Campbell Interest and Skill Survey

CISS

David Campbell, PhD

The Campbell™ Interest and Skill Survey (CISS®) measures self-reported vocational interests and skills. Similar to traditional interest inventories, the CISS interest scales reflect an individual's attraction for specific occupational areas. Guidance on using this test in your telepractice.

Publication date: 1992

Age range: 15 and up

Reading level: 6th grade

Qualification level: B Additional information

Completion time: 25 minutes (200 interest and 120 skill items, 6-point response scale)

Administration: Q-global or paper-and-pencil

Scoring options: Q-global, Q Local, internet or mail-in scoring

Report options: Profile

Norms: 5,225 working adults

Other languages: Spanish

Telepractice: Guidance on using this test in your telepractice

The CISS instrument focuses on careers that require post-secondary education and is most appropriate for use with individuals who are college bound or college educated.

Benefits

Explore new avenues in career development.
Pinpoint areas of academic study that can build skills and, as a result, increase career options.
Support personal counseling by identifying occupations or vocations that help meet the individual's needs.
Advise displaced and transitioning employees in outplacement programs.

Features

Seven Orientation Scales and 29 Basic Scales are based on Dr. Campbell's model for occupational orientations. These orientations generally correspond to the familiar RIASEC themes.

Both traditional interest scales and parallel skill scales help individuals gain a more thorough understanding of suitable career options.
Uses easily understood, contemporary items.
Test items reflect a respect for individuals of different gender, race, religion, and national origin.
Combined gender scales allow for the broadest interpretation of survey results.
Standardized using a reference sample of 5,225 employed men and women representing a wide array of occupations and ethnic backgrounds.

Orientation Scales

Influencing

Organizing

Helping

Creating

Analyzing

Producing

Adventuring

Basic Scales

Leadership, Law/Politics, Public Speaking, Sales, Advertising/Marketing

Supervision, Financial Services, Office Practices

Adult Development, Counseling, Child Development, Religious Activities, Medical Practice

Art/Design, Performing Arts, Writing, International Activities, Fashion, Culinary Art

Mathematics, Science

Mechanical Crafts, Woodworking, Farming/Forestry, Plants/Gardens, Animal Care

Athletics/Physical Fitness, Military/Law Enforcement, Risks/Adventure

Sample Reports

Individual profile reports present results numerically and graphically, and include narrative comments to facilitate easy interpretation by the respondent.

Frequently asked questions follow. Click on a question to see the response.

Campbell Interest and Skill Survey

What is the value of the skills component of the CISS assessment?

When making career decisions, people generally weigh several factors, including interests and skills. Self-report skills reflect a level of confidence in the ability to do various activities. Estimates of skill level are typically based on experiences doing similar tasks and learning new things. The basis for the development of the CISS assessment is the belief that interests and skills are closely intertwined. In general, people tend to enjoy things they do well; likewise, they tend to perform well in areas they find interesting.

How does the new Campbell model and its seven orientations relate to the RIASEC model?

The CISS orientations and the RIASEC themes correspond as follows:

RIASEC	Campbell
Realistic	Producing AND Adventuring
Investigative	Analyzing
Artistic	Creating
Social	Helping
Enterprising	Influencing
Conventional	Organizing

Although many of the CISS orientations have a reasonably close resemblance to their Holland (RIASEC) counterparts, there are some differences. Specifically, the CISS Influencing orientation reflects leadership activities, whereas Holland's RIASEC Enterprising theme tends to reflect sales and public relations activities. The CISS Organizing orientation tends to reflect management and financial service activities, whereas Holland's RIASEC Conventional theme reflects activities related to office and clerical work. The biggest difference is with the Holland Realistic theme. Within the CISS assessment, this theme is represented by the Producing orientation, which reflects mechanical, construction, and farming activities, and the Adventuring orientation, which reflects military, police, and athletic activities.

Can I use the CISS assessment effectively with individuals whose work-related experiences are limited?

Because no one has actually performed all of the activities listed in the CISS assessment, all respondents are, in a sense, extrapolating beyond the data. They are estimating their probable level of skill, given sufficient training and opportunity to learn. Younger respondents are also capable of making these estimates, provided they have a basic knowledge of the world of work.

Respondents, regardless of age or work experience, should be encouraged to identify overall themes in their scores rather than putting undue emphasis on the point values of single scores. Underlying themes are more stable and provide a solid base for respondents to extrapolate beyond the data provided by the CISS assessment.

How should flat or deflated profiles be interpreted?

Flat or deflated profiles often present the greatest challenge to career counselors. The absence of clear preferences or aversions yields little information about interest. Some initial clues for interpretation may be found in the Procedural Checks section on page 11 of the respondent's profile, especially in the Response Percentage Checks sections for interest and skill items. Comparing the respondent's patterns with the average patterns of the norming sample (Figure 3-1 in the CISS manual) will highlight any differences.

With this general information and some knowledge of the respondent's personality and motivation, the tester may wish to ask the respondent about his or her test-taking strategy:

"When you answered the CISS items, did you use any particular test-taking strategy?"
"How did you decide how to answer the questions?"
"What were your criteria?"

If it seems clear that the respondent misunderstood the directions or used a distorted or highly idiosyncratic approach, you may either readminister the survey or use the results on a very tentative basis only.

Please call 800.627.7271 to order or for a Free Trial! You cannot order this product online.

CISS Internet Vouchers Pricing

1-4 administrations: $16.75 per administration
5-49 administrations: $12.75 per administration
50-99 administrations: $12.25 per administration
100-249 administration: $11.75 per administration
250-999 administrations: $11.50 per administration

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Campbell Interest and Skill Survey

Benefits

Features

Orientation Scales

Basic Scales

Sample Reports

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Campbell Interest and Skill Survey

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