Prostitution Legalization - Free Essay Example

Prostitution. Its a hush-hush profession that people seem to be appalled to talk about. Its almost as if people are afraid of men and women selling their bodies for the lustful desires of others. Its nothing youd hope to come from the mouth of a child, but should it be a crime? Presently the issue of prostitution has major effects in and outside of the United States. As a society, prostitution is frowned upon, but it should be legalized. In order to make my stance clear, Id like to clarify the difference in the way I define decriminalization and legalization. Decriminalization would effectively eliminate laws against prostitution and other forms of sex work. Furthermore, it disallows authorities from intervening in activities that have any relation to prostitution. Legalization, on the other hand, would allow a regulation of prostitution. We would be able to create laws to control what happened in the prostitution world. There would be licenses and police intervene in malpractice. Its important to know the difference because legalizing prostitution could save the lives of many girls in this industry. Prostitution is an incredibly broad term referring to a practice that is conducted in a variety of ways. The one most people think of is street prostitutes, the girls who walk around public areas attempting to solicit customers in alleyways, vehicles, and motels. Street workers are usually under control by a pimp, who widens their clientele while also taking some of their profit. However, there are other forms of prostitution which exist, unchecked. Furthermore, it is debatable as to whether or not adult film actors, escorts and sugar babies are prostitutes. At first, it doesnt seem so but when you think about it, porn stars are engaging in prostitution. If the dictionary definition of prostitution is the practice or occupation of engaging in sexual activity with someone for payment., then its clear that that is exactly the job that porn stars partake in. This is the same for both escorts and sugar babies, though they have worked their way around the law. An escort is generally a beautiful girl you pay for her time. The escort is required to go out with you,and more often than not, it is understood between both parties that intercourse will happen. A sugarbaby on the other hand tends to be like a consistent prostitute. Sugar babies are given money by their sugar daddies under the guise of being for the babys rent,self care, or simply as gifts. Although these jobs have different names, at their core, its simply prostitution. What makes these more legitimate than streetwalker prostitutes? Prostitution has been a punishable crime from as far back as 1075 BC. According to Assyrian law, clean and pure women had to be veiled when they walked the streets. But, prostitutes and other women of lesser stature had to be unveiled. If these harlots were caught with a veil, then they were punished with 50 hits and tar poured on their heads. In the year 525 Byzantine Emperor, Justinian the Great, married a woman named Theodora who was allegedly a former prostitute. Together, they created laws that disallowed prostitutes and owners of brothels from the capital and banned sexual intercourse in public bathhouses. In terms of prostitution being a crime in the United States? On March 3, 1875, the United States Congress passed the Page Act of 1875. This would outlaw the importation of women into the United States for the purposes of prostitution. Prostitution being unchecked by the government means that girls who are willing participants in the sex trade, can not turn to a police officer when things go awry. It even happens that sometimes when these women do not want to have sex with someone, that they are beaten, raped, and abused. The claim that these women are asking for it because of their career choice and what they wear is not only ludicrous, its inhumane.No one is ever asking to be raped, no matter their occupation, clothing style, or anything else for that matter.There are a number of reasons to think that making prostitution legal might improve working conditions for prostitutes. If they were having a problem with a client, they could threaten to call the police.(Ehrenfreund). Its also not uncommon for these women to be assaulted. One of the most famous cases of this being the case of Christy Mack. Christy is a former pornographic actress, and advocate for sex workers in all forms. In 2014 Mack was physically abused and raped by her ex-boyfriend who was an MMA star. The unfortunate truth is that for many prostitutes, there is no real safe space to conduct their practices when both they and their clients are consensual participants in. Sometimes they must resort to alleyways, low-grade motels, and in some cases their own homes. Simply decriminalizing prostitution were legalized, it might mean that street workers might be able to get away from pimps and be allowed access to work in a controlled environment. There could be better screenings for sexually transmitted diseases, for both the workers and the clientele. In the Netherlands, both brothels and pimping are legally allowed.It is legal to run a business where men or women over the age of consent are voluntarily employed as prostitutes. The person running the business must satisfy certain conditions and obtain a license from the local authorities. This solution is a great step that may help benefit the workers. There will be rules set in place so that prostitutes can avoid being hurt. Continuing to criminalize prostitution may end up doing more harm than good. decriminalizing prostitution prevented 824 rapes that would have been otherwise reported to police and presumably many more that otherwise would not have been reported in any case. (Ehrenfreund)It is possible that rapists may turn to buying sex if they are desperate rather than attacking women without consent. There is no guarantee that rape would never happen again as a