Holland1

Runninghead:JOHNHOLLANDSTYPOLOGY

JohnHollandsTypology

EasternIllinoisUniversity

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Introduction InaninterviewwithJohnHollandheexplained,Myexperienceasaninduction interviewerledmetothink thatpeoplefallintoarelativelysmallnumberoftypes,(Weinrach, 1980,p.407).Eventhoughhestatedthatthisbeliefwasunpopularatthetime[194246]his counselingexperiencewithcollegestudentsandwithphysicallydisabledandpsychiatricpatients reinforcedhisbeliefthatitisusefultoseepeopleastypes(Weinrach,1980).Infact,John Hollandstheory,essentiallyatraitfactortheory,classifiespeopleaccordingtosixdifferent types,eachhavingadifferentkindofworkandinterpersonalenvironment. Overviewofthetheory JohnHollandsTypologytheory,firstpublishedin1959,describeshowindividuals interactwiththeirenvironmentsandhowindividualandenvironmentalcharacteristicsresultin vocationalchoicesandadjustment.Hollandmaintainsthatbylateadolescencemostpeoplecome toresembleacombinationofsixvocational/personality/interesttypes:Realistic(R),investigative (I),Artistic(A),Social(S),Enterprising(E),orConventional(C)insixparallelwork environments.Mostpeopleresemblemorethanone,andinmanycases,allofthetypestosome degree.Hence,anindividualspersonalityisacompositeofseveralofthetypeseachindividual havingauniquecombination.Thesetypesrevealpatternsoflikesanddislikes,specificvalues, selfdescriptions,andcharacteristicbehaviors.Thepatternofanindividualspersonalityscores andresemblancesiscalledasubtype,whichisindicatedbythefirstletterofeachtypeinorder ofimportanceforthatindividual.Peoplewithsimilarcodestypicallyshowsimilarpatternsof vocationalpreferenceandgenerallydowellinsimilaroccupationalenvironments(Brown& Lent,2004). Thesesixtypes,mostcommonlyreferredtoastheRIASECmodel,arerepresented figurallybyahexagonshowingtherelationshipswithinandbetweenpersonalitytypes.Each personalitytypeisapointonahexagon.Thismodelpositionseachpersonalitytypetoshow accuratedistancesbetweenthetypesinadditiontohowcloselytheycorrespondtoeachother

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(alsoknownascalculusinHollandstheory).Thosetypesthatareadjacenttoeachotheronthe hexagon(RandI)sharethemostcommoncharacteristicsthosethatarefurthestapartsharethe leastincommon(AandC)(Patrick,Eliason&Thompson,2005). InadditiontothetotheRIASECmodelofkeypersonandenvironmentcharacteristics, fourdiagnosticindicatorsarecentraltoHollandstheory:congruence,consistency, differentiation,andidentity.Congruencereferstothedegreeoffitbetweenanindividuals personalityandactualworkenvironment(Irah,2000).Thisisperhapsthemostimportantof HollandsconstructsbecauseasNilesandHarrisBowlsbeystatedinPatrick,etal.(2005)a primarygoalofusingHollandstheoryincareercounselingishelpingclientsidentifyand connectwithcongruentworkenvironments(p.46). Consistencyreferstohowsimilartwotypesare,andisdeterminedbythepositionof thosetypesontheRIASEChexagon.Lettersadjacenttoeachotherhaveahighconsistency,as comparedtothosethatareoppositeonthehexagon,whichwouldhavealowconsistency (Patrick,etal.,2005). Differentiationisthedegreetowhichapersonoraworkenvironmentiswelldefined. Somepeople,forexample,appeartostronglyresembleonepersonalitytypewhileothersappear undifferentiatedandhaveinterestsandabilitiesthatfitseveralpersonalitytypes.Peoplewhoare undifferentiatedmayhavedifficultymakingcareerdecisionsandmayneedcareerinterventions thathelpthemachievegreaterdifferentiationamongHollandtypes(Patrick,etal.,2005). Hollanddefineshislastconstruct,identity,asthepossessionofaclearandstablepicture ofonesgoals,interests,andtalents(Brown&Lent,2004,p.28).Whenthinkingaboutidentity inHollandstermsonemightask,Howwelldefinedaremycareergoals?Towhatextentare careergoalsmadewithsufficientoccupationalandselfinformation?(Patrick,etal.,2005,p. 47).Hence,accordingtoHolland,apersonwithmanygoalswouldbeconsideredtohavelow vocationalidentity.

