STRONG INTEREST

INVENTORY
 Go by the sign that you think you have the most in
common with – where would you fit in the best?

 Discuss what brought you to that group

 What did you all have in common with one another?

Strong Background
 Most researched interest scale
 High validity and reliability
 First developed by E.K. Strong
 Decided similar interests bring people together in work
settings
 Holland expanded on the theory
 “People tend to surround themselves with others who share
interests, competencies, and outlook on world. Thus, where
people congregate… reflects the type they are.”
 Gave every person and every job a Holland Code - RIASEC
 Strong Theory
 What people do is a reflection of their interests
 People of similar interests will be satisfied in those
occupations given their values, knowledge and
abilities are also the same
 Measures interests, not abilities
 Not used to tell you what you should be, but to be
used as a spring board for ideas
 Purpose is to identify themes and patterns
Normative Sample
 Compared against 67,000 people who took the
assessment
 All at least 21 years old, satisfied with their work,
been in occupation for 3 years, do typical work
tasks
 Random sample with race and ethnicity
 Measures how similar you are to them – how well
you would fit in with them
 Profiled with women only
 General Occupational Themes (GOTs)
 Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social,
Enterprising, and Conventional
 Usually identify with three codes strongly
 Represented with first letter of code name
 Can see self in all
 After age 25, the letters should stay the same, but
the order of them might change
 Will rate yourself first and then see how you
scored
Realistic: The Doers
 Love to work with their hands, tools, machinery,
computer networks
 Rugged, practical, athletic, mechanical,
adventurous, self-reliant
 Enjoy fixing, repairing, building, working outdoors
 Like physical risks
 Prefer concrete rather than abstract problems
 Present oriented, thing oriented
Realistic: Work Environments
 Places where they can produce tangible results
 Things that that they can see and touch
 Situations calling for minimal interaction with
others
 Where casual dress is allowed
 Organizations structured with clearly drawn lines
of authority
 Realistic Quiz
 What kind of car do they drive?
 Trucks, SUV, Jeep
 What would be their ideal vacation?
 Camping, attending sports event, fishing, golfing,
outward bound, hiking, adventure trip
 What motivates them?
 Hands-on, tangible results
 What would they buy?
 Boats, campers, sports equipment, power tools, ESPN
magazine, adventure books
Investigative: The Thinkers
 Like to gather information, uncover new facts, interpret
data
 Curious, abstract thinkers, rational, critical, intellectual,
introverted, insightful, persistent
 Love to explore learning
 Strong scientific or mathematic orientation
 Competent in analysis, writing, problem solving, research
 Very task-oriented
 Express themselves by using their minds
 Enjoy mental challenges
 Solve problems by thinking
Investigative: Work Environments
 Unstructured work environments that allow
freedom in work styles
 Where they can work alone most of the time
 Research labs, universities, computer-
related industries, scientific foundations,
medical facilities
 Where they can continue to learn and
uncover new data
 Investigative Quiz
 What would they drive?
 Bicycle, Volvo, “hybrid,” Honda
 What would be their ideal vacation?
 Space camp, fossil dig, science museum, African
safari, visit ruins, historical places (Europe)
 What motivates them?
 Curiosity, learning, knowledge
 What would they buy?
 Telescopes, computers, books, puzzles, electronic
equipment, science fiction or mystery novels
Artistic: The Creators
 Enjoy music, art, drama, anything cultural
 Enjoy self-expression
 Independent and highly creative
 Creativity is expressed in many ways… ideas, writing,
appreciating or creating arts, performing, counseling,
developing programs, etc…
 Impulsive, non-conforming, sensitive, emotional, visionary,
introspective, imaginative
 Enjoy beauty, variety, and what is unusual
 Solve problems by doing something new
Artistic: Work Environments
 Unstructured, flexible settings that allow self-
expression
 Where they can work on their own
 Where they can teach skills
 Where they can incorporate creativity in their
work
 Theaters, concert halls, advertising, PR, museums,
libraries, education, etc.
 Artistic Quiz
 What kind of car do they drive?
 Bug, PT Cruiser, Mini Copper, Convertible
 What would be their ideal vacation?
 NYC to see shows, Venice to see art, dance/acting
workshop
 What motivates them?
 Self-expression
 What would they buy?
 Art objects, music CDs, colorful things, decorations,
theater tickets
Social: The Helpers
 Like to work with people, often in groups, to
help inform, train, teach, nurture, help,
develop, cure
 Like to arrange positive relationships – create
