Mastery and the Fulfillment of Occupational Expectations by Midlife

Abstract

We cannot escape the fact that many people who have had excellent developmental opportunity are caught, perhaps chiefly because of the culture, in circumstances in which there are exceedingly restricted opportunities for further growth. " -Harry Stack Sullivan, 1953 F or more than 70 years, psychiatrists and social psychologists have grappled with the interplay between personality and the environment; social contexts may enrich or hinder human development, while at the same time individuals' personal dispositions affect how they perceive opportunities, cultivate relationships, and navigate institutional environments. More recently, life-course scholars have contributed to this effort through longterm studies that span childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, midlife, and old age. One of the central aims of the life-course perspective is to examine the significance of personality traits and human agency within the context of historically dynamic structural constraints and opportunities (Clausen 1991;Elder 1994;Hogan and Astone 1986). As summarized by Glen Elder and his colleagues, "Children, adolescents, and adults are not passively acted

Lifelong career mobility and change options in knowledge occupations: career pathway implications of initial degree choices

“…This claim is in keeping with other findings (Mallon & Cohen, 2001;Reynolds et al, 2007) of a perceived bias favouring males, referred to by Mallon as "the gendered processes in organisations" (2001, p. 228). Such a perception could perhaps mitigate against the enthusiasm of women for adding a business qualification for promotion into management.…”

“…However, in the case of Keith described above, career outcomes for a male were compromised by parenthood. This example partly demonstrates the findings of Reynolds et al (2007) that marriage, and in this case parenthood, lowers the odds of achieving occupational expectations. However, they note that the effect is particularly potent for women.…”

“…Generally, marriage and parenthood have a negative effect on the attainment of occupational goals for both genders but the effect is much more pronounced for females (Reynolds et al, 2007). The potentially intermittent nature of women's availability for employment indicates an incompatibility with the traditional model of career.…”

“…The introduction of equal employment legislation in many countries has unfortunately not remedied the disadvantages women face in the labour market and the world of work (Bimrose & Mulvey, 2015;McMahon, 2015). For example, within large organisations, male MBA graduates attain higher levels of employment and of remuneration than females with equivalent MBA qualifications (Mallon & Cohen, 2001;Reynolds, Burge, Robbins, Boyd, & Harris, 2007;Still & Souter, 2005). Further in the USA high-achieving women in STEM majors tend to receive lower returns than equivalent males (Olitsky, 2014).…”

“…Though Chudzikowski (2012) described business alumni as "one of the most privileged group of graduates characterised by a high level of employability" (p. 304), others have questioned the relative advantage of an additional qualification in business, especially for females (Mallon & Cohen, 2001;Reynolds et al, 2007;Still & Souter, 2005) or at mature age (Pitcher & Purcell, 1998). Thus business has been a popular and successful second study choice, but some questions about been raised about the advantages of adding a qualification in business, particularly for females.…”