Thinking styles and personality types revisited

Abstract

This study was designed to test the efficacy of the Short-Version Self-Directed Search (SVSDS) as well as to further investigate the relationships between thinking styles and personality types. Seven hundred and eighty-nine students (average 20 years) from two research-oriented universities from mainland China responded to the Thinking Styles Inventory and the SVSDS. Two major findings are: (1) the SVSDS is composed of six scales with good internal consistency, each assessing one of Holland's six personality types; factor analysis yielded a two-factor solution, with one factor being characterized by people who like to work with things and data, and the other being dominated by people who like to work with people and ideas; and (2) thinking styles and personality types are related in predictable ways. Implications of these findings for test users, including teachers and counselors, are discussed, © 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.