Gender Variation in Developmental Trajectories of Educational and Occupational Expectations and Attainment From Adolescence to Adulthood

Adolescents' future expectations are a potentially important precursor of adult attainment and may illuminate how males and females vary in schooling and work. Thus, this longitudinal study examined gender variation in developmental trajectories of educational and occupational expectations from...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Developmental psychology 2008-07, Vol.44 (4), p.1069-1080
Main Author: Mello, Zena R
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic Achievement
Academic Aspiration
Achievement
Adolescence
Adolescent
Adolescent Development
Adolescents
Adult
Adult. Elderly
Adulthood
Adults
Aspirations (Psychology)
Biological and medical sciences
Career Choice
Child development
Cognitive development
Developmental psychology
Educational Aspirations
Educational Attainment
Emotions
Employment
Expectation
Expectations
Female
Females
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Gender
Gender Differences
Gender differentiation
Gender Identity
Higher education
Human
Human Sex Differences
Humans
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Males
National Longitudinal Surveys
Occupational Aspiration
Occupational Aspirations
Occupational Status
Occupations
Personality Development
Professional Occupations
Psychological factors
Psychology
Psychology, Adolescent
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Set (Psychology)
Social values
Socialization
Stereotyping
Success
Teenagers
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Summary:Adolescents' future expectations are a potentially important precursor of adult attainment and may illuminate how males and females vary in schooling and work. Thus, this longitudinal study examined gender variation in developmental trajectories of educational and occupational expectations from adolescence to adulthood and in connection to corresponding adult attainment. National data (NELS:88) including individuals aged 14 to 26 and hierarchical linear modeling analyses yielded several findings: Males and females had similar developmental trajectories of educational expectations from adolescence to adulthood with the sample average expecting to attend college. Probabilities of expecting a professional occupation were lower for males than females. Adolescent educational and occupational expectations predicted corresponding attainment in adulthood, although the relationship varied by gender. Males who reported high occupational expectations in adolescence had higher occupational attainment in adulthood compared to males with low occupational expectations, whereas females' adult occupational attainment did not vary by their adolescent occupational expectations. Gender variation in expectations and attainment is discussed in light of historical changes, and future directions of research are proposed.
ISSN:0012-1649
1939-0599
DOI:10.1037/0012-1649.44.4.1069