OCCUPATIONAL CHOICE AS A MODERATOR OF PSYCHOTHERAPEUTIC APPROACH

This article examines the importance of occupational choice as a variable to guide the practice of psychotherapy. It demonstrates the potential uses of a patient's occupational choice as an unobtrusive measure of personality, defensive orientation, amenability to therapy, and responsiveness to differing types of psychotherapy. Using Holland's well-validated "occupational personality" typology, which includes six major occupational types (Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional), the article reviews and extends the theory by elaborating its implications for psychotherapy.