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The relationship between vocational interests and multiple intelligences among Singapore secondary students.
Author
Yap, Joanne Lay Lat
Supervisor
Tan, Soo Yin
Abstract
This study aims to examine the relationship between vocational interests and multiple intelligences among Singapore secondary school students. A total of 132 secondary four students from different educational streams agreed to participate in this study. The participants completed a demographic factors questionnaire and two self-administered instruments. The first one was the online self-administered Multiple Intelligences Developmental Assessment Scales (MIDAS). The MIDAS has 119 items to generate a MIDAS profile in the eight constructs of intelligences: the Musical, Bodily-kinesthetic, Logical-mathematics, Spatial, Linguistic, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, and Naturalist intelligences. The other was a paper/pen administered Self-Assessment of Interests Activity instrument. This has 108 items that explore vocational interest in the six categories of Holland’s RIASEC model of Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. The data collected were analysed using the IBM Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 19.0 (SPSS v. 19.0). The Independent T-Test and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to compare multiple intelligences and vocational interests between groups of educational steams and gender. Pearson’s correlation was used to analyse the correlations between vocational interests and multiple intelligences. Results of the study showed that by gender, there were significant differences in the Realistic vocational interest with high score in the males, and Artistic vocational interests with high score in the females; by course of study there were significant differences with high scores in Investigative, and Enterprising vocational interests in the express course, and Artistic vocational interest in the normal course. As for intelligences by gender there were significant differences, with high scores in females for Musical intelligence, and high score for Intrapersonal intelligence in the males. There were no differences in multiple intelligences of students in the three different courses of study. Correlation between vocational interests and multiple intelligences were significant but not very highly correlated. The findings of this study suggest that counsellors may utilise students’ vocational interests and multiple intelligences profiles in career counselling. This study could be replicated with larger samples of students, and courses including the special courses of study from other MOE school clusters.
Date Issued
2012
Call Number
HF5382.5.S55 Yap
Date Submitted
2012