harmony
 Deep concern for people and excellent
interpersonal skills
 Humanistic, cooperative, supportive, tactful,
friendly, outgoing
 Solve problems by discussing feelings with
others
Social: Work Environment
 Unstructured settings where they can get to
know others
 Where they can feel like they make a
difference
 Where they can work with others
 Social services, non-profit, schools, human
resources, mental health fields, medical
services
 Social Quiz
 What car would they drive?
 Mini-van, SUV, Suburban
 Where would be their ideal vacation?
 Cruise with friends/family, beach house vacation,
Disney World, family reunion
 What motivates them?
 Helping others
 What would they buy?
 Charity event tickets, food to entertain others, People
magazine, self-help books
Enterprising: The Leaders
 Enjoy working with others to persuade, sell,
lead, manage
 Lead others towards some organizational goal
or economic gain
 Self-confident, sociable, ambitious, energetic,
verbal, assertive, optimistic, competitive
 Prefer social tasks – can’t stay at a task for too
long
 Like to lead groups, give speeches, manage
people and projects
Enterprising: Work Environment
 Like careers in businesses and large
organizations
 Where they can work with others
 Where they can live thoroughly in their
environments and have variety
 Positions of leadership, power, status
 Own a business
 Enterprising Quiz
 What kind of car do they drive?
 Lexus, BMW, Cadillac, Lincoln, high-end SUV
 What is their ideal vacation?
 Luxury cruise, spa retreat, week of golf, Hamptons or Cape
Cod, skiing
 What motivates them?
 Persuading others
 What do they buy?
 Nice cars, good clothes, country club memberships, the latest
equipment, bestsellers, Wall Street Journal
Conventional: The Organizers
 Like activities requiring attention to detail,
organization, accuracy, data systems, filing
systems
 Enjoy mathematics and data management
 Practical, organized, systematic, accurate,
dependable, conscientious, efficient, quite
 Like to organized others
 Don’t mind being managed
 Live in orderliness
 Solve problems by organizing it
 Conventional: Work Environment
 Prefer support service roles
 Like to know the structure of the organization
 Well organized chain of command
 Where they can be around others and by self
 Where they can be given exact instructions on a
project
 Large corporations, business offices, accounting
firms
 Where they can organize things and people
 Conventional Quiz
 What kind of car do they drive?
 Buick, Honda, Saturn, fuel efficient cars
 What is their ideal vacation?
 Historical cities, knitting workshop, pre-programmed
tour, same cabin each year
 What motivates them?
 Organizing and bring things together
 What do they buy?
 Hobby collections, how-to books, file cabinets and
shelves
Check out your results...
 General Occupational Themes (GOTS)
 Usually two to three letters show up most
 Who are you are in whole life (24/7)
 Show what you self-rated yourself
 Bars represent the strength of theme in you compared to
your same sex groups
 Very high = top 10% of people with this interest, more interest
than almost all
 High = 15% above moderate interest group, more interest than
most
 Moderate = 50% of population are here, about as much
interest as most
 Little = less interest than most
 Very Little = less interest than almost all
Basic Interests Scales
 25 scales that measure interest in particular
activities
 Tell what you like to do
 Same rating as before: vh, h, m, l, vl
 How do these interests play out in your life?
 How is your life enriched by these activities?
 Which would you want to pursue professionally?
Occupational Scales
 Scales that measure your similarity to women
employed in 122 different occupations
 Who are you like in your day-to-day activities
 Only scale that incorporates both what you
answered like and dislike
 Anything above 40 means that you are very similar
with both your likes and dislikes with people in
those professions
 You would fit in with them; like to do similar things
when working
Occupational Scales
 Each job has a code – by averaging people’s codes
who are in that field
 Some codes change slightly depending on work
jobs
 What do all of the job listed have in common with
one another?
 What do they have in common with you?
 What picture do they paint?
 What themes do you see?
 Where do these themes fit into your life?
Personal Style Scales

 Five scales that assess personal preferences

regarding work style, learning, leading, risk taking,
and team orientation

 Also important when considering and examining

career professions
 Normal Ranges
Mean Bounds
Strong Like 11 0 – 27
Like 24 5 – 43
Indifferent 25 5 – 45
Dislike 19 0 – 39
Strongly Dislike 21 0 – 56
 Strong Wrap Up

 Questions?

 Think about what you learned?

 What do you need in a career to make sure it is in

line with your interests?

 What careers will you research as a result?