result of the decriminalization of prostitution but it is undeniable that it would significantly reduce the issue. Clearly prostitution brings benefits when legalized. Those on the other side of the issue may say that prostitution is that humiliating profession. I think that this may be true in some cases. For example, if you go homeless and you need to sell your body to make ends meet, you may find the trade embarrassing.According to Barry Kathleen Prostitution laws in the United States, as elsewhere in the world, reflect the sexual double standard of misogyny, which honors women as wives and condemns them as whores, making sure that the market always supplies men with prostitutes. (Barry, Prostitution) There are some people who are in the profession who are not so opposed to being involved in sex acts, to make it illegal furthers the belief that prostitutes should be condemned as whores. Perhaps they arent interested in committed relationships and simply, enjoy having sex. It could be possible that they find it more humiliating to be on a porn site, and would much rather keep their profession discreet. The sex-workers rights movement was founded on three general tenets, all of which are based on the right to self-determination. First, members of the movement do not believe that all sex work is forced, and, in fact, believe that many women freely choose this work. Second, they believe that sex work should be viewed and respected as legitimate work. And third, they believe it is a violation of a womans civil rights to be denied the opportunity to work as a sex worker.(Sloan) This is proof that sex-workers arent all there because they are forced or because they feel the need to conform in a patriarchal society. If a movement of women are practically begging to have rights in their jobs, why should they be denied? As previously mentioned, prostitute and porn star are not professions that belong at an elementary school career day, but that doesnt mean that people who participate in the practice should not be protected.To make the job illegal, furthers the belief that women have sex with whoever they want is a bad thing. Others who believe prostitution should not be legalized argue that prostitution is in close ties with drug use and sexual assault.Unfortunately, this is sometimes the case. Cleaning up the profession and allowing them access to work off the streets and inside monitored buildings may remove the presence of drugs. In Cyril Dolls argument opposing the legalization, she mentions: Typically such jurisdictions place sex workers into brothels after theyve paid thousands of dollars for licenses and police checksand then theyre at the mercy of brothel managers, says [Valerie] Scott. At the brothel, youre regularly forced to have free sex with the manager and any of his friends, and you dont have the right of refusal. If your client demands a particular type of sex youre not comfortable with, you have to do it anyway. In my mind, thats sexual assault, she says. (Doll) There is no argument that what is happening in these brothels is sexual assault, however, rather than turning our backs to it, it may prove beneficial to have enforced security in these brothels. People who the prostitutes may run to when things like this happen, to prevent such assault. Security like this exists inside of most strip clubs, so that the women working rule breakers may be removed. It would be ignorant to deny that in rare and unfortunate cases the security guard is in on the brothel owners malpractice, but in most cases, this is not true. It is impossible to come to a conclusion about the job, based on rare situations. These women should not expect rape as part of their job and if the brothel owner is abusing his job and his privileges, he should be serving time in prison.Legalizing the trade may require that brothel owners need license and brothels will need required security cameras. This will help keep people who want an easy job becoming a pimp away because its bec ome more difficult. It will also prevent rapes because the camera footage can be used in a court of law to defend the prostitute. Prostitution is constantly berated as being the influence on global sex trafficking. Women and girls who had been trafficked from poor countries were propelled into a competition with Western-born women for local prostitution customers and a growing number of sex tourists.(Leidholt). Sex trafficking is an illegal activity that should have no correlation with what goes on in the world of prostitution. A lot of the time, sex trafficking involves kidnap of underage children who are sold for the sole purpose of being raped for pay. However, sex traffickers are not unfamiliar with the system of mail order brides and similar practices. Prostitutes in the United States who are willing to give their bodies for money are in no way responsible for the sex trafficking that exists.They are not trafficking people from overseas, this is once again the work of malpractice by the pimps or brothel owners. Legalizing prostitution would increase the number of women who wanted to be in the trade, and mi ght decrease the sex trafficking rates as a result. Women who wish to engage in prostitution do exist, and what they want to do should not be restricted from them. Rather than turning a blind eye to the wrongs of the trade, it would make sense to make rules to prevent reoccurring malpractice. Screenings of clients and employees in one set location would help improve the cleanliness of the service and effectively eliminate arguments that prostitution leads to the spreads of sexually transmitted infections and diseases. Though debatable, its believed that legalizing prostitution may reduce incidents of sexual abuse and rape. Criminalizing prostitution is coping out of accepting the problems that are really going on in this trade. Though it may be impossible to eliminate all of the bad things that happen, it could still prove useful to look into making it better.

