COMMUNITY, COALITION BUILDING, AND CAREER DECISION-MAKING SELF-EFFICACY: A CASE STUDY OF COLLEGIATE WOMEN IN AVIATION

Abstract

In 2021, the number of women choosing to pursue a career in aviation remained strikingly low and the aviation industry remained coded as a traditionally male space. For instance, of those who hold the necessary certification to fly for a commercial airline, only 4% omen. For example, looking across the industry, women remain an underrepresented group as maintenance technicians, dispatchers, and chief executive officers. Since existing research indicates a connection between perceived self-efficacy and career decision making-ularly, in relation to women-in this case study we asked the following question. How does a career-planning cohort that is compensated, communal, exploratory, and gender-centric contribute to the perception and articulation of career self-efficacy for collegiate women interested in aviation careers? The research project recruited 25 collegiate women at a large R1 institution to participate in an aviation career cohort. The primary purpose of the cohort was twofold: first, it was designed as a space where women students could share and record their perceptions of career decision-making self-efficacy; and second, it created a sense of community among collegiate women with similar career interests. The research team used elements of a phenomenographic theoretical framework supported by feminist scholarship on narrative and storytelling to analyze the participants' narrative experiences. The findings suggest that opportunities to build community and coalition factor into how cohort participants perceived and articulated their sense of self-efficacy when making a decision about aviation careers.