Representation of careers in British print media, 1985–2015

Using media analysis framework, this study aims is to identify the dominant themes in representation of careers in print media and to explore the possible changes in public discourse narratives of careers from 1985 to 2015 by analysing relevant articles in British newspapers. The study involves examining the use of language and journalistic styles to talk about careers, the nature of any career advice given, metaphors used, and the narrative forms employed.
Over the last few decades, it has been said by many academics that the nature of careers is changing, and the notion of traditional careers based on hierarchical, highly rigid structures and linear direction of prescribed advancement is no longer applicable to the contemporary labour market. This thesis explores whether the anticipated changes that academics in the field of career studies discuss are aligned with the narratives in popular discourse. To achieve this, a structured comparison of the articles concerning careers in selected and contrasting printed media outlets over a 30‐year time span will be analysed alongside academic sources in the field of career studies. The analysis will then identify how popular discourse and academic discourse overlap, diverge and feed into one another.
Investigating both academic literature and popular media in parallel allows the study to develop a contextual perspective which has rarely been the focus of academic research in careerstudies. Assessing the similarities and differences of the dominant academic discourses and inherently social characteristics of the press can provide a setting to draw conclusions about social implications of career theories.
From the methodological perspective, this study offers an innovative way of observing the development of career theories and conducting a comparative analysis, by using a mixed‐ method approach which involves a quantitative study of the media trends and coverage over time as well as the discursive analysis of the selected newspaper articles.
In this study, articles from three British newspapers, The Times, Guardian, and Daily Mail from 1985 to 2015 will be analysed using a combination of content analysis and discourse analysis.