Family influences on the career life cycle

This chapter examines the myriad ways in which one’s family and personal life can impact an individual’s career. A review of some of the key research literature reveals that career choice is influenced by an individual’s values, attitudes, and expectations concerning how work should be balanced with the rest of life. Individuals are also susceptible to influence from their families of origin with regard to occupational choice and prioritizing work over family, or vice versa. Career opportunities, in the form of prospects for advancement within an organization or more generally in one’s chosen field, are impacted by family commitments and the use of flexible working practices designed to assist employees balance their work and home responsibilities. The desire for a balanced lifestyle between work and family also affects decisions to change jobs or accept a geographical transfer, and can help to shape employees’ intentions to depart an organization or an entire career. The chapter will conclude by identifying some of the major implications of employees’ determination to combine career with a meaningful life outside of work, for both organizations and individuals.

This draft chapter that has been published by Edward Elgar Publishing in Career Choice in Management and Entrepreneurship: A Research Companion edited by Mustafa F Ozbilgin and Ayala Malacg-Pines published in 2007. http://www.elgaronline.com/view/9781845428440.xml