Do job aspirations cause job choice? Insights from Indian women entering male‐dominated occupational training

Abstract

AbstractMotivationThe participation rate of women in India's labour force is not only one of the lowest in the world but has also been declining. To increase women's employment, some observers argue for reducing occupational gender segregation so that more women enter non‐traditional jobs.PurposeI ask how aspirations for non‐traditional jobs are formed among young women in Delhi. The aim was that understanding the answer would enable policymakers to foster occupational aspirations for non‐traditional jobs so women could enter jobs considered as men's work, reducing gender segregation and increasing women's participation in the labour market.Methods and approachI interviewed 72 young women from low‐income households in Delhi, following a semi‐structured guide. These young women were training either in jobs seen as the preserve of men — taxi drivers, electricians, and electronics mechanics — or in traditionally female work in beauty salons.FindingsContrary to conventional wisdom, young women's entry to non‐traditional training in Delhi did not result from their occupational aspirations. Rather, entry into training created aspirations for the jobs for which they trained.Policy implicationsTo increase women's entry into jobs dominated by men, policymakers do not need to influence young women's occupational aspirations. Instead, they should focus on factors that directly affect job entry — for example, having training centres close to where targeted young women live — and provide opportunities for young women to train.Traditional concepts of occupational aspirations, generally derived from the global North do not apply in the same way to young women in India. My study raises questions about these aspirations and prompts future studies to assess whether they apply in other parts of the global South.