Salary to Syllabus: Understanding the Decision to Pursue Further Education Following Involuntary Job Loss
Date
2019-07-09
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Abstract
Individuals having experienced involuntary job loss are faced with a choice of how to respond and what to do next. Further education is one of the options becoming more common in this disadvantaged group. Utilizing interpretative phenomenological analysis, this study looks at themes characterizing the decision to pursue further education in response to involuntary job loss. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven individuals who had experienced the involuntary loss of meaningful employment and had since enrolled in post-secondary programs. Participant responses revealed three overarching themes: needing to make the decision, evaluating previous employment, and looking to the future. Themes and sub-themes provide insight into the ‘work-to-school’ transition as a unique and meaningful area of focus within career development and decision-making theory. Findings of this research study assist in understanding the decision to return to school after involuntary job loss, which can potentially inform practitioners, as well as the individuals facing similar circumstances.
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Career Development, Psychology, Transition, Decision-making, Counselling, Career
Citation
Johnson, J. P. (2019). Salary to Syllabus: Understanding the Decision to Pursue Further Education Following Involuntary Job Loss (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.