Association between RIASEC Personality Types and Intended Academic Majors among High School Students

Abstract

This study investigates the association between RIASEC personality types and intended academic majors among high school students, addressing the limited studies on personality–major congruence during adolescence. Data were collected using a quantitative design from 100 Grade 10 male students attending an international secondary school in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Respondents completed an RIASEC standardized personality inventory that detailed their intended academic major, and these were divided into STEM, business, social sciences, humanities, arts, and health sciences. We used descriptive statistics to assess the frequency of dominant RIASEC personality types, and employed cross-tabulations and chi-square test of independence to examine the correlation between RIASEC personality type and intended academic major. Investigative and Social personality types appeared in the sample the most among individuals. Descriptive patterns indicated that there was an alignment between Investigative traits with academic fields, especially Humanities and STEM-oriented majors, and about social traits with Health Sciences. But the chi-square analysis showed no significant relationship between the dominant RIASEC personality type and planned course of study. These results imply that personality characteristics alone may not be sufficient to predict academic intentions during early adolescence. The findings emphasise how personality-based assessments should be combined with contextual and developmental factors in guidance practice and suggest that longitudinal and culturally diverse samples should be used for future study.