Bruce and Jane Walsh Grant in Memory of John Holland

The Bruce and Jane Walsh Grant in Memory of John Holland supports scientific, scholarly, or applied research and/or educational activities investigating how personality, culture, and environment influence work behavior and health (mental and physical).

Preference will be given to early career psychologists no more than 10 years postdoctoral, and pilot projects that, if successful, would be strong candidates for support from major federal and foundation funding agencies, and “demonstration projects” that promise to generalize broadly to similar settings in other geographical areas and/or to other settings.

John Holland was a renowned vocational and personality psychologist, and a pioneer in the field of vocational psychology. Holland’s Theory of Vocational Choice inspired the creation of the Holland Codes (otherwise known as Holland Occupational Themes, or RIASEC), which refer to the idea that careers and vocational choice can be based upon personality types. Each letter or code stands for a particular “type”: Realistic (doers), Investigative (thinkers), Artistic (creators), Social (helpers), Enterprising (persuaders), and Conventional (organizers). Holland’s research provided a better understanding of the interaction between personality and work environment, and why our personalities may flourish in particular environments. In his honor, Bruce and Mrs. Jane Walsh have funded this grant, which has generously supported graduate students and early career psychologists who investigate how personality, culture and environment influence work-related behavior and health.