Hypotheses about person-environment congruency, consistency, and differentiation from Holland's theory of careers were tested. Subjects were students who had been given the Self-Directed Search before their freshman year followed by a questionnaire one or three years later. Results support Holland's congruency hypothesis but not the…

This study examined the effects of the test administrator's attitudes toward Holland's Self-Directed Search, the size of the group taking the instrument, and whether or not monitors were used during the administration on both self-scoring accuracy and satisfaction with results. Only monitoring reduced self-scoring errors, and none affected…

Graduating seniors in the School of Business who were in either accounting, marketing, or behavioral studies and were seeking a career consistent with their area's concentration were compared for their scores on the Self-Directed Search. The accounting group was consistently differentiated from the other group. (Author)

The widely divergent career options suggested to men and women by the Self-Directed Search (SDS) raw scores are noted and misunderstandings concerning the implications of Holland's assessment procedures for his theory are discussed. Holland's defense of raw score reports of personality characteristics is found wanting especially in light of the…