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Identifying the Variables that Impact the Nontraditional Career Choices of Women

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2016, Doctor of Education (EdD), Ohio University, Educational Administration (Education).
Women continue to be underrepresented in the nontraditional careers. With areas of cosmetology, health sciences, education and child care being the dominate female careers; there is limited female representation in welding, carpentry, plumbing/pipefitting, electrical and other traditional male careers. Due to facing social barriers and developing an understanding of skill measurement among peers by the age of adolescence, individuals will disregard career options that may be viable for the future based on limited exposure and inaccurate facts. In addition, as students become aware of their own interests and abilities career preferences begin to emerge. Choices tend to be toward jobs in which students find accessible and in which there is a familiarity. The process of self-selection and differentiated task-specific beliefs among students occurs as early as elementary school. Researchers have gathered data to bring awareness that gender stereotyping occurs within the elementary setting and students are already self-selecting careers based upon those stereotypes at young ages. By the age of adolescence, the experiences students have had within the school setting, within the home, and through experiences or lack thereof, can already determine the career path for an individual. Due to females being strongly influenced by their setting and the expected gender roles they are to play, understanding the research is critical for the recruitment and retention of women within a nontraditional work setting. Recruitment and early exposure can start at earlier ages by providing job shadowing and mentoring early in the educational life of a child. By researching ways to improve the recruitment and retention of females into nontraditional occupations, tremendous financial opportunities could be available to women who may never have considered the skill sets and talent they have as being viable. This qualitative study uses a series of three interviews with selected participants in order to help identify a shared phenomenon; a phenomenological study. Participants met on three separate occasions to participate in the interview process. All women interviewed live in the southeastern portion of Ohio, are currently working or have worked in a nontraditional career field, and have had to overcome adversity in order to maintain a successful career. Results from the study have identified the importance of mentorships at an early age that range beyond family background knowledge but depend more upon someone who provides opportunity for exposure to a profession in which the female may not have considered.
Charles Lowery, Ed.D (Committee Co-Chair)
Krisanna Machtmes, Ph.D (Committee Co-Chair)
Emmanuel Jean Francois, Ph.D (Committee Member)
Dwan Robinson, Ph.D (Committee Member)
Jason Stoner, Ph.D (Committee Member)
139 p.

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Hall, J. S. (2016). Identifying the Variables that Impact the Nontraditional Career Choices of Women [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou147871185473825

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Hall, Jona. Identifying the Variables that Impact the Nontraditional Career Choices of Women. 2016. Ohio University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou147871185473825.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Hall, Jona. "Identifying the Variables that Impact the Nontraditional Career Choices of Women." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou147871185473825

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)