Occup'al choice is both a temporal (Sch, occup, org) & a spatial (micro, meso, macro) process. Attention is paid to the cultural determination of the process: the diff'ial values & expectations on the one hand; the structuring of those orientations on the other. N. S. Timasheff's kinetic process is applied; the occup'al choice process is an important factor towards the stabilization of society & the occup'al structure. This is the matrix for ideologies: choosers apply a set of standard expectations to a situation which is unique only from their point of view. The freedom of occup'al choice is often stated in terms of individual or parental value orientations, partly because the prevailing ideologies prevent us from seeing the real determinants of the choice process. In the course of time there is a shift away from individual & parental toward org'al & societal influences. This is a development crucial to the individual & society. There are 2 sets of ideologies: ideologies concerning the content of the choices (eg craftsmanship, or the service ideal), & ideologies concerning the choice process itself (eg equality of opportunity, or the irrevocability of choices). These ideologies effectively block the way to new patterns of expectations following soc & technological change, & they are dysfunctional at all stages & levels of the process. AA.