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ReviewofSpecificTechniques Congruence,differentiation,consistencyandidentityarethekeyconstructsusedwhen applyingHollandstheorytocareercounselingpractice.Assessmentinstrumentsdevelopedby JohnHollandandhisassociatesaremostoftenusedtoappraisetheseconstructswiththeresults providingcareercounselingcontentfortheclient.Theinventoriesmostcommonlyusedforthis purposeincludeTheSelfDirectedSearch(SDS),theVocationalPreferenceInventory(VPI),and MyVocationalSituation(MVS).Allaredesignedtoprovidevocationalassistancecheaplyand withminimalcounselorintervention(Patrick,etal.,2005). The inventorythatisthemostwidelyusedandhasgainedworldwideacceptance, however,whenapplyingtheorytopracticeistheSDS.TheSDSisaselfadministered,self scored,andselfinterpretedvocationalinventorydesignedtotransformapersonsparticular activities,competencies,andselfestimatesintotheirHollandthreelettercode.Further,theSDS servesasabasisforrelatingselfassessmenttoappropriateoccupations.TheSDSconsistsofan assessmentbooklet(usedtofindatesttakersthreeletterSDSsummarycode),anoccupations finder(listingofoccupationsclassifiedaccordingtotheirthreeletterHollandsummarycode), andaninterpretiveguideentitled,YouandYourCareer(Patrick,etal.,2005).Thisguide discussesthescientificideassupportingtheSDS,howtousethescoresandcodes,personality characteristicsassociatedwiththecodes,andsuggestionsforsuccessfulcareerplanning(Lenz, Reardon&Reed,2003). Theinventoryisavailableindifferentversionsbasedonreadinglevel,setting,and languagespoken.Additionally,theSDSisavailableviatheInternet(SDS:R:InternetVersion), whichprovidesfasteradministration.TheInterpretiveReport(SDSR:IR1996)producesa10 12pageclientreportbasedonSDSsummaryscoresandaonepageprofessionalsummaryforthe counselor.TheprofessionalsummaryusesscoresfromsecondaryconstructsinHollandstheory toprovidesupplementalinformationforthecounselor(Lenz,etal.,2003).

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AlthoughtheSDSiswidelyused,ithasmanylimitationsthatoneshouldconsiderwhen utilizingitincareercounseling.JohnHollanddescribestheSDSasapracticalselfhelpdevice ithelpsapersonsummarizewhohe/sheseemstobeandexploresomeoccupationalalternatives (Weinrach,1980,p.408).Headmitsthatforsomeitmaybeenough,butforothersitsjusta beginning(Weinrach,1980).TheSDSmeetsaneedforvocationalexplorationandreassurance. Althoughitmaybehelpfultothinkofvocationalassistanceaccordingtolevelsofcomplexity, ratherthanpushingallclientsthroughexpensivetreatment,somecounselorshavecomplained thattheyhavelostclientsbecauseoftheSDS.Thosecounselorsreportedthatmostoftheno showshadobtainedwhattheysoughtfromtheSDS(reassurance)andsawnoneedtoreturn. Moreover,someclientsmaygainafalsesenseofsecurity,butinfact,mayneedmore intervention.AdditionalinterventionwiththeSDShasbeenproventohavemoreinfluencethan theSDSinventoryalone(Walsh,1986).Inaddition,testtakerscannotalwaysdeterminetheir SDScode,donotsearchtheOccupationsFinderforallcodepermutations,ordonotreadthe interpretivebooklet. Professionalsarealsoreluctanttoreadorstudymanuals. AstheSDSbecamepopular JohnHollandcouldnotkeepupwithcorrespondencefromprofessionals.Theauthornaively believedthatmoredataandmorecomprehensivemanualswouldsolvetheproblem.Threemore manualswerepreparedin13yearseachonebeingmorecomprehensivethantheothers. Considerableevidence,however,suggeststhatveryfewprofessionalseverreadorstudiedthe SDSmanuals.Atthispoint,testmanualsappeartobeunreadstatussymbolsthatattesttoan inventorysscientificstatusandwhosechiefusagemaybeasamerchandisingvehicle(Walsh, 1986,p.71). AnotherlimitationofHollandstheorymaybeitsapplicationtoothercultures.Although variousculturalstudieshavebeendoneandhaveproventhecrossculturalvalidityofHollands theory,HollandstypologywastestedandmodifiedbyWongandWonginHongKong.They

