Links between gendered leisure time in childhood and adolescence and gendered occupational aspirations

Bora Lee, Olivenne D. Skinner, Susan M. McHale

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

8 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The world of work remains gender-segregated, and research is needed to identify factors that may give rise to women's and men's vocational choices. This study explored bidirectional relations between youth's gendered career aspirations and the proportions of youth's leisure time spent in stereotypically gendered activities and gendered social contexts. Participants were 203 youth (52% girls) from predominantly white, working and middle class families living in the US, who reported on their occupational aspirations and gendered interests in home interviews and on their daily activities in a series of 7 nightly phone interviews on two occasions, in middle childhood (Mage = 10.9) and in adolescence (Mage = 17.3). Path models revealed that aspirations predicted youth's time use more so than the reverse. Time in gendered social contexts, specifically time in female-only contexts, but not time in gender-typed activities, predicted career aspirations. Implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)96-107
Number of pages12
JournalJournal of Adolescence
Volume62
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2018 Jan

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This study was funded by a grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development ( R01-HD32336 ) to Susan M. McHale and Ann C. Crouter, Co-Principal Investigators. The authors are grateful to the undergraduate and graduate assistants, staff, and faculty collaborators for their help in conducting this study, as well as the participating families for their time and insights about family relationships. This research was also supported by the College of Education, Korea University Grant in 2015 granted to Bora Lee. Portions of this paper was presented at the 2016 biennial meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents

Keywords

  • Adolescence
  • Gender
  • Leisure time use
  • Longitudinal
  • Middle childhood
  • Occupational aspirations

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Developmental and Educational Psychology
  • Psychiatry and Mental health

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