Journal article
The predictive validity of vocational interests for life outcomes across adulthood
Journal of personality and social psychology
06/08/2026
DOI: 10.1037/pspp0000605
PMID: 42258249
Abstract
Vocational interests predict relevant outcomes in individuals' lives, but most evidence comes from youth. It remains unexplored whether interests continue to predict outcomes across mid and late adulthood, and whether their predictive power varies with age. Drawing on life course and motivational lifespan theories, we hypothesized that the relations of interests with life outcomes depend on structural opportunities and constraints that vary across age. We used large-scale, population-representative data (
= 3,596-8,904) to examine whether vocational interests predict work (e.g., income, unemployment, leadership),
(e.g., marriage, divorce), and
(e.g., civic engagement, cultural participation) outcomes assessed 11 years later. Across adulthood (ages 25-67 at interest assessment), interests significantly contributed to all 12 outcomes, demonstrating that interests are predictive of life outcomes after adolescence and young adulthood. Age-moderation analyses using local structural equation modeling and age-group-specific analyses indicated that many interest-outcome links remained stable throughout adulthood but revealed some differentiated patterns consistent with age-graded opportunities and constraints. Specifically, links between interests and work outcomes were often strongest in mid-career and largely remained stable thereafter. For relationship outcomes, the predictive strength of interests peaked in early adulthood and weakened over midlife. For communal outcomes, most age variation in the predictive strength of interests occurred in later adulthood. Overall, results add a lifespan perspective to interest theory and suggest that age can provide a relevant context to realize interests through life choices, which should be considered in theory and practice. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- The predictive validity of vocational interests for life outcomes across adulthood
- Creators
- Lena Roemer - Michigan State UniversityChristopher D Nye - Michigan State UniversityRong Su - University of IowaKevin A Hoff - Michigan State University
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of personality and social psychology
- DOI
- 10.1037/pspp0000605
- PMID
- 42258249
- NLM abbreviation
- J Pers Soc Psychol
- ISSN
- 0022-3514
- eISSN
- 1939-1315
- Publisher
- American Psychological Association
- Grant note
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
- Language
- English
- Electronic publication date
- 06/08/2026
- Academic Unit
- Management and Entrepreneurship
- Record Identifier
- 9985174496402771
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