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Article
Publication date: 1 March 2021

Naruho Ezaki

Globalisation drives many people to seek overseas employment. However, research on the relation between educational attainment and occupations/incomes mostly focuses on domestic…

Abstract

Purpose

Globalisation drives many people to seek overseas employment. However, research on the relation between educational attainment and occupations/incomes mostly focuses on domestic workers while excluding overseas migrant workers. Therefore, the present study includes overseas migrant labourers and aims to examine the relation between educational attainment and occupations/incomes and gender disparity within this relation in Nepal.

Design/methodology/approach

This study conducted interview surveys with teachers and home-visit surveys with the subjects and their families based on the school records to collect information such as educational attainment, current occupation, monthly income, etc. The study compared occupations and incomes by educational attainment and gender and analysed the trend. Gender disparity in average monthly incomes was also analysed.

Findings

The results of this study registered almost no difference in the proportions of mental labour and high incomes for both males and females at the primary to secondary education echelons. Surprisingly, the average monthly incomes of females were around 60% or less than the remunerations offered to male workers with equivalent educational qualifications. This disparity does not narrow even at the higher educational classifications. Moreover, the disparity is widening even more by overseas migrant labour.

Originality/value

Since this study gathered extensive data on individual youth and did not rely on secondary data, it was possible to perform an in-depth analysis and accurately portray the real situation faced by Nepalese youth. Moreover, by including overseas migrant labourers, the study could examine the relation between educational attainment and occupations/incomes not only in the domestic market but also in the global market.

Details

International Journal of Comparative Education and Development, vol. 23 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2396-7404

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 November 2018

Kea Tijdens, Miroslav Beblavý and Anna Thum-Thysen

The purpose of this paper is to overcome the problems that skill mismatch cannot be measured directly and that demand side data are lacking. It relates demand and supply side…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to overcome the problems that skill mismatch cannot be measured directly and that demand side data are lacking. It relates demand and supply side characteristics by aggregating data from jobs ads and jobholders into occupations. For these occupations skill mismatch is investigated by focussing on demand and supply ratios, attained vis-à-vis required skills and vacancies’ skill requirements in relation to the demand-supply ratios.

Design/methodology/approach

Vacancy data from the EURES job portal and jobholder data from WageIndicator web-survey were aggregated by ISCO 4-digit occupations and merged in a database with 279 occupations for Czech Republic, being the only European country with disaggregated occupational data, coded educational data, and sufficient numbers of observations.

Findings

One fourth of occupations are in excessive demand and one third in excessive supply. The workforce is overeducated compared to the vacancies’ requirements. A high demand correlates with lower educational requirements. At lower occupational skill levels requirements are more condensed, but attainments less so. At higher skill levels, requirements are less condensed, but attainments more so. Educational requirements are lower for high demand occupations.

Research limitations/implications

Using educational levels is a limited proxy for multidimensional skills. Higher educated jobholders are overrepresented.

Practical implications

In Europe labour market mismatches worry policy makers and Public Employment Services alike.

Originality/value

The authors study is the first for Europe to explore such a granulated approach of skill mismatch.

Article
Publication date: 10 April 2017

Md. Emaj Uddin

Structural sociological framework suggests that sociopolitical and economic factors exert independent effects on variations in family status attainment (FSA) across the…

Abstract

Purpose

Structural sociological framework suggests that sociopolitical and economic factors exert independent effects on variations in family status attainment (FSA) across the social/ethnic groups. The purpose of this paper is to analyze and predict how social-political-economic factors exert effects on disparity in FSA between the majority and minority ethnic groups in Bangladesh.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used the cross-cultural survey design to analyze the research objective. In doing so, 585 men (Muslim n=150, Hindu n=145, Santal n=145, and Oraon n=145) who were randomly selected through cluster sampling from the Rasulpur union of Bangladesh were interviewed with a semi-structured questionnaire.

