Date of Award
1993
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science
Department
Business
First Advisor
Michael Castro
Second Advisor
Daniel W. Kemper
Third Advisor
Michael Kramer
Abstract
This study tested two hypotheses derived from John L. Holland's theory of vocational choice. The first hypothesis was that there should be some correlation between congruence, as measured by Holland's Self-Directed Search instrument, and an individual's expressed job satisfaction. The second hypothesis was that individuals will tend to seek out congruent occupations over time. The Self-Directed Search instrument was administered to 112 individuals working in a variety of occupations in order to measure job congruency. A questionnaire relating to job tenure and job satisfaction was also given to each individual. The information garnered from the SDS and the questionnaire was used to determine the degree of correlation between satisfaction and congruence; between job tenure and congruence; between age and congruence; between satisfaction and age; and between satisfaction and job tenure. These five relationships were used to determine the validity of the two hypotheses of this study. The results yielded no significant correlation between any of the five relationships, thus the two hypotheses of this study were not supported. However, there were some questions about the data manipulation and interpretation that would preclude an outright rejection of the theory. Future studies might alleviate some of these questions by focusing more attention on the process of accurately coding each subject's occupation according to the Occupations Finder. Also, a more in-depth inquiry into the subjects' job satisfaction might provide a more accurate measure of this variable.
Recommended Citation
Sandbothe-Swope, Paula, "An Investigation Into the Validity of John Holland's Theory of Vocational Choice and the Accuracy of His Self-Directed Search Model As A Means of Career Guidance" (1993). Theses. 1312.
https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/theses/1312
Creative Commons License
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