THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO (1) PRODUCE AN INSTRUMENT FOR ELICITING VOCATIONAL IMAGERY FOR USE IN THE EDUCATIONAL-VOCATIONAL ORIENTATION AND COUNSELING OF HIGH SCHOOL YOUTH, AND (2) DEVELOP A SCALE FOR EVALUATING THE MATURITY OF THE VOCATIONAL IMAGERY ELICITED BY THE INSTRUMENT. A PREVIOUSLY DESIGNED INSTRUMENT "WHAT I THINK OF MYSELF" (A SEMIPROJECTIVE TYPE FOR CONTROLLED COMPOSITION) WAS REVISED ON THE BASIS OF ANALYSES OF OVER 280 PROTOCOLS OBTAINED ON EARLIER PILOT STUDIES. THE MODIFIED QUESTIONNAIRE WAS READMINISTERED TO OVER 210 STUDENTS IN THE EIGHTH, ELEVENTH, AND TWELFTH GRADES FROM THREE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. RESULTING PROTOCOLS WERE ANALYZED, PRIMARILY, ON THE BASES OF AUTHENTICITY, VARIETY, COMPREHENSIVENESS, AND MEANINGFULNESS OF THE STUDENT DISCLOSURES. STUDY PROTOCOLS WERE RATED BY SELECTED JUDGES IN TERMS OF THE DEGREE OF VOCATIONAL MATURITY EVIDENCED, TO DEVELOP AN INDUCTIVE "MATURITY SCALE." MATURITY ASSESSMENTS WERE CORRELATED WITH DATA OBTAINED FROM STUDENTS' CUMULATIVE RECORDS AND WITH VOCATIONAL CHOICES MANIFESTED IN DECLARATIONS OF PLANS TO SCHOOL COUNSELORS. IMMATURITY EVIDENCED IN STUDENTS' VOCATIONAL THINKING AND IMAGERY WAS CHARACTERIZED BY CONFUSION, STEREOTYPED OUTLOOKS AND ASPIRATIONS, AND OMNIPOTENT FANTASY. THE MODIFIED QUESTIONNAIRE APPEARED TO REACH A DEEPER LEVEL OF INVOLVEMENT AND FANTASY EXPRESSION OF STUDENTS THAN HAD BEEN SHOWN PREVIOUSLY BY OTHER STRUCTURED METHODS. IN GENERAL, THE RESEARCH PRODUCED INSIGHTS ON HOW TO BE MORE EFFECTIVE IN REACHING STUDENTS AT SIGNIFICANT LEVELS, TO ELICIT VOCATIONAL MATERIAL, AND TO ENHANCE THEIR AWARENESS AND UNDERSTANDING OF THEMSELVES. (HB)