Findings

The results of Pearson’s χ2 test have shown that FSA was significantly different (p<0.01) associated with social-political-economic factors between the majority and minority groups. The results of the linear regression analysis (coefficients of β) suggested that social, political, and economic factors were the best predictors (significant at p<0.01 level) to perpetuate disparity in FSA between the majority and minority ethnic groups in Bangladesh. In addition, the results of coefficients of determination (R2) suggested that unequal distribution of social-political-economic resources perpetuates 10-14 percent disparities in FSA between the majority and minority groups in Bangladesh.

Research limitations/implications

Although the findings of the study are suggestive to understand the disparity in FSA associated with social-political-economic factors, further cross-cultural research is needed on how the social psychological factor affects variations in FSA between the groups in Bangladesh. In spite of the limitation, social policymakers may apply the findings with caution to design social policy and practice to reduce the disparity in FSA between the majority and minority ethnic groups in Bangladesh.

Originality/value

The cross-cultural findings are original in linking structural sociological theory and comparative family welfare policy to reduce the disparity in FSA between the majority and minority groups in Bangladesh.

Details

International Journal of Social Economics, vol. 44 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0306-8293

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 January 2009

Loretta Newman‐Ford, Steve Lloyd and Stephen Thomas

The number of people engaging in higher education (HE) has increased considerably over the past decade. However, there is a need to achieve a balance between increasing access and…

Abstract

The number of people engaging in higher education (HE) has increased considerably over the past decade. However, there is a need to achieve a balance between increasing access and bearing down on rates of non‐completion. It has been argued that poor attainment and failure within the first year are significant contributors to the overall statistics for non‐progression and that, although research has concentrated on factors causative of student withdrawal, less attention has focused on students who fail academically. This study investigated the effects of a number of factors on the academic attainment of first‐year undergraduates within the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Glamorgan. Results showed that gender and age had only minor impacts upon educational achievement, while place of residence, prior educational attainment and attendance emerged as significant predictors of attainment. Further analysis showed these three factors to be interrelated, with attendance correlating strongly with both entry points and place of residence. In turn, prior attainment was strongly linked to place of residence. Findings may be used to identify and proactively target students at risk of poor academic performance and dropout in order to improve rates of performance and progression.

Details

Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, vol. 1 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-7003

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 23 November 2020

Nitin Bisht and Falguni Pattanaik

This study attempts to investigate the interrelationship between choice-based educational achievement and employability prospects across the skill-based occupations amongst the…

1860

Abstract

Purpose

This study attempts to investigate the interrelationship between choice-based educational achievement and employability prospects across the skill-based occupations amongst the youth in India.

Design/methodology/approach

This study relies on the use of National Sample Survey (NSS) data on employment and unemployment for the 68th round (2011–2012) and the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) (2017–2018). To estimate the relative contributions of choice-based educational attainment affecting the skill-based employment of youth in a different category of occupations ( high/medium/low skilled), the multinomial logistic regression and its marginal effects have been used.

Findings

The study finds educational attainment both as an opportunity (improvising employability in the high and medium skill occupation) and a challenge (highest unemployment amongst the educated) while ensuring skill-based youth employability. Despite the growing enrolment of youth in education, youth from a general education background does not find sustained employability prospects in high-skill occupations.

Research limitations/implications

Vocational education highlights a brighter employability prospect but the acceptability of the same amongst the youth needs a policy intervention.

Practical implications

Educational choices need an intervention based on market-driven apprenticeships and training.

Social implications

The decline of overall employability in the low-skill occupation raises a threat to inclusive development as such youth results to Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET), better identified as the unproductive economic youth.

Originality/value

This study attempts to investigate that “how far the choice of educational attainment (general/technical/vocational) is able to make youth a fit in the world of work?” in the Indian context, where the youth constitute the highest share in the population.

Details

Journal of Economics and Development, vol. 23 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1859-0020

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 12 April 2013

Margrit Magdaalena Stamm

The aim of this article is to explore the phenomenon of gifted migrants in vocational training and education. To date, migrant apprentices have been predominantly discussed from a…

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this article is to explore the phenomenon of gifted migrants in vocational training and education. To date, migrant apprentices have been predominantly discussed from a deficit perspective. Special attention has been given to competence insufficiency and underperformance, as well as to migrant adolescents’ lack of professional and educational attainment. However, recent research points to a social group of migrants who are successful educational and professional achievers.