Cholera Map of Dr. John Snow

In the mid-1850s, doctors and scientists knew there was a deadly disease called the cholera poison rampaging through London, but they werent sure how it was being transmitted. Dr. John Snow used mapping and other techniques that would later be known as medical geography to confirm that the transmission of the disease occurred by swallowing contaminated water or food. Dr. Snows mapping of the 1854 cholera epidemic has saved countless lives. The Mysterious Disease While we now know that this cholera poison is spread by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, scientists in the early 19th century thought it was spread by miasma (bad air).  Without knowing how an epidemic spreads, there is no way to stop it. When a cholera epidemic occurred, it was deadly. Since cholera is an infection of the small intestine, it results in extreme diarrhea. This often leads to massive dehydration, which can create sunken eyes and blue skin. Death can occur within hours. If treatment is given quickly enough, the disease can be overcome by giving the victim a lot of fluids, either by mouth or intravenously. In the 19th century, there were no cars or telephones and so getting quick treatment was often difficult. What London needed was someone to figure out how this deadly disease spread. The 1849 London Outbreak While Cholera has existed in Northern India for centuries (and it is from this region that regular outbreaks are spread) it was the London outbreaks that brought cholera to the attention of British physician Dr. John Snow. In an 1849 cholera outbreak in London, a large proportion of the victims received their water from two water companies. Both of these water companies had the source of their water on the Thames River, just downstream from a sewer outlet. Despite this coincidence, the prevailing belief of the time was that it was bad air that was causing the deaths. Dr. Snow felt differently, believing that the disease was caused by something ingested. He wrote down his theory in the essay, On the Mode of Communication of Cholera, but neither the public nor his peers were convinced. The 1854 London Outbreak When another cholera outbreak hit the Soho area of London in 1854, Dr. Snow found a way to test his ingestion theory. Dr. Snow plotted the distribution of deaths in London on a map. He determined that an unusually high number of deaths were taking place near a water pump on Broad Street (now Broadwick Street). Snows findings led him to petition the local authorities to remove the pumps handle. This was done and the number of cholera deaths was dramatically reduced. The pump had been contaminated by a dirty baby diaper that had leaked the cholera bacteria into the water supply. Cholera Is Still Deadly Although we now know how cholera is spread and have found a way to treat patients who have it, cholera is still a very deadly disease. Striking quickly, many people with cholera dont realize how serious their situation is until it is too late. Also, new inventions such as airplanes have aided the spread of cholera, letting it surface in parts of the world where cholera has otherwise been eradicated. According to the World Health Organization, there are up to 4.3 million cases of cholera each year, with approximately 142,000 deaths. Medical Geography The work of Dr. Snow stands out as one of the most famous and earliest cases of medical geography, where geography and maps are utilized to understand the spread of disease. Today, specially trained medical geographers and medical practitioners routinely use mapping and advanced technology to understand the diffusion and spread of diseases such as AIDS and cancer. A map is not just an effective tool for finding the right place, it can also save a life.

