Running head: ASSESSMENT OF THE STRONG INTEREST INVENTORY

Assessment of the Strong Interest Inventory Gregory Goodwin Argosy University, Atlanta Campus

AN ASSESSMENT OF THE STRONG INTEREST INVENTORY

Assessment of the Strong Interest Inventory The Strong Interest Inventory (SVIB-SCII) compares a persons interests with the interest of people happily employed in a wide variety of occupations. It is a measure of interests, not of aptitude or intelligence. (Strong, Campbell, & Hansen) Its purpose is to: generate an in-depth assessment of 'interests among a broad range of occupations, work and leisure activities, and educational subjects'... 'to help individuals match their interests with occupational, educational, and leisure pursuits that are compatible with those interests.' (Donnay, et al.) The assessment was developed by Edward K. Strong Jr.. It was first published in 1927 as the Strong Vocational Interest Bank. The latest version being the Strong/Campbell Interest Inventory (shortened Strong Interest Inventory). This instrument is a measure of interest as compared to aptitude or intelligence, the measures compared against are measures of people who are happily employed in many different occupations. (Donnay, et al.) In the case study, we are reviewing the Strong Interest Inventory Profile for Jane Sample, a female of undetermined age. Janes analysis shows her as having interests in fields that will highlight her Artistic, Investigative, and Social themes. These results are supported by the largely differentiated difference between her highest scoring theme (Artistic-71) and her second (and third) highest interest levels, over 1 standard deviation difference in this analysis. Also of importance is the breakdown of her response summary. Her responses largely split between Strongly Dislike and Strongly Like (28 and 29%) supports her selections showing extremes of preference.

AN ASSESSMENT OF THE STRONG INTEREST INVENTORY

The author believes that at his stage in his career development, it would be unnecessary to take the instrument as experience and self-analysis should allow categorization based simply on the descriptions of the themes provided. The Interests and Occupations discussions would be useful from a Career Counseling perspective by providing touching points for moving through an interview process. It would be most useful as a jumping off point to work with a client to find career fields that may spark passion. The application of career field possibilities would be a very useful tool for a Career Counselor. This instrument appears to have been designed to be used in a wide variety of cultural environments. As translations availability was not readily available, it is possible that language barriers may have some impact in the clinical or career counseling environment.

AN ASSESSMENT OF THE STRONG INTEREST INVENTORY

References

Donnay, D. A. C., Morris, M. L., Schaubhut, N. A., Thompson, R. C., Grutter, J., & Hammer, A. L. Strong Interest Inventory(r) [Newly Revised]: CPP, Inc., 1055 Joaquin Road 2nd Floor, Mountain View, CA 94043; Telephone: 800-624-1765; FAX: 650-969-8608; Email: custserve@cpp.com; Web: www.cpp.com. Strong, E. K. J., Campbell, D. P., & Hansen, J.-I. C. Strong Interest Inventory [Fourth Edition]: CPP, Inc., 1055 Joaquin Road 2nd Floor, Mountain View, CA 94043; Telephone: 800624-1765; FAX: 650-969-8608; E-mail: custserve@cpp.com; Web: www.cpp.com.