Design/methodology/approach

The article at hand discusses five theoretical models commonly applied to explain underachievement among migrant adolescents. It then examines these models’ explanatory power to predict migrants’ educational success. To conclude, the research parameters and theoretical framework of a Swiss longitudinal study designed on the basis of these findings is presented.

Findings

Educational research has increasingly focused on migrants, as well as on vocational education and training. However, what resulted from existing research is a predominantly unfavorable image of migrant apprentices that exclusively portrays them as so called “educational losers” of socio‐economically and culturally disadvantaged backgrounds. Based on theoretical explanatory models, a number of assumptions were extracted to show how educational success among migrants could be explained and whether resilience factors play a role in it. From the resilience perspective, professional success of migrant apprentices is likely to result from a stable, long‐term attachment figure or mentor who served as a role and identification model and was of significant importance in the adolescents’ workplace, for example as professional mentor. Furthermore, it is expected that educational facilities, in particular vocational training institutions, must have excelled in demanding high educational achievement, providing clear organizational and management structures, and high teaching quality as well as good instructor‐learner relationships.

Originality/value

As has been shown, educational research has increasingly focused on migrants, as well as on vocational education and training. However, what resulted from existing research is a predominantly unfavorable image of migrant apprentices that exclusively portrays them as so called “educational losers” of socio‐economically and culturally disadvantaged backgrounds. This implies that educational and professional success is not attainable for youths from disadvantaged families. On the other hand, successful migrant careers have been exemplarily portrayed; systematic research however is scarce and virtually non‐existent in German‐speaking academia. The lack of educational policy debate about successful migrants is probably a result of this research gap.

Details

Education + Training, vol. 55 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0040-0912

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 January 2019

Elena Meschi, Joanna Swaffield and Anna Vignoles

The purpose of this paper is to assess the role of local labour market conditions and pupil educational attainment as primary determinants of the post-compulsory schooling…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess the role of local labour market conditions and pupil educational attainment as primary determinants of the post-compulsory schooling decision.

Design/methodology/approach

Through the specification of a nested logit model, the restrictive independence of irrelevant alternatives (IIA) assumption inherent in the multinomial logit (MNL) model is relaxed across multiple unordered outcomes.

Findings

The analysis shows that the factors influencing schooling decisions differ for males and females. For females, on average, the key drivers of the schooling decision are expected wage returns based on youth educational attainment, attitudes to school and parental aspirations, rather than local labour market conditions. For males, higher local unemployment rates encourage greater investment in education.

Originality/value

The contribution of this paper to the existing literature is threefold. First, a nested logit model is proposed as an alternative to a MNL. The former can formally incorporate the structured and sequential decision-making process that youths may engage with in relation to the post-compulsory schooling decision, as well as relaxing the restrictive IIA assumption inherent in the MNL across multiple unordered outcomes, an issue the authors discuss in more detail in the Methodology section below. Second, the analysis is based on extremely rich socio-economic data from the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England, matched to local labour market data and administrative data from the National Pupil Database and Pupil Level Annual School Census, which provide a broad set of unusually high-quality measures of prior attainment. The authors argue that such high-quality data and an appropriate model specification allows identification of the determinants of the post-compulsory decision in a more detailed manner than many previous analyses. Third, the data have the scale necessary to consider whether the determinants of post-compulsory schooling decisions vary by gender, a particularly important issue given the differential education participation rates of males and females (e.g. in this cohort, females are about 10 percentage points more likely to go on to higher education in the UK than males), and the gendered choices of occupation (see, e.g. Bertrand, 2011). The work will, therefore, provide recent empirical evidence from England on gender differences in the determinants of education choices.

