -17% of respondents were interested in this field. The last place was held by the service sector -it was preferred by 15% of respondents. Thus, the general orientation in the group was on exact sciences (physics, chemistry, astronomy), as well as on pedagogy and the social sphere.
While analyzing the results of essays via content analysis, we discovered the following peculiarities of professional self-determination.
While analyzing the figures, we noticed that the adolescents' essays frequently features the concept of 'time perspective' -adolescents often use the categories of the past and the present. These figures, which constitute 45%, hold the first place among orphan asylum students. Their professional self-determination depends on the past and the present.
The second place was held by the 'mentioning a profession' category. In other words, many children described their future from the perspective of a profession, some described specific professions, some only mentioned certain fields of activity, while others simply noted that it was necessary to choose a profession, but they did not decide what it would be yet.
The third place was held by the 'assessment of the future' category. This category reflects the emotional assessments that the adolescents make in regards to their future by assessing it positively or negatively.
The last place was held by the 'description of steps towards achievements' category. Only 2% of respondents started with choosing a profession, educational institution, etc. when planning their future. This can be a sign that adolescents require psychological help to create a clear plan to realize their future.
For further detailed analysis, we examined the most frequent categories separately. Figure 3 shows subcategories that are related to the mentioning of a profession.
The figure shows that 378% of respondents described their future in a specific professional sphere (elementary school teacher, automobile mechanic, programmer, stylist, etc.) in their essays. These respondents described their field of activity, approximate workday, etc.
26% of respondents mentioned a professional field in their essays, for instance, the social sphere, engineering or the service sector.
20% of respondents did not mention any specific professions or fields of endeavor at all (for instance: I will have to work in the future, but the most important thing is to create a family; I need to establish myself, etc.).
The remaining 17% of respondents mentioned several professions from different fields. This may mean that these adolescents are thinking about their professional orientation, but have not made up their mind yet. For instance, adolescents write: 'I would like to help people. Maybe I will become a doctor, maybe a teacher, maybe a scientists or maybe an astronaut. The main thing is to be useful' .
The analysis of subcategories of the 'time perspective' category showed the following characteristics ( Figure 4).
An equal number of respondents in each subgroup (37%) focused on the past in their essays. These adolescents used verbs in the past tense and recalled their childhood.
The second subgroup clearly focused on the future. They described specific images of their future -both personal and professional.
The essays of 26% of respondents were dominated by the category of the present. These respondents noted that they seldom thought about the future, that it was necessary to live in the present and solve immediate problems. The analysis of the 'assessment of the future' category showed that 70% of respondents considered their future to be bright.
The assessment was positive. While describing their future, adolescents used such terms as 'happy' , 'successful' , and 'interesting' . In 30% of respondents, the assessment of the future was associated with anxiety and trouble. These adolescents used such terms as 'vague' , 'unknown' , and 'hard' .
Thus, the analysis of the general results of the group reflects the following peculiarities.
The analysis of specific professional fields discovered a focus on such fields as engineering, pedagogy, exact sciences, and the service sector.
The essays of many adolescents about their future reflected the professional sphere. Many of them described their future through the categories of professional activity and indicated specific professions or professional fields.
The analysis of the results of all three methods (DDQ, Map of Interests, and essays) in the gender aspect showed the following peculiarities.
The analysis of Ye.A. Klimov's method discovered statistically significant differences in the choice of professional spheres in the samples.
There are statistical differences in such professional spheres as law, transport, pedagogy, service sector, engineering, and electric engineering. Boys are more interested in such spheres as transport, engineering, and electric engineering (score of seven points and more), while girls are not interested in these fields at all. Girls are interested in such spheres as law, pedagogy, and the service sector, while boys are not interested in said spheres.
The analysis of essays that were written by boys and girls found that an equal number of respondents from both groups described their professional future. Girls often described specific professions, while boys tended to describe professional spheres. Girls often touched upon personal subjects (family, children, etc.), while boys tended to focus on self-fulfillment in a professions. Neither boys nor girls touched upon the topic of achieving goals set to realize their future. In addition, girls tended to focus on the past more often than boys did, although the differences were statistically insignificant.
Thus, the analysis of the results in the gender aspect discovered significant differences in the professional spheres and interests of boys and girls. However, in our opinion, the differences are quite predictable and can be related to the stereotypical perception of male and female professions. Data appear to indicate the readiness of non-institutionalized children to act in a certain way, since orphaned children are limited in the choice of educational establishments. They are forced to choose those establishments that have an agreement with an orphan asylum.
The results of the investigation of professional self-determination of social orphans in adolescence showed that professional self-determination is a complex profess that depended on many a factor. When it comes to the determination of professional spheres that were important to the adolescents, we found that the respondents were more focused on 'individual-individual' , 'individual-imagery' , and 'individual-symbol' professions. The analysis of specific professional spheres discovered a focus on such spheres as engineering, pedagogy, exact sciences, and the service sector. The essays about the future reflected the professional sphere specifically. Many adolescents described their future through the categories of professional activity and indicated specific professions or professional fields.
The respondents had a plan of action: graduate from school, go to college, take an internship during their lays year at college to gain a reputation, with a view to finding a job and launching their own business.
Adolescents from orphan asylums are limited in their choice of educational institutions and are forced to enroll in the ones that have agreements with the administration of orphan asylums with the support of the city or regional departments.
