high levels of social, as opposed to problem-focused, coping skills.
In spite of the limited social skills of the individuals in the groups
(largely IR types), the groups adapted and adjusted to individual
member differences. In the second study (Wampold et al., 1999)
conducted in natural work settings, individuals of Social and Inves-
tigative Holland types demonstrated behavior consistent with the-
oretical predictions.
Relationship Between Congruence and Vocational Outcomes. It
is no surprise that a large number of studies have examined the
degree of fit (interaction) between individuals of different Holland
types and subtypes in different work environments. The research
paradigm that has evolved in this area includes taking a measure of
the individual and a classification of the environment, then cal-
culating congruence or fit between the two, using one of several
indices (Spokane, 1985). Congruence is then related to a variety of
outcome measures. Studies of person-environment congruence in
Holland’s theory are now in their third generation. First-generation
studies used simple first-letter Holland codes largely in educational
environments. Second-generation studies employed more complex
congruence indices, using three or more of the types in the code and
analytic methods employing moderator variables. Third-generation
studies have examined mathematical indices of fit and employed
fluid or adaptive models and presumptions examining changes in
congruence over time.
Three recent and contrasting reviews of research on congruence
(Furnham, 2001; Spokane et al., 2001; Tinsley, 2000) illustrate, with
some clarity, both the shortcomings and the contributions of the
congruence research paradigm in vocational psychology. The first of
these reviews (Tinsley, 2000) offers ten principles on congruence
drawn from reviews of the research literature:
- P-E fit models are ubiquitous in vocational psychology.
- The P-E fit models works.
- Sampling inadequacies have influenced P-E fit results.
396 CAREER CHOICE AND DEVELOPMENT