Article
Publication date: 4 July 2017

Nafisat Toyin Adewale, Yushiana Mansor, Muhammad-Bashir Owolabi Yusuf and Ahmeed Onikosi

This study investigates the moderating effects of age, experience and educational qualification on the relationship between uncertainty and subjective task complexity among…

Abstract

Purpose

This study investigates the moderating effects of age, experience and educational qualification on the relationship between uncertainty and subjective task complexity among lawyers working in private law firms in Lagos State, Nigeria.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey method was adopted and data were gathered using questionnaires. The analysis was carried out based on partial least squares structural equation modelling using SmartPLS 2.0 M3 software.

Findings

Results showed that the effect of uncertainty on subjective task complexity is significantly moderated by age, educational attainment, experience of the lawyers under study.

Research limitations/implications

Although data were collected in the most populated state and commercial hub of Nigeria, generalisation based on findings may still need to be made with caution.

Practical implications

Attainment of higher educational qualification is highly important for lawyers even though the minimum requirement to practice as a lawyer is a degree. Lawyers with higher degrees (LLM and PhD) had less uncertainty and perceived their tasks to be less complex compared to their counterparts who had the first degree (LLB).

Originality/value

The demographic profile of professionals (age, education and experience) has proven to have an impact on their perception about task complexity as determined by uncertainty as found in this study.

Article
Publication date: 27 July 2012

Anastasia Klimova

The purpose of this paper is to analyse determinants of occupational allocation by gender, in Russia, between 1994 and 2001, using the only available nationally representative…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyse determinants of occupational allocation by gender, in Russia, between 1994 and 2001, using the only available nationally representative longitudinal survey (RLMS).

Design/methodology/approach

Multinomial logit was chosen as the estimation technique for this analysis.

Findings

It was found that gender significantly affects occupational distribution after controlling for human capital and other characteristics during all years. Educational attainment was significant for professionals and technicians/associate professionals, while work experience was significant for craft and plant workers. Marital status did not affect females' occupational allocation while married males were less likely to be unskilled and craft workers. It appears that women performed primarily non‐geographically dependent jobs and the significance of regional variation for females' employment diminished over time. A comparison of the actual and predicted females' occupation distribution revealed a large over‐representation of females in unskilled occupations.

Originality/value

The paper makes an original contribution to our understanding of occupational distribution by demonstrating that occupational segregation by gender is a large and economically significant factor in the Russian labour market, even after controlling for individuals' human capital and personal characteristics and for regional variations. The paper illustrates the extent of this segregation by comparing the actual occupational distribution of females to that which would occur if they faced the same structure of occupational determination as males, i.e. in the absence of discrimination and differences in tastes.

Details

International Journal of Social Economics, vol. 39 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0306-8293

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 December 2014

Kayode A. Alao and Olusegun F. Adebowale

The purpose of this paper was to examine the attitudes of prison inmates and warders (prison staff) to rehabilitative counselling and its relationship to their prison status on…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper was to examine the attitudes of prison inmates and warders (prison staff) to rehabilitative counselling and its relationship to their prison status on one hand and their educational attainment on the other.

Design/methodology/approach

The study adopts a descriptive survey research design. In all 123 prison inmates and 110 warders were selected by stratified random sampling from Osogbo prison headquarters, as well as Ilesa and Ile-Ife prisons in southwestern Nigeria. Data were collected through a self-constructed questionnaire titled “inmate and prison staff attitude to rehabilitation counselling”. Data collected were analysed using percentages and χ2 statistics.

Findings

The results showed that the prison inmates and staff possessed positive attitude to rehabilitative counselling. No significant difference was found between the attitudes of prison inmates and staff members or on the basis of their prison statuses. However, the study found a significant relationship between the prison inmates’ attitude to rehabilitative counselling and their educational attainment.

Research limitations/implications

Statutory provision needs be made for professional rehabilitative counselling in Nigerian prisons in contrast to the religious instructions currently being allowed prisoners. Educational opportunities should be provided to ensure that the knowledge so obtained complements the rehabilitative counselling.

Originality/value

This paper fulfils an identified need to study the attitude towards rehabilitative counselling.

Details

International Journal of Prisoner Health, vol. 10 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1744-9200

Keywords

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