Randall D. Ordovich Clarkson, MD
May 12, 2022
Introduction to Holland’s Theory of Career Choice
In order to provide one with meaning and purpose, work and routine can play a significant role in maintaining stability and mental health. It is no wonder why during times of economic #hardship such as #depressions, #recessions, and heightened #unemployment, individuals that are most effected can become distressed to the point of familial instability through divorce, depression, and even suicide (Yang, 1992). We all have basic needs such as maintaining finances that must be met, and work is a pivotal aspect of such pursuits. As succinctly stated by #Maslow (1943), “man is a perpetually wanting animal”—and more than anything, most people want a sense of security and stability.
Asides from developing a sense of meaning and purpose, Brown & Lent (2021) posit that there are several aspects of work that serve to compel an individual including need fulfillment, establishing one’s public identity, the establishment of one’s personal identity or self‐construction, normative expectation and social contribution, and on a psychological basis, serving as an existential response and aid to mental health. Work can also be tedious, mundane, and even dangerous under some circumstances. Because of these potentially negative aspects of work, it is critical to understand one’s own personal needs, desires, and goals. For example, one must consider whether or not working a ‘dead end job’ is worth it. On one hand, the work might be practical, providing the individual with resources and skills needed to excel and move on towards a more fulfilling career. On the other hand, the heartache of being stuck in a ‘dead end job’ might not be worth the money. Thus, the pain and heartache needs to be worth it. As Friedrich #Nietzsche wisely said, “He who has a why to live for can bear with almost any how” (Frankl, 1985, p. 97). That is, purpose and meaning in life can help guide us through the most challenging circumstances, including the ennui of unfulfilling work. In the field of career counseling, individuals may find great utility in developing a deeper understanding of what compels them on a fundamental level to derive a greater deal of satisfaction in work. In such pursuits, theories such as John Holland’s theory of career choice can play a pivotal role.
“He who has a why to live for can bear with almost any how.” - Friedrich Nietzsche
As stated by Brown & Lent (2021), when it comes to personality traits and ideal vocational choices, John Holland’s theory is, “generally regarded as among the most influential theories guiding career counseling and practice” (p. 75). According to Holland (1997), the six main personality types include Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional and can be abbreviated as #RIASEC (Brown & Lent, 2021). Brown and Lent (2021) summarizes each RIASEC personality very well, along with each with their own vocational preferences as follows:
R or the realistic personality generally prefers working with things. Tends to be more manual and mechanical in nature with career preferences ranging from mechanics to farmers.
I or investigative personalities enjoy both things and ideas, solving intellectual problems with abstract ideas, with careers ranging from physicians to computer systems analysts
A or artistic personality types prefer people and ideas and thrive in imaginative environments and careers ranging from professional musician to photographer.
S or social personalities enjoy people and prefer interactive fields that range from teaching to nursing and counseling.
E or enterprising personality types are data-driven and people-loving. They tend to be ambitious and adventurous, making for excellent business administrators and even lawyers
C or conventional personalities enjoy both data and things and are on the more conservative and conformist spectrum, preferring to work in traditional fields such as banking, accounting, and office management.
It is important to note that according to his theory, Holland (1997) posits that individuals tend to have various degrees of each characteristic, with some being more dominant than others. For example, an individual who may be predominantly realistic may also be conventional in a similar degree whereas an individual who is more artistic may also be similarly enterprising. Depending on where individuals fit in these personality spectrums, there are ideal vocational paths that would be best suited for each personality type. With the combination of six personality types, Brown & Lent (2021) explain how a total of 720 different personality patterns exist. Because of this daunting number of combinations, a Holland Code of the three dominant personality types may be used by professional career counselors to better help guide patients in the right vocational direction. For instance, if an individual is predominantly social with traits of an artistic and enterprising personality, their Holland Code would be SAE (Brown & Lent, 2021). In this paper, I will discuss my Holland score results from the Interest Profiler questionnaire at the National Center for O*NET Development (2019) and relate that to the overall field of professional career counseling.
