Hollands Theory (1997)

Of Vocational Personalities
and Work Environments
Hollands Theory
Part of the theorys appeal is due
to the simple and intuitively
meaningful premises on which it
is based.
Three fundamental questions:
ONE:
What characteristics of persons and
environments lead to positive vocational
outcomes (such as satisfying career
outcomes)?

What characteristics of persons and

environments lead to negative career
outcomes?
Three fundamental questions:
TWO:

What characteristics of persons and

environments leads to career
stability or change over the life-
span?
Three fundamental questions:
THREE:

What are the most effective ways of

providing assistance to people with
career concerns?
Hollands underlying premise:

Careerchoice is an expression of
ones personality
Thus, members of an occupation have
similar personalities and similar
histories.
Hollands four working assumptions:
Assumption 1 : Most individuals can be
described in terms of their resemblance to
six personality types:
Investigative
Investigative

Realistic
Realistic Artistic
Artistic

Holland
HollandTypes
Types

Conventional
Conventional Social
Social

Enterprising
Enterprising
Hollands four working assumptions:
Assumption 1 (Continued):
Each personality type has a characteristic set
of attitudes and skills to use in response to
problems encountered in the environment, and

Each encompasses preferences for vocational

and leisure activities, life goals and values,
beliefs about oneself, and problem-solving
style.
Hollands four working assumptions:
Assumption 1 (Continued):
Types develop as a product of a
characteristic interaction among a
variety of cultural and personal forces
including peers, biological heredity,
parents, social class, culture, and the
physical environment (Holland, 1997,
p. 2)
Hollands four working assumptions:
Assumption 1 (Continued):
These experiences lead to an individuals
preferring some activities over others: the
preferences then develop into strong interests,
which lead to related competencies.

Individuals competencies form a specific

disposition that allows the individual to
think, perceive, and act in special ways.
(Holland, 1997, p. 2)
Hollands four working assumptions:
Assumption 2:
Environments can
be categorized as
one of six model
Investigative
Investigative
types:
Realistic
Realistic Artistic
Artistic
Holland
HollandTypes
Types
Conventional
Conventional Social
Social
Enterprising
Enterprising
Hollands four working assumptions:
Assumption 2:
The environments type is determined
by the dominant type of the individuals
who compose that environment.

Where people congregate, they create

an environment that reflects the types
they most resemble (Holland, 1997, p.
3).
Hollands four working assumptions:
Assumption 3:
People search for environments that will let
them exercise their skills and abilities, express
their attitudes and values, and take on
agreeable problems and roles (Holland, 1997,
p. 4).
In a reciprocal manner, environments also
search for people, through activities such as
social interactions and recruitment and
selection practices.
Hollands four working assumptions:
Assumption 4:
Personality and environment interact to
produce behavior.
Knowing an individuals personality
type and the type of their environment
allows us to make predictions about a
range of possible outcomes, such as
vocational choice, job tenure and
turnover, achievement, and satisfaction.
Hollands secondary assumptions: