Gender Stereotypes and Career Choices: How Altruism Affects the Professional Aspirations of Adolescents

This paper intends to explore the aspects related to the gender stereotypes, altruism and career choices among adolescents and young adults coming from different education paths. The sample involved three groups: one from high professional school, one from university and one from the high school of humanities. We’ve considered how gender stereotypes affect task performances and economic subjective preferences when judging men and women. It is career choices that reveal in a very impressive way the professional aspirations of young people. The aims of this study concern the possibility to explore the bond between the subjective traits of altruism, the gender stereotypes and the professional choices as relevant key factors in understanding the aspirations and career orientation of young generations. A survey investigates gender stereotypes of our sample; an objective personality test measures altruism; a careers inquiry technique used in qualitative research investigated the subjective experience of participants in depth. Qualitative research about social gendered representations of some professional aspirations allows us (1) to define career profiles used by participants and (2) to predict their interests in male and female professions affected by gender stereotypes. The results show that most altruistic young people tend to be less influenced by gender stereotypes in the evaluation of career choices. Moreover, altruists prefer more relational professions, thus confirming altruism as a favorable dimension for a pro-social working life. Furthermore, the altruistic personality shows a more integrated perception between sexes and professional aspirations as well as being less affected by gender stereotypes. The implications of this article will serve as a resource for educational programs to promote altruism as a way of thinking and to prevent gender stereotypes.