Career patterns and career satisfaction of women and men in Poland in years 1990-2010

ABSTRACT

This study aims to identify the career patterns of Polish women (345) and men (305) and to compare their professional and life satisfaction. Career events serve as a basis for identifying three career dimensions: stability, vertical mobility and continuity. Cluster analysis revealed three female and three male career patterns. The most frequently pursued career for women and men is a conventional pattern. Women` careers is characterized by less continuity, mobility, and stability than men's. The results show that the schema of the traditional social role is more often revealed regardless of gender, while the non-traditional schema of social role is revealed in mobile careers of women. Women pursuing discontinuous careers, and men pursuing unstable careers are significantly less satisfied with career than people with a mobile career. Women are the most satisfied with a career typical of traditional male career, which includes no brake in career, job stability and promotions. Men's satisfaction with life depends on their career while women are satisfied regardless of the career pattern.

KEYWORDS:

• Career pattern
• satisfaction
• women
• men
• Poland

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, [EK], upon reasonable request.

Ethics statement

The author of this article confirms that review and approval of the study were not required by any ethics committee according to the local and national guidelines and that written informed consent was obtained from all the participants. Further, participation in the survey was voluntary, and the participants were assured of both anonymity and confidentiality. The author respects the codes and practices and ethics in research, particularly the Declaration of Helsinki.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Science Research Committee of the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education under Grant KBN nr. NN106 275539.

Notes on contributors

Elżbieta Katarzyna Kasprzak

Elżbieta Katarzyna Kasprzak is Professor of psychology at the Kazimierz Wielki University in Bydgoszcz, Poland. Researcher of the determinants of careers and their consequences for the well-being of employees. An important area of her scientific interests are various aspects of positive functioning at work, job satisfaction, hope and passion at work, as well as the conditions and effects of job crafting and proactivity at work. She is the author of two books The quality of life employees pursuing different career patterns. (Polish, Kazimierz Wielki University Press, 2013) and The forge of optimism, psychological workshops for the unemloyed (Polish, Barcin,SAMPO Press, 2007). For 8 years she has been the member of the international research team Hope Barometer. She teaches courses in master`s study in work and organizational psychology, positive psychology, emotions, motivation and MA seminar.