Essay on Nelson Mandela Standing Firm - 2318 Words

Nelson Mandela was born in Mvezo, a village in the Transkei, on July 18, 1918. The definition of Rolihlahla actually means â€Å"pulling the branch of a tree†. After the passing away of Nelson’s father’s in the year 1927, Mandela became the ward of Jongintaba Dalindyebo, the Paramount Chief, to be developed to grasp his place in high office. As a result of listening to the elder’s stories of his ancestor’s valor during the resistance wars, he aspired too of creating his own significant addition to the freedom tribulation of his people. He then enrolled at the University College of Fort Hare; there he was elected onto the Students’ Representative Council. He was suspended from college for being involved in a protest boycott, and it was an action†¦show more content†¦Mandela’s work and persistence impressed his peers and therefore was elected as the league’s National Secretary in 1948. This is just one of the many accompl ishments of the great Nelson Mandela. After the victory of the National Party in the 1948 all-white elections on the platform of apartheid, at the 1949 Annual Conference, encouraged by the Youth League, was accepted as official ANC policy. The Programme of Action had been manufactured by a committee of the ANCYL which consisted of David Bopape, Mr. Mandela, James Njongwe, Sisulu and Tambo. When the ANC catapulted its Campaign for the Defiance of Unjust Laws in 1952, Mandela, President of the Youth League, was elected to become National Volunteer-in-Chief. By doing what was required as Volunteer-in-Chief, Mandela travelled the country coordinating resistance to discriminatory legislation. Along with Sisulu and several others, Mandela was brought to trial for his part played in the campaign; the court found that Mandela and his partners had repetitively advised their followers to embrace a peaceful course of action and to avoid any type of violence. During this period of restrictions, Mandela scribed the attorney’s admission exam and was admitted to the profession. He opened a practice in Johannesburg in August 1952, by December, he opened South Africa’s first black law firm. His professional status didn’t excuse him from the brutal apartheid laws. The authorities commanded the migration of hisShow MoreRelatedThe Apartheid Of South Africa1750 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"Mandela did not merely oppose white domination; he opposed domination by any racial group, including Africans. By standing firm in his principles and enduring extraordinary sacrifices that robbed him of most of his adult life, he helped force change, while proving beyond any doubt that he was a leader who could be trusted to keep his word† (Kent). Nelson Mandela (1918-2013) was a human rights activist as well as the first black President of South Africa. Referred to as the living embodiment ofRead MoreNelson Mandela s Influence On Human Rights945 Words   |  4 PagesNelson Mandela is a world renowned activist that was imprisoned for twenty seven years in a South African prison, because of a system of racism known as â€Å"apartheid† which discriminated against blacks living in South Africa at the time. Since his release from prison, apartheid has since been abolished in South Africa and he was elected President of that country. Nelson Mandela had a positive impact on human rights by standing up against racism in his country as well as many others around the worldRead MoreEssay On Nelson Mandela1243 Words   |  5 Pages1. Summarize biographical data The Honourable Nelson Mandela transitioned from being a criminal to a white racist government to becoming the president to that same government and being a great influence on the lives of South African. He was a man of great patience and generosity therefore, he was capable of ending the Apartheid period. Born on July 18, 1918, into a small tribe of Thembu. He was a civil rights leader, who fought against apartheid, or racial discrimination against blacks, in SouthRead MoreAnalysis Of The Poem F.w De Klerk Fixing A Broken Land1420 Words   |  6 PagesKlerk.†) As a child he grew up in a political environment, therefor he learned the essential importance of timing (â€Å"Frederik Willem De Klerk.†). His inspiration was also Nelson Mandela (Frederick Willem de Klerk.†) In 1958, He obtained a law degree (high standing) at Potchefstroom University (â€Å"F. W De Klerk†). De Klerk began a law firm in Vereeniging (â€Å"F.W De Klerk†). He became active in civic and business affairs there (â€Å"F.W De Klerk†). The respect felt towards him provided him with a number of ministerialRead MoreNelson Mandela and the Fight Against Apartheid4689 Words   |  19 Pagesof Trials and Tribulations: Nelson Mandela’s Role in the Realization of Racial Equality and Freedom in South Africa Table of Contents Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..2 Chaos and Dissension in South Africa†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...3 Mandela – The Charismatic Leader†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.5 Iconic Image of Integrity and Perseverance†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦6 Uniting the African National Congress†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦....