Study title

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.The main object of this three part study was to identify social and psychological factors relating to the careers of highly qualified young men and women in Britain. It aimed to contribute to an understanding of the development process of occupational career aspirations in the two sexes. Designed as a simulated longitudinal study, the research was concerned with 3 important stages in the lives of these young people: at about the age of 18, when they are on the point of leaving the sixth form; on graduation from university; and at eight years after graduation, when most are about thirty.Main Topics:Attitudinal/Behavioural Questions Data about sixth-form pupils directly after completion of their 'A' level examinations in 1969. Questionnaires were designed to examine the academic motivation and career perceptions of sixth-formers, and especially of girls, at the time when they are making decisions regarding the next phase of their lives. The study represents an attempt to discover how 18 year old school leavers see themselves and how they view the future, to identify those factors, both personal and environmental, which influence the critical decisions made at this point in their lives. Included in the data are the range of sixth-formers' expectations and the kinds of obstacles that might prevent them from fulfilling their ambitions as they develop, and the nature of the help and advice they receive from careers advisers, parents, teachers and others. Broadly the questionnaire covers the sixth-formers' 'O' level performance and 'A' level expectations, home background, school factors, personality factors, plans and reasons for applying or not applying to college or university, and their educational and career aspirations. Other questions cover matters relating to women at work and their attitudes towards this, their ideas of women's roles and relationships between women at work and family...