Pursuing a career is an essential part of adolescent development. "The adolescent becomes an adult when he undertakes a real job." To cognitive researchers like Piaget, adulthood meant the beginning of an occupation.
Piaget argued that once adolescents enter the world of work, their newly acquired ability to form hypotheses allows them to create representations that are too ideal. The existence of such ideals, without the tempering of the reality of a job or profession, rapidly leads adolescents to become intolerant of the non-idealistic world and to press for reform in a characteristically adolescent way. Piaget said: "True adaptation to society comes automatically when the adolescent reformer attempts to put his ideas to work."
Of course, youthful idealism is often courageous, and no one likes to give up dreams. Perhaps, taken slightly out of context, Piaget's statement seems harsh. What he was emphasizing, however, is the way reality can modify idealistic views. Some people refer to such modification as maturity. Piaget argued that attaining and accepting a vocation is one of the best ways to modify idealized views and to mature.
that attaining and accepting a vocation is one of the best ways to modify idealized views and to mature. As careers and vocations become less available during times of recession, adolescents may be especially hard hit. Such difficult economic times may leave many adolescents confused about their roles in society. For this reason, community interventions and government job programs that offer summer and vacation work are not only economically beneficial but also help to stimulate the adolescent's sense of worth.