CONSTRUCT VALIDITY OF RAW SCORE AND STANDARD SCORE REPORTS OF VOCATIONAL INTERESTS

Abstract

In a recent article in this journal, Prediger and Hanson (1977) noted that raw score reports of vocational interests are becoming increasingly popular. Several widely used measures of basic interests are scored by simply tallying likes and dislikes for various activities; the resulting raw scores for each interest area (e.g., mechanical, artistic, enterprising) are treated as if they register amount of interest on a common score scale. Thus, equivalent raw scores for two interest areas are treated as if they indicate equivalent amounts of interest. Comparisons of a person's raw scores across interest areas are used to identify the person's strongest interests and to recommend occupational fields or specific occupations for consderation. In addition to the obvious psychometric questions raised by this use of raw scores, the social consequences also warrant consideration.