Exploring Late Adolescents’ Experiences with Career-Related Messages on Entertainment TV and in Social Media in Belgium: A Focus Group Study

Abstract

Media is an important socialization actor through which adolescents can learn about careers. Nine focus group interviews were conducted with 44 late adolescents (M_age = 16.27; SD_age= 0.54; 56.82% female) in high schools in Belgium to explore how youth in this age group receive career-related messages, the work tasks, skills, values, and ethics that are cultivated, and the ways adolescents experience and judge the perceived realism of career-related messages received via entertainment TV/social media. A combined inductive and deductive thematic analysis of the data revealed various pathways through which adolescents intentionally and unintentionally received career-related messages. Moreover, the adolescents had been cultivated to value specific work tasks/skills (e.g., social skills) and intrinsic and extrinsic work values and work ethics (e.g., working hard to succeed, centrality of work) when consuming career-related messages through TV/social media. Lastly, the perceived realism of such messages depended on content elements (e.g., a balanced portrayal of work values). Differences related to career-related messages on social media versus entertainment TV were observed. Practical implications for various groups (e.g., career counselors, media content producers) are discussed.

Keywords

adolescent development vocational anticipatory socialization television social media media psychology

Late adolescence (approximately between 16 and 19 years old) is an important period for constructing a vocational identity that reflects an individual’s perceptions of career interests, skills, values, and ethics to guide career choices (Skorikov & Vondracek, 2011). Such choices are important for late adolescents as they approach high school graduation and must choose a career (Skorikov & Vondracek, 2011). According to Holland’s (1985) person-environment fit theory, people and their vocational interests can be classified into personality types, and people’s personality type should match with their work environment to ensure their positive well-being. This theory (Holland, 1985) and other research (Hoff et al., 2020) highlight that individuals’ career choices must align with their skills, interests, and values—that is, their vocational identity—for both their well-being and positive career outcomes (e.g., job satisfaction).

To select a career aligned with their vocational identity, before entering the workforce, adolescents go through “vocational anticipatory socialization” (VAS), whereby they (un)intentionally learn about careers and the importance of such aspects of employment as tasks, skills, values, and ethics (Jablin, 1985). The VAS process is shaped by multiple actors, such as family members (Jablin, 1985, 2001). Another crucial socialization actor that has been neglected in the literature is media, or more specifically, entertainment TV and social media. This oversight is surprising because adolescents frequently use these media (Vandendriessche et al., 2021). Nevertheless, research that has been conducted on this topic indicates that individuals may learn about careers via entertainment TV and social media (Aley & Levine, 2022; Levine & Hoffner, 2006). This supports cultivation theory (Gerbner & Gross, 1976), which posits that media provide a window to the reality of the professional world. As such, media users may develop varied career beliefs, depending on how the media they consume emphasize important career aspects.

On this topic, several research gaps prevail. What remains unclear is the way adolescents receive career-related messages via media, the way they experience and judge the perceived realism of career-related messages in the media, and which important career aspects (work tasks, skills, values, and ethics) are cultivated when using media. Prior quantitative studies have investigated how exposure to career-related messages affects individuals’ cognitions via survey or experimental studies (e.g., Hoffner et al., 2008; Levine et al., 2021) and have predefined the type of effects that can be expected when viewing career portrayals in the media. Yet, quantitative research cannot provide in-depth insights into adolescents’ own rich experiences with and thought processes related to viewing career-related messages on entertainment TV/social media. In fact, researchers who have conducted quantitative studies have noted their approach may have limited participants’ response options and, thus, limited the study results (Hoffner et al., 2008). As recommended by such researchers (e.g., Hoffner et al., 2008), we addressed these gaps through focus group interviews, as they allowed us to explore adolescents’ rich experiences with career-related messages in the media (Krueger, 2014). Such insights into adolescents’ experiences can guide future quantitative research to understand the underlying mechanisms between adolescents’ exposure to career-related messages in media and its effects. In addition to providing the qualitative approach, we also contribute to the literature with our simultaneous focus on TV and social media that allowed us to capture differences in adolescents’ VAS experiences with these outlets. Such insights are important because online media outlets and traditional media, like television, are used differently for VAS information (Levine & Aley, 2022). Finally, our focus on late adolescents as they are making career choices also adds to the literature (Skorikov & Vondracek, 2011). Prior research primarily focused on emerging adults (Aley & Levine, 2022), yet adolescence is a fundamental period for developing a vocational identity (Ter Bogt et al., 2005).

Late Adolescents’ Vocational Anticipatory Socialization

To choose a career, people compare the information they receive through “VAS” with their own vocational identity (Jablin, 2001). During VAS, individuals may receive multiple messages and learn about various career aspects (Jahn & Myers, 2014). This study focused on the socialization of three career aspects—work tasks and skills, work values, and work ethics—(Powers & Myers, 2017), which are key components of VAS messages (Hoffner et al., 2008; Jahn & Myers, 2014) and are vital for the development of a healthy vocational identity and, thus, to choosing careers that lead to positive outcomes (Hoff et al., 2020).

