Holland's Theory and Implications for Academic Advising and Career Counseling

Abstract

John Holland's typological theory of persons and environments is regarded as the most influential in the field of career counseling (Brown, 2002), but few have carried the theory over to the field of higher education and academic advising (Smart, Feldman, & Ethington, 2000). Therefore, Holland's theory and the subsequent research on it were explored to determine if the theory would be an appropriate means of understanding the behavior and organization of college faculty members and students. A practical approach for integrating a Holland-based system of academic advising and career counseling is discussed.