Abstract
With the development of society and the liberalisation of the labour market, a new paradigm of lifelong guidance has entered the social sciences. Nowadays public demand for lifelong guidance services outstrips availability. The aim of the study: to substantiate the lifelong guidance nowadays, highlighting the multidimensional meaning of the concept of career, including meaning of lifelong and lifewide career. Research methods: studying, analysing and evaluating scientific literature and various types of documents; reflection on experience. The research findings allow for a conclusion to be made that the paradigm of lifelong guidance is considered a new paradigm that has gained its rapid development, popularity and relevance in the 21st century . The aim of lifelong guidance is to provide career support to people of all ages at all stages of their career development in a lifelong and continuous process. Moreover, career support is necessary on a continuous basis: in moments of career success and in moments of crisis. Provision of lifelong education is the spotlight of lifelong guidance, as it is key to successful career development and a guarantee of employment. Cooperation networks of all kinds, at both interpersonal and inter-institutional level, have an important place in the lifelong guidance system, where different types of organisations and individual support providers play their part in the overarching lifelong guidance system. The wide range of functions of a lifelong guidance system goes beyond the scope of a single career counsellor or career support specialist, emphasising collaboration between different types of professionals and different organisations as providers of career support. Lifelong guidance is a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary process. The offer and provision of lifelong guidance, including lifelong education, take the central place in career management nowadays. In a lifelong guidance system, providers and implementers of education of all kinds are therefore seen as important parts of the system. Today, formal and non-formal education is offered by a variety of providers: different types of educational institutions (pre-schools, schools, universities, adult learning centres), non-governmental organisations, learning organisations with a high level of knowledge management, etc. Within the framework of the new lifelong guidance paradigm, it is important to respect the multidimensional meaning of the concept of career. Drawing parallels with the explanations of lifelong education and lifewide education in the social sciences, including the educational sciences, two main trends can be identified and distinguished in the explanation of the new concepts of career and in the justification of career development in the context of contemporary society: lifelong career development and lifewide career development. There may also be a third path, a combination of the both: a lifelong and lifewide career that develops throughout life.