Matching Personality and Job Types

This refers to the extent to which people successfully match their personalities with their jobs. If there is a perfect relationship between the job and personality, the job satisfaction and production turnover among the employees will be significantly higher. John Holland present six personality types and proposes that the satisfaction and the propensity to leave a job depend on the degree to which people successfully match their personalities with a suitable occupational environment. Holland’s typology of personality is given as below:

Vocational Typology	Personality Characteristics	Congruent Occupations
Realistic	Shy, genuine, persistent, stable, conforming, practical	Mechanic, drill press operator, assembly-line worker, farmer
Investigative	Analytical, original, curious, independent	Biologists, economist, mathematician, news reporter
Social	Sociable, friendly, cooperative, understanding,	Social worker, teacher, counselor, clinical psychologists
Conventional	Conforming, efficient, practical, unimaginative, inflexible	Accountant, corporate manager, bank teller, file clerk
Enterprising	Self-confident, ambitious, energetic, domineering	Lawyer, real estate agent, public relations specialist, small business manager
Artistic	Imaginative, disorderly, idealistic, emotional, impractical	Painter, musician, writer, interior decorator

· Realistic: The type of activities for this category involves physical activities which require skill, strength and coordination. The suitable personality characteristics to meet these activities would be shy, genuine, persistent, stable, conforming, practical etc. The congruent occupations for this category of people are assembly line worker, farmer, mechanic etc.

· Investigative: The type of activities for this category involves thinking, organizing and understanding. The appropriate characteristics to meet these activities would be analytical, original, curious, independent etc. The congruent occupations for this category of people are biologists, economist, mathematician, news reporter.

· Social: The type of activities for this category involves helping and developing others. The relevant personality characteristics to meet these s activities would be sociable, friendly, cooperative, understanding. The congruent occupations for this category of people are social worker, teacher, counselor, clinical psychologists.

· Conventional: The type of activities for this category involves rule-regulated, orderly and unambiguous activities. The appropriate characteristics to these activities would be conforming, efficient, practical, unimaginative, and inflexible. The congruent occupations for this category of people are accountant, corporate manager, and bank teller file clerk.

· Enterprising: The type of activist for this category involves verbal activities specific to influence others and attain power. The suitable personality characteristics to meet these activities would be self confident, ambitious, energetic, and domineering. The congruent occupations for this category of people are lawyer, real estate agent, public relations specialist, small business manager.

· Artistic: The type of activities for this category involves ambiguous and unsystematic activities that allow creative expression. The suitable personality characteristics to meet theses activities would be imaginative, disorderly, idealistic, emotional, and impractical. The congruent occupations are painter, musician, writer, interior decorator etc.

Holland’s model proposes that a realistic person in a realistic jobs is in a more compatible situation than is a realistic person in an investigate job. Sociable person should be in social jobs, conventional people in convention jobs and so forth. Due care must be exercised to ensure a perfect between personality characteristics and the type of jobs offered to the candidates during the selection process. The person-organization fit essentially argues that people leave jobs that are not compatible with their personalities.