The vocational decisions of nursing students have always been a concern for nursing educators and administrators.
Against this background, vocational decisions are based on the balancing of individual interests, values, and expectations (Eccles 2005; Neuenschwander et al. 2012).
The link between interests and social-emotional skills is that interest patterns play a key role in individuals' educational or vocational decisions, which in its turn might stimulate the development of specific social-emotional skills associated with that field.
When focussing on the educational or vocational decisions of students at the upper secondary level, it becomes clear that among other factors, domain-related abilities play a significant role (e.g., Aeschlimann et al. 2015; Denzler 2013; Trapmann 2008; Köller et al. 2004; Hayden and Carpenter 1990).
From our results it became clear that the DOT can not be used validly to guide vocational decisions for people who are limited in functioning due to hand and upper extremity problems.
If we are to change the chronic problems in vocational education, brave decisions need to be taken.
Research supported by the Edge Foundation, an independent education charity, and carried out by the thinktank IPPR, found 66% of senior teachers whose schools were cutting vocational provisions admitted the decision had been taken as a result of the changes to the performance tables.
The Dictionary of Occupational Titles DOTT) is used in vocational rehabilitation to guide decisions about the ability of a person with activity limitations to perform activities at work.
But Mr Gove said it was "striking" the expansion coincided with the decision to designate vocational qualifications as equivalent to up to four GCSEs and to count them in school league tables.
Yet, individual decisions to undertake vocational or academic education depend both on benefits and on costs.
Finally, using the rational-choice models by Esser (1999) and Breen and Goldthrope (1997), Becker and Hecken (2007, 2009) also find that social disparities with regard to expected academic success, maintenance of socio-economic status and subjective perceptions of the educational costs are very important for explaining educational decisions (academic vs. vocational track).
