| Abstract: | Using large samples of college students, this study compares the forecasting value of a student's initial report of his vocational choice with the Vocational Preference Inventory. Student vocational choices were categorized according to a 6-category classification scheme for men and an 8-category scheme for women. The relationships between initial and final vocational choices, and between VPI high-point codes and final vocational choices over 8- and 12-month intervals, were examined. The results indicate that the predictive efficiency of a student's expressed choice is about twice that of the Vocational Preference Inventory. The results suggest that researchers and counselors should make greater use of a person's expressed choices and that interest inventories should be used with more discrimination. Implications for future research and practice are discussed. |
