Career Orientation and Re-Entry Women: Intrapersonal Issues

Introduction and Article Overview

Authors: Saleena, M. and Mavoothu, D.
Year of publication: 2015
Volume, Issue, Pages: 9(3), 38–52
Title of journal: Global Management Review
Article title: "Effects of Career Orientation on Intrapersonal Issues of Re-Entry Women and Their Career Penalty"

Key Issues from the Literature Review

The following three key concepts from the literature review informed the current paper and its research questions.

Intrapersonal re-entry issues are generally understood as deficiencies or shortcomings that exist within women who are returning to the workforce. This concept influenced the paper and its research questions because the study attempts to examine the link between career penalty and the intrapersonal challenges of re-entry. Specifically, factors such as stress, loss of self-esteem, guilt, and conflict are considered important intrapersonal issues experienced by women re-entering the workforce (Kok and Van der Westhuizen, 2003).

Women who take a break from their careers often face declining mobility in both wages and professional status, contributing to reduced earnings growth. Many employers hold biased views toward married women or mothers, perceiving them as less committed to their work or organizations. Career breaks frequently result in wage reductions and diminished promotion prospects for returning women (Staff and Mortimer, 2012). This concept influences the research study because it forms the core objective of measuring the extent to which the career penalty experienced by women executives affects them as they re-enter the labor force following a career break.

Career orientation refers to an individual's work preferences and choices, and the way in which a person aligns themselves within their career over the course of their life. It is important to note that many people develop a pattern of occupational preferences based not only on their interests and values, but also on how they wish to work (Aisenbrey et al., 2009). According to the literature, there is considered to be a strong relationship between career orientation and the career penalty imposed on returning women. The study outlines the role that career alignment plays in the relationship between intrapersonal issues and the career penalty faced by women returning to the workforce (Judge and Livingston, 2008; Gangl and Ziefle, 2009).

Participation in the study was voluntary. Data were collected through surveys and questionnaires. The survey was designed to gather information about participants' intrapersonal re-entry concerns. The questionnaire covered career orientation, perceived career penalty, and intrapersonal re-entry issues. To prevent bias, the intrapersonal re-entry measure was administered at the beginning of the questionnaire, before participants responded to other measures.

The study employed statistical techniques including correlation and regression analysis to assess the significance of relationships between independent and dependent variables. For example, a linear regression was conducted to determine the strength of the relationship between career orientation and perceived career penalty. Additionally, structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine the fit of the proposed model and to assess the impact of the mediating variable.

Data Collection and Analysis Methods

The study included seventy-five professionally qualified women who had experienced a career break and subsequently re-entered the workforce in the Indian state of Kerala. All participating women were married. Thirty-nine were employed in the education sector, fifteen in the IT industry, seven in finance, and the remaining fourteen in the healthcare and manufacturing industries.

Regarding the duration of career breaks, 41 women (55% of the sample) had taken a break of one to two years, 23 women (31%) had taken a break of three to five years, and 8 women (approximately 11%) had taken a break of less than one year. In terms of age distribution, over 51% of participants were between 26 and 30 years old, 31% were between 31 and 35 years old, and approximately 19% were between 36 and 45 years old (Saleena and Mavoothu, 2015).

1. A significant relationship exists between intrapersonal re-entry issues and perceived career penalty. This finding addresses a previously unexamined connection between intrapersonal career re-entry problems and career penalty. It confirms that the magnitude of career penalty is meaningfully influenced by the intrapersonal re-entry issues experienced by women returning from career breaks. The result indicates that more than a fifth of the career penalty can be accounted for by these intrapersonal re-entry challenges.