†¦.9 Mandela Takes Reconciliatory Action†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Read MoreThe Book Thief By Markus Zusak1047 Words   |  5 Pagesan insightful discovery, however one that is more dramatic. Zelda Le Garange, a wealthy, white girl who grew up in the richer part of South Africa, had a conditioned perspective on black people, completely transformed through meeting the loving Nelson Mandela. In the Book Thief, the protagonist Liesel undergoes a minor moment of insight that changes her perspective on Rosa for the better. When Liesel first met Rosa, her initial perspective was one of cynicism and distaste. When Liesel first arrivesRead More Nelson Mandela Essay2142 Words   |  9 Pages lawyer, father, prisoner, survivor, president, the face of equality. Nelson Mandela has an inspiring story of fighting Apartheid forces and surviving a long prison sentence all in the name of freedom and equal rights. Through Nelson Mandela’s constant fight for freedom of the African people from white apartheid forces, he was dominated by the corrupt government. After uprising numerous riots against apartheid forces, Mandela was sent to jail for twenty-seven years revealing the cruelty that humansRead MoreEssay Nelson Mandela and the South African Apartheid 1839 Words   |  8 PagesNelson Mandela, a man recognized worldwide, was a human rights activist leader among other things. H e believed in equality and peace for all. He fought for that belief in South Africa for which he undeniably sacrificed his life to. A figure of international peacemaking, he’s a man of tremendous accomplishments. How he achieved these accomplishments is astounding and it’s what he’s remarkably known. Striving for fairness and democracy in a nation that has been pierced for years by Apartheid seemedRead MoreThe Issue Of South Africa1714 Words   |  7 Pagesfrom challenging apartheid and standing up for their rights . A man by the name of Nelson Mandela played a key role in the fight against apartheid, and was the main organizer for a series of non-violent acts in attempt to end these terrible laws which the country was governed by. In his early years, Mandela went about fighting back in a more violent matter, and after being in trouble various times, learned that there had to be another way to go about this. Mandela was a part of the African NationalRead MoreEssay on The Legacy of Apartheid in South Africa1635 Words   |  7 Pages The strength of a nation is not established by the force of its military, economic standing, or government, but rather how its citizens are regarded. In order to attain strength, a nation must respect the principle of solidarity; the power of one voice. For without a defined sense of unity, a society is likely to crumble. Unfortunately, as seen throughout history, civilization has often made it their mission to seek out the differences in one another instead of accepting them. This fear of the

Career counseling free essay sample

European policies in the lifelong learning field reconfirm the essential importance of information, counselling and guidance services in the process of â€Å"facilitating the access to the education and continuing training offer† and of supporting the positive entering of social and professional life for young people and adults. In this sense it is necessary to create a culture of open, transparent, comprehensible dialogue resulting in a practical gain for both the clients and the employers. At the same time, these services must be provided insistently and persuasively so that any person should have the opportunity of learning and training throughout their lifetime and benefit from equal opportunities on the labour market (special attention should be given to groups threatened by social and job exclusion), stimulate social cohesion, encourage private initiative and assist the improvement of beneficiary’s lifestyle. Counsellors who work in information, counselling and guidance institutions will make recourse to the information and communication technologies to facilitate the access to their services of as many clients as possible, will work in close cooperation with the local employers and the community, endeavouring that their services should be up to date, connected to clients’ needs, to their systems of qualifications and interests, and to the dynamics of the local, regional, national and European social and economic development. While selecting the methods and techniques for this Compendium, we held in mind the following issues: †¢ the practical value of the method or technique for the field of counselling; †¢ solid, rational, logical theoretical base, grounded on rigorous and systematic empirical research; †¢ the existence of standards adapted to the social, cultural and economic specificity of the population or the possibility to easily adapt these instrument to the practice prevalent in our country; †¢ facile use and quick results, comprehensible for client and counsellor;  the extent to which the method or technique are is widespread in career counselling in our country and internationally; †¢ the diversity of information sources, direct access to the reference material about the working method or technique. At the same time, the selection process is concerned with aspects such as: †¢ †¢ 6 the consensus or majority vote of the authors team and their close collaborator s; the result of polls among counselling practitioners regarding the instruments they employ in practice or have requested to use. In the choice of instruments, the following practical considerations are of some importance: †¢ adapting the instrument to the category of clients requesting counselling services and to the specificity of their problems; †¢ mastering in detail all the technical and methodological aspects required for the administration of the instruments, scoring and interpretation of results; †¢ being acquainted with the social, cultural and economic environment of the clients, as well as with other characteristics pertaining to their gender, education, residence;  knowing the context in which the instrument intended for use was developed before deciding for its applicability; †¢ the comprehensibility of the general structure, procedural friendliness, statistical support, availability of standards and scoring scales; †¢ the extent to which the instrument offers the information needed by the clients in their career development. The main questions that counsellors should ask when deciding upon the purchase, adaptation and use of tests are the following: †¢ To what purpose were the tests developed? What do they claim to measure? †¢ What target groups are they recommended for? †¢ What types of items / tasks does the test employ for evaluation? †¢ Does the test come with an administration and scoring manual? †¢ Does the test include