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Gender and Decent Work: The Role of Occupational Stereotypes

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Book cover Interventions in Career Design and Education

Part of the book series: Lifelong Learning Book Series ((LLLB,volume 23))

Abstract

Although there have been many encouraging developments in gender equality over the past three decades, inequalities already persist in several forms such as gender pay gap or benevolent sexism (Glick & Fiske, J Pers Soc Psychol 70(3):491–512, 1996). Young women experience higher unemployment rates and more various career barriers than their male peers (Signorelli, Choudhry, & Marelli, Eur J Dev Res 24(3):413–433, 2012). Women suffer from a general decrease in family-friendly arrangements (Vaughan-Whitehead, Work inequalities in the crisis: Evidence from Europe. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2011) which may favor work/family conflicts (Nota, Soresi, Ferrari, & Ginevra, Eur Psychol 19:248–259, 2014). Lastly, women are still significantly under-represented in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics – STEM – fields (European Commission, She figures 2015 report. Gender in research and innovation. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2016). Consequently, the International Labour Organization (Global employment trends: January 2009. Geneva, Switzerland: ILO, 2009) considers gender equality a relevant issue in its Decent Work Agenda, in order to permit both women and men to build a promising future for themselves, families and communities. Particular attention is also paid to educational and occupational choices which may be strongly influenced by stereotyped beliefs on gender roles and the labor market, discouraging young people from undertaking training or career pathways considered socially inappropriate for their gender (Eccles, Psychol Women Q 35(3):510–516, 2011). The chapter discusses the relationships between gender equality and decent work, focusing on career interventions (individual training or social engagement actions) for reducing gender stereotypes and discriminations. A three step – Awareness-Activation-Participation – new methodological approach to public engagement is applied on gender issues.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy

    Chiara Annovazzi, Maria Cristina Ginevra & Elisabetta Camussi

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  1. Chiara Annovazzi
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  2. Maria Cristina Ginevra
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  3. Elisabetta Camussi
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Correspondence to Chiara Annovazzi .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Hesam Universités, Paris, France

    Valérie Cohen-Scali

  2. University of Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France

    Jacques Pouyaud

  3. University of Wrocław, Wroclaw, Poland

    Marek Podgórny

  4. University of Wrocław, Wroclaw, Poland

    Violetta Drabik-Podgórna

  5. University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Gabriela Aisenson

  6. Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Hesam Universités, Paris, France

    Jean Luc Bernaud

  7. University of Koudougou, Koudougou, Burkina Faso

    Issa Abdou Moumoula

  8. Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Paris, France

    Jean Guichard

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Annovazzi, C., Ginevra, M.C., Camussi, E. (2018). Gender and Decent Work: The Role of Occupational Stereotypes. In: Cohen-Scali, V., et al. Interventions in Career Design and Education . Lifelong Learning Book Series, vol 23. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-91968-3_15

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