INFLUENCES ON ADOLESCENT JOB CHOICE: IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHING CAREER AWARENESS IN AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION

This study compared students choosing agriculture as a career to those choosing other occupations. Previous research conducted by Conr oy (1996) identified predictors of occupational choice among rural youth .An examination of those predictors, comparing the two groups of students, revealed that there were few differences between students whether they chose agriculture as a career option or some other career. Differences did exist, however, based on gender and father’s occupation, a variable considered to be a proxy for socioeconomic status. Findings supported prior research which suggested that family interactions are keys to vocational identity development (Steinberg, 1989; Erikson, 1963, cited in Herr, 1972). Therefore, to be effective, career awareness and educational programs must not only provide factual information about careers, they must also provide activities to reduce stereotypes commonly held about certain occupations (Steinberg, 1989; Harter, 1990). Programs that do not do this may not achieve their goals of successfully recruiting students into agriculture.