Sociological Theory

Theorists paying attention to the impact of the social environment on career choice are classified as using a sociological approach, indicating they feel societal circumstances beyond the control of the individual contribute significantly to career choice and the individual’s task is to develop strategies allowing them to cope effectively with this environment (Osipow, 1983). Prior to 1967, sociological theory was concerned primarily with how the social status of one’s parents affected the level of schooling one achieved which in turn affected the occupational level one achieved, i.e., intergenerational mobility, and was primarily confined to imprecise verbal statements and rough classification of occupations into broad socio-economic groups, such as blue and white-collar workers.

Status attainment. Research by Blau and Duncan (1967) marked a shift into a more formal model of occupational or status attainment with the development of the Socioeconomic Index (SEI), a graded scale used to indicate the level of occupational status both desired by the young adult and the occupational status held by the parents. Blau and Duncan’s work, closely followed by Sewell, Haller and Portes (1969), Sewell, Haller, and Ohlendorf (1970), expanded of the intergenerational mobility theory to include intervening social-psychological processes, such as educational and occupational aspirations of the individual, parental and teacher encouragement of the individual for further educational attainment, and the individual’s peers’ plans for further educational attainment, along with parental status and parental years of schooling. Named the Wisconsin model, this model also included academic performance and standardized test scores as measures of ability.

The Wisconsin model of status attainment has generated large amounts of research by Gottfredson and Becker (1981), Otto and Haller (1979), Hauser, Tsai, and Sewell (1983), Jencks, Crouse, and Meuser (1983), Sewell and Hauser (1975),and Treiman and Terrell (1975) drawing further conclusions that variables such as race, parents’ occupation, gender, marital status, family income, place of residence, and family status, i.e., two-parent or single parent household, interact with other significant variables affecting opportunities with regard to training or further education. While this additional research has refined the status attainment model, Hotchkiss and Borow (1990) felt no empirical study had challenged the basic results of the Wisconsin model. But, critics have been quick to argue, the model is still incomplete with lack of attention paid to rules of access to jobs, salary schedules, job security, and performance standards (Hotchkiss & Borow).

Economic theory attainment. Developed as a reaction to the status attainment model, the economic theory of schooling and competitive markets (Hotchkiss & Borow, 1990; 1996) hypothesized that many elements within the structure of work influence individuals’ sense of well-being in their work, such as whether one is a worker or a manager; individual chances for advancement; earning potential; job security; and possible discrimination. Economic theory is composed of human capital theory which purports that individuals make investments, i.e., amount and type of schooling, career choice, in their productive abilities intended to maximize their lifetime earning potential. The second part of economic theory is that of competitive markets based on the assumption that wages adjust to supply and demand within the labor market. Thus, employers are willing to employ more people when wages are low than when wages are high and conversely, fewer people when wages are high than when wages are lower. The outcome of economic theory is then maximum productivity within the economy because individuals have made the best choices for themselves and are being compensated according to their contribution to this productivity. Additionally, economic theory predicts that race and gender discrimination will dissolve under competitive pressures although empirical evidence demonstrates that minorities remain concentrated in low-status, low-income producing fields (Farley & Allen, 1987; Hauser, Tsai, & Sewell, 1983; Porter, 1974; Saunders, 1995; Tienda & Lii, 1987) while women also remain somewhat segregated by occupational fields and demonstrate lower earning power than men (Corcoran & Duncan, 1979; England & Farkas, 1986).

While Sonnenfeld and Kotter (1982) acknowledged the important contributions made by sociologists in establishing the relationship between parental occupation, status, and wealth and the income levels attained by the children, they felt these same sociologists have failed to take into account important changes in the social status of occupations, changes in the distribution of population into different occupations, and changes in these individuals themselves over a period of time.