Holland's Theory in a Post-Modern World: - The Career Center ...

Holland’s Theory 30U.S. based RIASEC inventories in counseling practice elsewhere. Currently, test developers andcounselors are somewhat restricted in their ability to rely on interpretations developed on U.S.populations because they may not have demonstrated applicability across cultures. With respectto international standards for the development and use of psychological inventories, such asHolland-based assessments reported in this review, it should be noted that some instruments havebeen developed as research tools only. It would be improper to use them such instruments inpractice with clients. Other instruments have been subjected to an extensive standardization andvalidation procedure in the U.S. or elsewhere.In our examination of Holland-based assessments and the RIASEC structure around theworld, it is evident that not all countries, provinces, and cultures have been studied or reviewed.Nevertheless, this article provides a comprehensive and current review of this topic andhighlighted gaps that can be pursued by those seeking to further understand Holland’s theorywith diverse people.Overall, researchers and practitioners have recognized the usefulness and prominentposition that Holland’s theory has in the field of career development. Perhaps because of thesuccessful use this theory has found in the U.S., important steps have been made to utilizeHolland’s theory and associated instruments in many places around the globe. Holland hasprovided the world’s career counselors and vocational psychologists with a great starting point tofind a way to best serve clients and increase the knowledge in this area of science.Even in this time of globalization and rapid change, we conclude that structured matchingmodels, especially Holland’s RIASEC typological theory, will continue to hold promise forscholars and practitioners in vocational psychology and guidance. Ruff et al. (2008) noted thatHolland's work has appeared in 197 different journals published in countries around the world