awn from 11 comprehensive high schools within an urban area public school system in the southeastern part of the United States. The 11 comprehensive high schools served 93 percent of students from African American and 7 percent from other ethnic backgrounds.
Five hundred questionnaires were distributed to 35 intact classes of students enrolled in vocational education courses. The survey instrument consisted of 26 statements designed to determine student perception toward work and career-related issues. The results of the study found no significant means difference between or among the assessed variables of: gender, grade level of student, grades usually earned in school, number of hours worked per week, involvement in cooperative on-the-job training, educational level of mother and educational level of father.
In another study, Steitz (1997) examined for the effects of gender and sex-role orientation on career decision-making of 303 students within advanced placement English or mathematics classes and 349 students within vocational/technical programs. In addition, the study investigated the roles of self esteem and self efficacy in the relationship between sex role and career decision making.
Results showed no direct relationship between sex roles and career decision-making for either group. However, Steitz (1997) pointed out that the lack of a direct relationship between sex roles and career indecision did not mean that sex roles were irrelevant to career indecision. Among both the boys and the girls and across programs, the androgynous group had higher career self efficacy and self esteem than did the undifferentiated group. The study was said to suggest that career self efficacy and self esteem act as mediating variables in the relationship between sex roles and career indecision.
The study also pointed to a complex interrelationship between race, gender, and curricular track, college preparatory versus vocational ...