standards and scoring scales for assessing the results? †¢ Is the test easy to use and the result interpretation comprehensible and transparent for the beneficiaries? †¢ Are there data regarding the test’s reliability and validity? †¢ Are there copyright provisions? What are the costs? †¢ Who are the authors of the test? Another category of problems that such a work may encounter is related to the methodological systematisation, categorization, taxonomy of models and techniques used in the practice of career counselling. It is known that extremely diverse objectives, criteria, indicators might be applied to the process. In their daily activity the counsellors develop their own working style based on their preferences regarding the methods and techniques; on the other hand they must use certain methods and techniques adequate to the categories of clients and to the categories of problems raised.7 In general, the sources of information / purchase of the instruments / questionnaires / tests, etc. used in career counselling are: †¢ specialized publishing houses commercialising psychological investigation tools; †¢ publications (journals, books, other sources on the Internet); †¢ copies from the originals in universities (used experimentally for research); †¢ direct purchase from the s ource of the free use rights (through professional organizations, libraries, peer counsellors); †¢ purchasing the reference instruments and the rights of translation,  adaptation, re-sampling and use (by institutes and universities) with their own funding or through various projects and programmes; †¢ elaborating original instruments at the national level as a result of research activity carried in institutes and universities. It must be said that it is forbidden to use psychological instruments protected by the copyright act without the permission of the authors or publishers. Access to these instruments is granted on the condition of purchasing the rights to adapt and use in full compliance with the laws, orders and provisions of the Regulations of professional associations in the field. Besides the legislation, there are ethical principles that regulate the professional use of methods and techniques specific to career counselling and the counsellors behaviour in relation to them. The present Compendium is a methodological handbook and also a professional statement of coherence, synergy and continuity in the work of career counselling, a scientific and systematic approach to the field and a way of supporting high quality service of information, counselling and guidance. We hope this Compendium to be a useful instrument both for the undergraduates preparing to become counsellors, professors teaching this course and counselling practitioners in the fields of education, employment, youth work, law enforcement, healthcare, military and others and who are known as careers advisors, school counsellors, educational and vocational guidance counsellors, employment officers, etc. 8 Methodological Aspects Mihai JIGAU Institute of Educational Sciences, Bucharest Career counselling is a global approach to individuals under all aspects of their personal, professional and social life; it consists in providing information, counselling and guidance services with a view to supporting each and every person – in any stage of their life – in the development of their own career through decision-making as regards to education, work, and community life. The domain of career counselling has known success and recoil of using various assessment methods and techniques (in the beginning mostly psychological tests, currently mostly questionnaires and inventories of interests, preferences, aptitudes, attitudes and values). In the dawn of educational and vocational guidance in Romania we can identify a psychometric phase, followed by an educational phase, and by the contemporary phase related to cognitive information management and processing, having the holistic career approach ethics and quality at its core. In career counselling we identify helpful methods among tests, questionnaires or inventories concerning: †¢ aptitudes (intellectual, verbal, numerical, reasoning, reaction speed, special talents, etc. ); †¢ personality; †¢ interests and special needs; †¢ values and attitudes; †¢ assessment of academic acquisitions (learning skills and methods); †¢ interpersonal relations; 9 †¢ self-image; †¢ decision-making; †¢ career development (training for decision-making); †¢ special categories of population. Tests are a means to objective and systematic measurement / assessment of certain behavioural elements (in either areas: aptitudes, personality, attitudes, knowledge) of individuals, based on their answers to certain work-related tasks. These fixed sequences of personal characteristics investigated are considered relevant to defining and identifying the respective aspects in human subjects. Standardized inventories are also means of measuring behavioural segments, in which the subject’s answers are not judged as right or wrong, but compared against those of other individuals taken to be a group norm (Brown and Brooks, 1991). In practice, it has been shown that in most cases counsellors use inventories of interests and skills rather than psychological performance and personality tests. In fact, the balance between one type of instruments and the other stems from the role assumed by counsellors: whether it is centred in supporting clients with their career development and decision-making, or in interpreting information for what is considered to be their clients’ best interest. As it can be noticed, the ends are the same, but the means different in each of the two situations described. Here are what psychological inventories and tests can identify with respect to career counselling: †¢ areas of interest / preference in the sphere of occupations; †¢ skills, abilities, aptitudes, as well as levels of performance required in various occupational areas; †¢ aspects of personality compatible with certain occupational fields;