Die Effekte der Interessendiagnostik mittels Self-Assessments auf die Studienwahl: Eine experimentelle Studie

Vocational interests determine students’ major choices as well as career satisfaction and success. However, many students face difficulties assessing their interests. Self-assessments are being provided to meet this problem: Based on interest questionnaires one’s profile of interests is calculated and suitable majors are suggested. In an experimental pre-post-control group-design with N = 430 high-school students, the present study examines if assessing interests via was-studiere-ich.de (what-may-I-study.de) and EXPLORIX® affects the career decision-making process as compared to a general information session about study opportunities. Repeated-measures ANOVAs indicate that self-assessments significantly increase career decision-making self-efficacy, decidedness, comfort with choices, knowledge about the vocational environment and self-knowledge. Self-knowledge increases more after using self-assessments than after the general information session. We also found that feedback on one’s vocational interests conducted via EXPLORIX® results in more students expressing major aspirations congruent with their interests.