Vocational interests and personality

Abstract

The field of vocational counselling lacks consensus regarding the dimensions common to a vocational guidance test battery and the appropriate methodology to employ in the analysis of the internal structure of vocational guidance test data. In this study we sought to clarify these issues by testing the hypothesis that vocational interest and personality tests measure a common domain. The MMPI, EPPS, and KPR‐C were administered to 489 high school and college men aged 15 to 34 ( X = 21.2) years and 137 females aged 16 to 35 ( X = 22.6) years randomly chosen from a larger population seeking vocational guidance. The data provide evidence that there are six dimensions which describe a common domain of personality and vocational interest. Canonical correlational analysis best combined the personality and interest scales when compared with hierarchical cluster analysis, principal component analysis, and multimethod factor analysis. Implications of the findings to vocational counselling are discussed in terms of relative importance of personality and interest measures, amount of information provided by these instruments, and contribution of test data to the guidance process.

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