Stopgappers? The Occupational Trajectories of Men in Female-Dominated Occupations
Abstract
This study examines the determinants of men’s exit from female-dominated occupations. Using census data and the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth data set, the author analyzes the job history of men employed in the United States between 1979 and 2006. Supporting the theoretical model, evidence indicates a group of stopgappers—men entering female-dominated occupations and leaving soon after their entry, thereby contributing to the perpetuation of segregation in female settings. By identifying the stopgapper occupational trajectory, this article contributes to the development of a comprehensive theory accounting for the way structural inequality is reproduced.
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Biographies
Margarita Torre is an assistant professor in the Department of Social Sciences at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Her research interests focus on occupational patterns in the labor market, workplace inequalities, and the analysis social networks. Her recent work has appeared in Social Forces, Sociological Perspectives, and International Migration.
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Article first published online: June 4, 2018
Issue published: August 2018
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