Gender and Perceptions of Occupational Prestige

Abstract

Two studies compared perceptions of status for occupations based on the gender and race of the workers. In total, 387 college students participated in this research. Across studies, results indicated that participants did not differentially value occupations based on the gender or race of the workers in terms of prestige ratings or salary estimates. However, participants judged that occupations required more education when described as having predominantly male workers rather than female workers. In addition, the participants showed different levels of interest in the positions depending on the occupational gender. These results are compared with similar studies conducted 20 years ago, in which participants showed more overt forms of devaluing occupations associated with women.