Examination of Holland

1
Examination of Hollands Predictive Pattern Order
Hypothesis for Academic Achievement William D.
Beverly and Robert A. Horn Northern Arizona
University, Educational Psychology, Flagstaff, AZ
Methodology
Introduction
Discussion and Implications
Table 2 Pairwise Comparisons for Males and
Females Looking at Academic Major GPA
Participants A total of 1077 undergraduate
students, consisting of 370 (34.4) males and 707
(65.6) females, comprised this studys sample.
Each of the six primary personality types was
represented for males and females (see Table 1).
Students were degree-seeking students at a
mid-sized university who entered as first-time
freshmen and subsequently earned a Bachelors
degree. Procedures The participants primary
Holland personality types were identified by
determining each individuals highest score
obtained from the Entering Freshman ACT
Assessment. Highest scores tied with one or more
of the remaining five scores were categorized
separately as tied. The participants
ACT-Composite scores (aptitude) and academic
major GPA (achievement) were obtained from
official university records. Academic major GPA
was chosen as our measure of academic achievement
as it reflects coursework more consistent with a
students expressed interest, and, as such, would
be more congruent with ones personality type.
This study reexamined Hollands assertion that
higher educational achievement goes with the
following primary personality order I, S, A, C,
E, R. Similar to prior research, mixed support
emerged for Hollands prediction. Current
findings show a similar clustering of personality
types when looking at GPA for males (see Table
5). That is, the top three types identified in
the present study (I, S, A) match Hollands
prediction (I, S, A), but not with the same
significance. The lowest three types identified
in this study (E, R, C) are consistent with
Hollands lowest three (C, E, R). For females, A
and S types clustered in the top three with R,
and C and E types clustered in the lower three
with I. Also shown in Table 5 are the rank
orderings for males and females when looking at
aptitude and at achievement controlling for
aptitude. Similar clustering appears for this set
of data, again providing limited support for
Hollands prediction. Similar to prior research,
primary personality types appear to be a more
valid predictor of academic achievement for males
than for females. Hollands model of career
development is used in a number of applied
settings, such as school guidance and counseling,
and has been identified as the most popular model
of counseling among elementary, middle, and high
school counselors. Considering that this model is
one of the most established guidance and
counseling approaches used in academic settings,
school counselors and other professionals should
be aware that the evidence for Hollands
hypothesis regarding personality type and
academic achievement is limited, and, at times,
conflicting. A recommendation is for school
counselors to use more than a students primary
personality type to make any meaningful
predictions. The more comprehensive and complete
the personality profile, the more precise the
explanatory power of the theory, as there is a
more accurate understanding of the individuals
interests, traits, and preferences. Although
Holland has proposed that there are six primary
personality types, he also maintains that a
three-letter code is a better estimate of an
individuals overall personality. Holland
considers congruence, consistency, and
differentiation central to his theory, and such
variables can only be considered when using more
than a primary personality type. Future research
should also consider other factors such as SES
and the possible influence of tied types.
Holland proposed a personality theory which
provides a parsimonious means of conceptualizing
diverse aspects of vocational and personality
development. His theory contends that individuals
and environments can be characterized by their
resemblance to one of six types Realistic,
Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, or
Conventional (R, I, A, S, E, C, see Figure 1).
Holland views individuals vocational and
educational choices, preferences, behaviors, and
achievements as a function of their
personality. Hollands theory
proposes three diagnostic relationships (i.e.,
congruence, consistency, and differentiation) to
assist professionals with their assessments of
individuals he predicts that greater degrees of
congruence, consistency, and differentiation will
be associated with greater stability,
satisfaction, and achievement. When put into an
educational perspective, this should equate to
greater levels of retention and academic
achievement for students. Holland hypothesized an
ordering of the primary personality patterns in
terms of educational behaviors, asserting that
higher educational achievement goes with the
following primary personality pattern order I,
S, A, C, E, R. This hypothesis has received
limited empirical research with mixed results.
However, Holland maintains that this order exists
in educational behavior, reaffirming that
educational achievement follows the pattern
order Investigative, Social, Artistic,
Conventional, Enterprising, and Realistic. The
limited and conflicting research on Hollands
hypothesis was the catalyst for this study.
For males, looking at ACT-Composite, the Holland
personality types ranked as I, A, C, E, R, Tie,
S, F(6, 363) .95, p .462, Partial ?2 .015.
For females, the Holland personality types ranked
as A, I, R, C, S, Tie, E, F(6, 700) 4.31, p lt
.001, Partial ?2 .036. Post hoc multiple
comparisons for females on ACT-Composite are
shown in Table 3.
Table 3 Pairwise Comparisons for Females Looking
at ACT-Composite
Table 1 Observed GPA, ACT-Composite, and Adjusted
GPA for Male and Female Primary Personality Types
Figure 1 Hollands Hexagonal Model
For males, looking at academic major GPA
controlling for ACT-Composite (aptitude), the
Holland personality types ranked as Tie, S, A, I,
E, R, C, F(6, 362) 2.63, p .017, Partial ?2
.042. For females, the Holland personality types
ranked as A, S, R, Tie, I, E, C, F(6, 699)
2.80, p .011, Partial ?2 .023. Post hoc
multiple comparisons for males and females on
academic major GPA controlling for ACT-Composite
are shown in Table 4.
Table 4 Pairwise Comparisons for Males and
Females Looking at Academic Major GPA Controlling
for ACT-Composite
Table 5 Comparisons of Primary Personality
Pattern Orders
Results
Research Questions
1. Is Hollands pattern order hypothesis
supported when looking at academic major
GPA? 2. Is Hollands pattern order hypothesis for
academic achievement supported when looking at
aptitude? 3. Is Hollands pattern order
hypothesis supported when looking at academic
major GPA controlling for aptitude?
For males, looking at academic major GPA, the
Holland personality types ranked as Tie, I, S, A,
E, R, C, F(6, 363) 2.30, p .034, Partial ?2
.037. For females, the Holland personality types
ranked as A, S, R, I, Tie, C, E, F(6, 700)
3.86, p .001, Partial ?2 .032. Post hoc
multiple comparisons for males and females on
academic major GPA are shown in Table 2.