Results and Practical Applications for the Holland Code Interest Profiler
The U.S. Department of Labor currently offers a Holland-based Interest Profiler at the National Center for O*NET Development (2019) website (Brown & Lent, 2021). The questionnaire is very short including questions such as whether the subject would, for example, enjoy writing plays, developing a new medicine, build a kitchen cabinet, manage a retail store, etc. After completing the survey, my test yielded the following results:
With Artistic, Investigative, and Social scores being among the three predominant personalities, my Holland Code would be summarized as an AIS. As someone who would prefer to some form of creative work (A), while figuring out problems (I), as well as teach, give advice, and be of service to people (S), the Interest Profiler Career List stated that my best vocational fits included Clinical & Counseling Psychologist, Political Scientist, and Sociologist. These careers are listed under Job Zone Five whereby one requires extensive preparation in the form of tertiary education—i.e. Master’s Degree, Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (National Center for O*NET Development, 2019). For Job Zone Four requiring ‘high preparation,’ ideal careers would include Music Therapist, Special Effects Artist & Animator, and Technical Writer. For Job Zone Three requiring ‘medium preparation,’ Craft Artist, Musician and Singer would be ideal options and for Job Zone Two with ‘some preparation needed,’ Actor or Stone Cutter & Carver would be decent career considerations.
One of the key components of the Interest Profiler is that it includes a vast degree of alternative careers along with their respective educational level/training required. For example, my preferred careers that fit into Job Zone Five all require some form of tertiary education—i.e. graduate school. However, if I did not wish to pursue a career route burdened with, for example, student loan debt or years of academic obligations, then the Interest Profiler provides a myriad of alternative paths to choose from, all of which with the potential of providing a sense of meaning, purpose, and job-satisfaction. In terms of its practical applications, the Interest Profiler is extremely easy and useful insofar as the results, at least from my subjective experience, were highly accurate. If a patient were to be riddled with a lack of direction or meaning in life, the Interest Profiler would be a useful tool, serving both patients and clinicians as a weathervane to guide the course of therapy and counseling.
My only critique of the Holland Code is that the enterprising personality type according to Holland (1997) does not include as much of the creative elements that are found in some of the world’s most prominent entrepreneurs. It is true that, as Ward (2004) points out, there is a, “paradoxical role of knowledge, which can either enhance of inhibit creativity, as well as to the properties of knowledge and a selected set of processes that influence the originality of newly generated ideas.” Despite this, entrepreneurs must have a heightened creative or artistic approach to the development of ideas insofar as successful entrepreneurship requires the generation of “novel and useful ideas for business ventures” (Ward, 2004). Such traits would fall very heavily into the Artistic personality realm of the RIASEC model. Despite this, the utility of the Interest Profiler is such that clinicians operating in the field of career counseling would do well by their patients in administering the evaluation.
Conclusion
One’s vocational pursuits can have a significant impact on one’s overall state of mental health, encompassing aspects of meaning, self-worth, and economic stability. For that reason, career counseling should be integral to patients who are suffering from circumstances characterized by economic hardship due to, for instance, unemployment, or who are experiencing lack of motivation and a general sense of misguidedness. Therapists and behavioral health professionals working with such patients should heavily consider implementing assessments such as the National Center for O*NET Development (2019) inspired by Holland’s theory of career choice. Upon understanding one’s fundamental personality types, subjects can begin to develop a greater understanding of their motivations, career goals, and the academic achievements and education necessary to meet these goals.
For those interested in taking the Interest Profiler survey, please visit: https://www.mynextmove.org/explore/ip
References
Brown, S. D., & Lent, R. W. (2021). Career development and counseling: Putting theory and research to work (3rd ed.). John Wiley & Sons. ISBN-13: 9781119580355.
Frankl, V. E. (1985). Man's search for meaning. Simon and Schuster.
Holland, J. L. (1997). Making vocational choices: A theory of vocational personalities and work environments. Psychological Assessment Resources.
Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological review, 50(4), 370.
National Center for O*NET Development. (2019). O*NET interest profiler. Mynextmove.org. https://www.mynextmove.org/explore/ip
Ward, T. B. (2004). Cognition, creativity, and entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Venturing, 19(2), 173–188. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0883-9026(03)00005-3
Yang, B. (1992). The economy and suicide: A time‐series study of the USA. American Journal of Economics and Sociology, 51(1), 87-99.