This necessitates the improvement of the quality of secondary education of orphans and vulnerable children through effective cooperation with governmental and nongovernmental organizations (Lingenfelter, Solheim, & Lawrence, 2017). Another option is to provide social protection to orphans and vulnerable children via money transfer (Mushunje & Mafico, 2010).
Adolescents from orphan asylums are incapable of self-determination in their choice of profession, but they objectively evaluate their possibilities when it comes to choosing their future specialization.
Italian researchers offer using ASDA in cross-cultural studies to measure the universal aspects of the self-determination construct (Ginevra et al., 2015). They offered studying the self-determination of adolescents through independence, self-regulation, self-realization, and psychological expansion of rights and possibilities; this study investigated the professional self-determination of social orphans through the category of 'time perspective' and the choice of specific professions. In Kazakhstan, the professional self-determination of disabled young people is understudied. We believe that this enables further research into this subject, including in the cross-cultural aspect, since Kazakhstan is a multinational state.
In Kazakhstan, social orphans are under governmental protection. There is a special state program Children of Kazakhstan, which is funded in full by the government. Children are provided with free accommodation, catering, clothes, medical aid, textbooks, textile products, and equipment. The state spends 500,000-700,000 tenge on average per annum to support one child, while also rendering assistance after the children leave the orphan asylum. After enrolling in a college, such children have special social benefits. However, studies on the living standard of young people are few and far between in Kazakhstan. As part of the national system, there are orphan asylums providing a family-like environment and patron families (adults take an orphaned child for holiday and weekends). Mutual care, joint housekeeping and child's preparation for work are decisive factors of upbringing in family-like orphan asylums and patron families. This system is designed to identify the orphaned child's professional interests, assist him/her in employing and help him/her pass the adaptation period in the professional sphere of activity.

Conclusions
The study discovered several factors that had a negative impact on the development of the ability to engage in professional self-determination.
Firstly, the one-sided communication with peers that are in the same social conditions. Secondly, senior adolescents who live in orphan asylums regard other children as their family and the shared situation of development at one point becomes a shared fate for them. By living in the same territory and sharing all the problems, they create a so-called 'own family model' . This creates the 'Us' of the asylum, which is opposed to 'Them' -the adolescents who have families.
Adolescents who are part of the 'Us' community become compulsive, they do not establish equal relationships with their peers, do not develop communication skills, which also limits their social contacts.
Thirdly, the lack of relations and relationships with their relatives and close ones, which, in turn, impedes their ability to engage in professional self-determination, since such children have no role models, they do not know the 'Past' of their families, which means that they find it difficult to image their own 'Future' . The loss of personal history has a strong impact on the development of children in general.
The statistical analysis in the groups of boys and girls using Student's t-test (p ≤ 0.002) found differences in the following characteristics: -'individual-individual' and 'individual-imagery' spheres were more typical for girls. Girls focused on communication and creativity in their professional activity. The 'individual-machinery' and 'individual-semiotic system' spheres were more typical for boys.
-there were statistical differences in such professional spheres as law, transport, pedagogy, service sector, engineering, and electric engineering. Boys were interested in such spheres as transport, engineering, electric engineering (score of seven points and more), while girls are not interested in these fields at all. Girls were interested in such spheres as law, pedagogy, and the service sector, while boys were not interested in said spheres.
The analysis of essays that were written by boys and girls found that an equal number of respondents from both groups described their professional future.
• Girls often described specific professions, while boys tended to describe professional spheres. • Girls often touched upon personal subjects (family, children, etc.), while boys tended to focus on self-fulfillment in a professions. • Neither boys nor girls touched upon the topic of achieving goals set to realize their future.
• Girls tended to focus on the past more often than boys did, although the differences were statistically insignificant.
Thus, the problem of professional self-development of adolescents from orphan asylums deserves special attention, since these children have to learn to plan their professions and lives conscientiously and realize them independently at various stages of life.
Obtained empirical data can be used in the scientifically substantiated development of programs for psychological and pedagogical support of the professional establishment of senior adolescents. Obtained data can also be used in training courses for students majoring in personality psychology, labor psychology, and social pedagogy. The results of the study elaborate the content of the psychological and pedagogical work on the professional orientation of senior orphan asylum students.
The data can also be used as a basis for work with orphans during special classes, the goal whereof would be to help students with their professional self-determination. The results can also be used in professional consultations and trainings for successful employment of social orphans.

Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors
Roza Alimbayeva, candidate of psychology sciences, is an associate professor of the Department of Psychology of the Karagandy State University named after Ye.A. Buketov.The main scientific priorities are connected with psychological help to people in crisis situations. In the period of 2012-2014, she managed the project of grant financing: "Socio-psychological analysis of religious extremism (attraction to death as one of the conditions of religious fanaticism). " She is an author of more than 80 publications.
Marzhangul Baimukanova is a candidate of pedagogical Sciences, Department of Social Work and Social Pedagogy, and an associate professor of social work and social pedagogy of the Karagandy State University named after Ye.A. Buketov. The author has an experience of scientific and teaching work for 28 years and scientific interests include professional self-determination of youth, gender work with family, development of marriage and family relations in young families. The author has published more than 150 works, including on the topic of scientific research and is the holder of the state grant "The best teacher of the university" (2013).