Psychometric Test-Reflection Paper

Student’s name

Institutional affiliation

I took the Holland Code Test that is also known as the RIASEC test. It is a more interactive version of the IIP RIASEC Markers test. Developed by John L. Holland starting in the 1950s, the theory groups individuals according to their suitability into six specific occupational categories. The RIASEC Markers were developed by Liao Armstrong and Rounds as an alternative to usual assessments for use in psychological research.

Completing this task was an exciting and enjoyable experience for me. I looked forward to reading the next question as I liked the experience because it was different from the usual class assignments. The test consisted of 48 tasks which I had to finish by rating how much I liked or disked performing the task on a scale of (1) to (5) where (1) was dislike and (5) enjoy. It took me about five minutes to finish the test. I was disappointed when the test was over because I liked the concept behind the test. It was like a game but at the same time educational to me. I do not mind taking similar tests in the future.

When it comes to the interpretation of the results, I agree with them to some extent but disagree on other aspects. My scores for the RIASEC Markers were as follows Realistic (5), Investigative (11), Artistic (27), Social (21), Enterprising (24), and Convectional (12). According to the results of people that have taken this test in the past, majority are biased from C and R and are biased towards S. As for me, the Artistic occupational marker had the highest score of 27. I would interpret these results as painting me to be a rather creative individual. This means that I would be best suited to work in occupations such as web designer, photographer, editor, and graphic design. I agree with this assertion to a great extent because I have always had a creative mind since I was a child. I always found myself drawing beautiful art, and attending fashion events. For some reason I have always been drawn to the art side of life. Growing up I interacted with and had many artistic friends. As a grown up, I still support their works. I buy their art at every chance I get and attend their events too. In essence, I would fit perfectly in the world of advertising.

The assessment can be used in career counseling as it can be used to assess the occupational marker where one has the most potential. By taking this test, one gets assessed and ranked into six interest areas including realistic, investigative, artistic, social, convectional and enterprising. A career counselor can employ this test to advice an individual on the best route to take as far as career is concerned. This is because a counselor is best placed to view the results of this test and advice a person on the areas where they thrive and where they perform poorly. This will help the individual avoid wasting time pursuing careers that might not be a good fit for them. If well analyzed, the Holland Tests assessment can be employed in vocational and career counseling in decision making.

In completing this exercise, the ethical dilemma involved had mostly to do with answering the 48 questions whose score is used to develop the six markers. In some cases, answering the questions without bias was difficult. In some cases, I was torn in between two answers as all answers were close in meaning to one another. In essence, determining the extent to which I disliked or enjoyed carrying out an exercise was difficult.