Walking Away: Experiences of Individuals and Their Voluntarily Leaving Career-Based Situations against Others' Judgment
Abstract
This dissertation explored 12 participants’ (ages 25–34 years) walking away experiences during their emerging adulthood, from career-based settings despite others’ disapproval. Nine major and seven minor themes emerged. The major themes were: 1. Personal definition of walking away, 2. Importance of market based relationships and/or support, 3. Importance of personal relationships and/or support, 4. Changes in job roles and/or job expectations not being met, 5. Emotional distress, 6. Work experienced as unenjoyable or unfulfilling, 7. Vicarious observation of others, 8. Self-discovery, and 9. Affirmation of walking away as the right decision. Two sub-themes emerged from Affirmation of walking away as the right decision: 10. Mixed emotions about walking away and 11. Walking away is the right decision, but individuals would not change their past experiences. The minor themes were: 12. Cultural implications, gender role expectations, and discrimination, 13. Desire to work with humanity and/or wanting a human connection, 14. Encouragement and/or mentorship of others to walk away, 15. Feeling stuck, trapped, and/or limited in the career-based situation, 16. Previously harboring ideas of wanting to walk away, and 17. Finances a major concern after walking away. Results demonstrated the intricate interactions between relationships, development, emerging adulthood, and walking away.
Subject Area
Accounting|Counseling Psychology
Recommended Citation
Kim, Patricia Jean, "Walking Away: Experiences of Individuals and Their Voluntarily Leaving Career-Based Situations against Others' Judgment" (2018). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI10680512.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI10680512
