After several years of political agendas focused on social inclusion, career guidance practice needs to return to its roots of promoting equality and social justice. This conceptual article argues that for many years there has been an overreliance on theories focused on the individual, and examines the relationship between social structures and individual agency. It presents insights from a social constructivist perspective, built on the application of collectivist interpretations of the zone of proximal development, situated learning and activity theory. Social constructivism asserts that individuals cannot be separated from their social context, and that social context is dynamic and constantly changing. The article concludes with the identification of the zone of proximal development as a useful overarching construct to support progress towards emancipatory career guidance practice.