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developedtheirowninterestinventoryandassertedthatthemodifiedmodelwasmoreapplicable inChineseculturethanwastheoriginalhexagonalmodel(Tien,2007). Hollandstheoryhasalsobeencriticizedasbeinggenderbiasedinregardstotheperson environmentfit.Althoughhehasattemptedtorevisehistypologytoreducegenderbias,he viewsgenderasameasurementandsocializationissueratherthanacentralcomponentofhis typology.HisexplanationforthehighpercentageofwomenscoringhighestontheSocialscale wasthatwomenhavecharacteristicsthatledthemtotheseintereststherefore,womenwiththese characteristicswillhavethegreatestpersonenvironmentfitinthesecareers(Rees,Luzzo, Gridley,&Doyle,2007).AlthoughitmayseemsomewhatreasonablebasedonHollandstheory ofpersonalitiesandworkenvironments,Rees,etal.(2007)describedthisascircularreasoning (p.197). ApplicabilitytotheSchoolSetting Randolph(2006)citeda2004studybyHelwigwhichfound thatstudentsinterestsand aspirationschangeastheygrowanddevelop.Studentconfidencelevelsregardingtheirchoices ofanoccupationalfuturebecomemoresecureduringthelasttwoyearsofhighschool, demonstratingtheneedtodelivercareercurriculumearlyinachildseducationtoassiststudents inbuildingconfidenceearlierinlife.Schoolcounselorsarecurrentlyaligningtheircounseling programswithnationalstandardssetbytheAmericanSchoolCounselingAssociation(ASCA). Thecareerstandardhasbeenatopicofconcernforcounselors.Accuratecareerinformationmust beguidedbyASCAandelementary/middleschoolcounselorsmustbeinvolvedinassisting studentsinthisprocess.Hence,middleschoolcounselorsoftenutilizeHollandsSelfDirected Search:CareerExplorer(SDS:CE)tohelpfulfillthesestandards.Infact,a2002studybyOsborn determinedtheSDS:CEasvery practicalformeetingthecareercounselingneedsofmiddle schoolstudents.ThechildreninOsbornsstudymetforsixweeks,utilizing30minutesessions. ThecounseloralsoincorporatedaCognitiveInformationProcessingTheory(CIP).Duringthe firstweek,introductionsweremade,andthecomponentsofCIPwereintroduced.Thecounselor

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prompteddiscussionsaboutselfknowledgeandadministeredtheSDSCE.Duringthenext sessionthereportresultswerehandedbackandstudentsnarrowedtheiroptionsbyeliminating itemstheydisliked.Tobuildselfknowledge,studentswroteareasonwhytheydiscardedthose options.Theyalsoplacedaquestionmarkbyjobstheywereuncertainabout.Duringthethird sessionstudentsusedtheOccupationalOutlook Handbooktohelpnarrowoptionsfurtherand increaseoccupationalknowledge.Thenextweekfocusedonadecision makingstrategyanda discussion/gamecenteringontheimpactofselftalkongoals.Thesixweeksconcludedwitha discussionofhowtheirselfknowledgehadincreased.Inessence,thestudentsresponded favorablytotheinstrument(Osborn,2002).TheSDSCEisapplicabletothemiddleschool setting,helpsstudentstoseetheconnectionsbetweenschoolandwork,andallowsschool counselorstomeettheASCAstandardsforcareereducation. Conclusion Hollandstheorycanmeetsimpletocomplexneeds.Ithassurvivedclosetofiftyyears ofempiricalscrutinyandremainsapremiertheoryinvocationalliterature.Ithaspassedenough teststorecommenditsuseinpracticalapplicationasamethodofassessinginterestsand occupations.Itcanalsousedasschoolcounselorsdevelopandimplementcomprehensiveschool counselingprogramswhichexposeyoungerchildrentocareerexploration.

Holland8 References Brown,S.,&Lent,R.(Eds.).(2004).Careerdevelopmentandcounseling:Putting Theoryandresearchtowork.NewJersey:Wiley. Ireh,M.(2000).Careerdevelopmenttheoriesandtheirimplicationsforhighschool careerguidanceandcounseling.TheHighSchoolJournal,83(2),2840. Lenz,J.G.,Reardon,R.C.,&Reed,C.A.(2003).SelfDirectedSearch,RIASEC theory,andrelatedHollandassessmentsinadultcareercounseling.The CareerPlanningandAdultDevelopmentJournal: Specialissue,19(2),1123. Osborn,D.(2002).Usingtheselfdirectedsearchcareerexplorerwithmiddle schoolstudents:ThepracticalityofHollandsRIASECtheory.InG.Walz, R.Lambert,C.Kirkman(Eds.),CareersAcrossAmerica2002:Best PracticesandIdeasinCareerDevelopmentConferenceProceedings (pp.6468).Chicago,Illinois:ERIC/CASSPublications. Patrick,J.,Eliason,G.,&Thompson,D.(Eds.).(2005). Issuesincareerdevelopment. Connecticut:IAP. Randolph,L(2006).CareerEducationinMiddleSchool.Retrieved [January22,2008],fromPortlandStateUniversity,SchoolCounseling Program,SchoolCounselinginAction,ContinuingLicensureProgram, ActionResearchProjects2006.Website: htp://www.ed.pdx.edu/coun/sca.htm. Rees,A.,Luzzo,D.,Gridley,B.,&Doyle,C.(2007).Relationalpersonalitytheory andhollandstypologyamongwomen:Anexploratoryinvestigation.The CareerDevelopmentQuarterly,55,194205.

Holland9 Tien,H.(2007).Practiceandresearchincareercounselinganddevelopment2006. TheCareerDevelopmentQuarterly,56(2),98165. Walsh,B.&Osipow,S.(Eds.).(1986). Advancesinvocationalpsychology:The assessmentofinterests.NewJersey:LawrenceErlbaum. Weinrach,S.(1980).Havehexagonwilltravel:Aninterviewwithjohnholland. PersonnelandGuidanceJournal,58 (6),406414.