The profession of rehabilitation counseling has undergone extensive empirical study. Absent from this research has been a theoretical basis for describing and understanding the profession and its associated work environment. The focus of this study was to further our understanding of the nature of the rehabilitation counselor’s work environment and the person— environment congruence through the framework of Holland’s career theory and the Position Classification Inventory (PCI). Data concerning the work environment of 366 rehabilitation counselors were collected using a Web adaptation of the PCI to empirically establish the Holland code for the prototypical rehabilitation counselor work environment and examine its congruence with the prototypical Strong Interest Inventory interest patterns.
Birnbaum, M.H. ( 2004). Human research and data collection via the Internet. Annual Review of Psychology, 55, 803-832.
2.
Chan, F., Leahy, M.J., Saunders, J.L., Tarvydas, V.M., Ferrin, J.M., & Lee, G. ( 2003). Training needs of certified rehabilitation counselors for contemporary practice. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin , 46, 82-91.
3.
Chartrand, J., & Walsh, W.B. ( 1999). What should we expect from congruence? Journal of Vocational Behavior, 55, 136-146.
4.
Donnay, D.A., Morris, M.L., Schaubhut, N.A., & Thompson, R.C. (2004). Strong Interest Inventory manual: Research, development and strategies for interpretation. Palo Alto, CA: Counseling Psychology Press.
5.
Elton, C., & Smart, J. ( 1988). Extrinsic job satisfaction and person- environment congruence . Journal of Vocational Behavior, 32, 226-238.
6.
Fritzsche, B.A., Powell, A.B., & Hoffman, R. ( 1999). Person- environment congruence as a predictor of customer service behavior. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 54, 59-70.
7.
Gottfredson, G.D., & Holland, J.L. ( 1991). Professional manual for the Position Classification Inventory . Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
8.
Gottfredson, G.D., & Holland, J.L. ( 1996). Dictionary of Holland occupational codes. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
9.
Gottfredson, L.S., & Richards, J.M. (1999). The meaning and measurement of environments in Holland’s theory. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 55, 57-73.
10.
Heppner, P.P., Kivlinghan, D.M., & Wampold, B.E. ( 1992). Research design in counseling. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/ Cole.
11.
Hesketh, B., & Gardner, D. ( 1993). Person-environment fit models: A reconceptualization and empirical test. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 42, 315-332.
12.
Holland, J.L. ( 1985). Making vocational choices: A theory of vocational personalities and work environments (2nd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
13.
Holland, J.L. ( 1987). Some speculation about the investigation of person-environment transactions. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 31, 337-340.
14.
Holland, J.L. ( 1992). Making vocational choices: A theory of vocational personalities and work environments (2nd ed.). Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
15.
Holland, J.L. ( 1997). Making vocational choices: A theory of vocational personalities and work environments (3rd ed.). Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
16.
Holland, J.L., Powell, A.B., & Fritzsche, B.A. (1994). The Self-Directed Search (SDS) professional user’s guide. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
17.
Iachan, R. ( 1984a). A family of differentiation indices. Psychometrika, 49, 217-222.
18.
Iachan, R. ( 1984b). A measure of agreement for use with the Holland classification system. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 24(2), 133-141.
19.
Leahy, M.J. ( 2009). Rehabilitation counseling credentialing: Research, practice, and the future of the profession. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 52, 67-68.
20.
Leierer, S.J., Blackwell, T.L., Strohmer, D.C., Thompson, R.C., & Donnay, D. ( 2008). The newly revised Strong Interest Inventory: A profile interpretation for rehabilitation counselors. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 51, 76-84.
21.
Leierer, S.J., Strohmer, D.C., Blackwell, T.L., Thompson, R.C., & Donnay, D.A.C. (2008). The Rehabilitation Counselor Scale: A new scale for the Strong Interest Inventory. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 51, 68-75.
22.
Lewin, K. ( 1936). Principles of topological psychology. New York: Century.
23.
Lustig, D.C., & Strauser, D.R. (2008). The relationship between degree type, certification status, and years of employment on rehabilitation counseling tasks in state-federal vocational rehabilitation. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 52, 28-34.
24.
Lustig, D.C., & Strauser, D.R. (2009). Rehabilitation counseling graduate students’ preferences for employment: Agreement between actual and perceived job tasks of state-federal vocational rehabilitation counselors . Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 52, 179-188.
Miller, M.J., & Bass, C. ( 2003). Application of Holland’s theory to a nonprofessional occupation. Journal of Employment Counseling, 40(1), 17-23.
27.
Miller, M.J., O’Rear, T., Cowger, E.L., & Livingston, M. (2005). Describing a university occupation using the position classification inventory: An extension of Holland’s theory. College Student Journal, 39(1), 85-89.
28.
Miller, M.J., Scaggs, W.J., & Wells, D. ( 2006). The relevancy of Holland’s theory to a nonprofessional occupation. Journal of Employment Counseling, 43(2), 62-70.
29.
Mitus, J. ( 2006). Organizational socialization from a content perspective and its effect on the affective commitment of newly hired rehabilitation counselors . Journal of Rehabilitation, 72(2), 12-20.
30.
Murray, H. ( 1938). Explorations in personality. New York : Oxford University Press.
31.
Muthard, J.E., & Salomone, P.R. (1969). The roles and functions of rehabilitation counselors. Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin , 13, 81-165.
32.
Osipow, S.H. ( 1987). Applying person-environment theory to vocational behavior . Journal of Vocational Behavior, 31, 333-336.
33.
Patterson, C.H. ( 1968). Rehabilitation counseling: A profession or a trade? Personnel and Guidance Journal, 46, 567-571.
34.
Pervin, L.A. ( 1992). Traversing the individual environment landscape: A personal odyssey. In W. B. Walsh, K. H. Craik, & R. H. Price (Eds.), Person-environment psychology: Models and perspectives (pp. 71-88). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum .
35.
Rubin, S.E. ( 1984). Roles and functions of certified rehabilitation counselors . Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 27, 199-245.
36.
Schonlau, M., Fricker, R.D., & Elliott, M.N. ( 2002). Conducting survey research surveys via e-mail and the Web. Santa Monica, CA: RAND.
37.
Sheehan, K. ( 2001). E-mail survey response rates: A review. Journal of Computer Mediated Communication, 6(2). Retrieved July 17, 2001, from http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol6/issue2/sheehan.html
38.
Smart, J. ( 1985). Holland environments as reinforcement systems. Research in Higher Education, 23(3), 279-292.
39.
Smart, J. ( 1997). Academic sub-environments and differential patterns of self-perceived growth during college: A test of Holland’s theory. Journal of College Student Development, 38(1), 68-78.
40.
Smart, J., Elton, C., & McLaughlin, G. (1986). Person-environment congruence and job satisfaction. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 29, 216-225.
41.
Smart, J.C., Feldman, K.A., & Ethington, C.A. (2000). Academic disciplines: Holland’s theory and the study of college students and faculty. Nashville: Vanderbilt University Press.
42.
Strong, E.K. ( 1927). Vocational guidance of executives. Journal of Applied Psychology, 6, 331-347.
43.
Survey Monkey. (2008). Smart survey design. Retrieved August 25, 2008, from http://s3.amazonaws.com/SurveyMonkeyFiles/SmartSurvey.pdf
44.
Tourangeau, R. ( 2004). Survey research and societal change. Annual Review of Psychology, 55, 775-801.
45.
Welker, M. ( 2001). E-mail surveys: Non-response figures reflected. In U.-D. Reips & M. Bosnjak (Eds.), Dimensions of Internet science (pp. 231-237). Lengerich: Pabst.