Careers are characterized by “work tasks” which certain skills are needed to perform (Holland, 1985). One taxonomy distinguishes between basic skills, related to knowledge and learning processes in a work environment, from the cross-functional skills, needed to perform specific tasks (Mumford et al., 1999). More precisely, content skills (e.g., mathematics) and process skills (e.g., learning) are basic skills; cross-functional skills include problem-solving skills (e.g., information organization), social skills, technical skills (e.g., programing), systems skills (e.g., analyzing systems) and resource management skills (e.g., time management) (Mumford et al., 1999). During VAS, individuals learn about which tasks and skills are required in careers (Powers & Myers, 2017), which enables them to determine if the tasks and skills that interest them match with those of the careers they consider (Jablin, 1985, 2001). The person-environment fit theory (Holland, 1985) emphasizes the need for a worker’s personality and work environment to match, which can predict job satisfaction. Research indeed revealed that such a fit promotes positive well-being (Hoff et al., 2020).

Also important to the vocational identity are work values (i.e., aspects that employees find important in a job), which are intrinsic or extrinsic (Super, 1962). Extrinsic work values are material rewards: safe workspace, social relations, job security, prestige, earning potential, and leisure time besides work (Taris & Feij, 2001). Intrinsic work values refer to inherent job rewards that focus on personal fulfillment, including ability to be creative, interesting tasks, achievements, task variety, altruism, and management opportunities (Taris & Feij, 2001). During VAS, individuals receive information about the importance of certain work values and which values are satisfied in myriad careers (Powers & Myers, 2017). Individuals’ intrinsic and extrinsic work values should match those promoted in their chosen career; however, the intrinsic values are more important to ensuring positive outcomes (Hegney et al., 2006).

Closely linked to work values are work ethics, which are multidimensional tenets compromising “a constellation of attitudes and beliefs pertaining to work behavior” (Miller et al., 2002, p.5). While work values focus on important extrinsic and intrinsic job rewards, work ethics relate to the intrinsic work behavior factor (Miller et al., 2002). For example, the “Protestant work ethic” emphasizes the importance and centrality of work (e.g., working even when financially unnecessary), success through hard work, self-reliance, anti-leisure time, morality, postponing gratifications, and productive use of time (Miller et al., 2002).

Research has focused on family, educational institutions, part-time work and peers as actors in adolescents’ VAS (e.g., Jablin, 1985, 2001). Another important socialization actor is media—particularly entertainment TV and social media (Hoffner et al., 2008; Levine & Aley, 2022). Past studies have focused on the portrayal of careers through entertainment TV/social media (Kerr et al., 2020; Signorielli & Kahlenberg, 2001) and how such portrayals contribute to individuals’ VAS (Hoffner et al., 2008; Levine & Aley, 2022). However, qualitative studies that explore adolescents’ experiences with career-related messages on TV and in social media are scarce. Such insights may help to identify new media outlets (e.g., social media platforms) and to understand the results of quantitative studies (e.g., Levine & Aley, 2022).

Exploring Adolescents’ Exposure to Career-Related Content in Media

Adolescents may encounter career-related messages when engaging with entertainment TV and social media. Uses and gratifications theory (Katz et al., 1973) and the Selective Exposure Self- and Affect-Management (SESAM) Model (Knobloch-Westerwick, 2015) help to understand how adolescents interact with media. Research on uses and gratifications suggests that people use entertainment TV and social media for amusement, to pass time, for social interaction, and to relax (Brown et al., 2012; Whiting & Williams, 2013). Despite their reason, adolescents still may “unintentionally” receive messages about careers, as they are prevalent in entertainment TV and social media (Eyal et al., 2020; Warren et al., 2016).

Adolescents likely also intentionally seek career-related content. Research indicates that young people use media to gain information (Brown et al., 2012; Whiting & Williams, 2013). This information-seeking behavior may even depend on individual’s identity. In this vein, the SESAM model (Knobloch-Westerwick, 2015) posits that individuals’ self-concept drives their media selection. This implies that adolescents’ vocational identity may guide their selection of career-related media messages. A study involving emerging adults revealed that the Internet and traditional media (e.g., TV) were used as VAS information sources (Levine & Aley, 2022). Whether such processes also occur among adolescents who are still developing their vocational identities remains unclear.

These selection processes for entertainment TV likely differ from those for social media because unique features characterize how users interact with the different media. While individuals may watch entertainment TV with others, adolescents manage their own social media use privately when using smartphones and choosing whom to follow, for instance (Vandendriessche et al., 2021). Additionally, a study among emerging adults revealed that the Internet was more frequently used for VAS information than traditional media and that individuals assigned more value in terms of trust and quality to the Internet as a VAS source for career success (Levine & Aley, 2022). Whether such differences also exist among late adolescents also remains unclear. To understand how adolescents receive career-related messages, we posted the following research question (RQ):

RQ1: How do late adolescents receive career-related messages through entertainment television and social media, and how does this reception differ according to media outlet (i.e., entertainment TV vs. social media)?

The Content of Career-Related Messages on Entertainment TV and Social Media

The actors that produce career-related messages for entertainment TV differ from those who produce such messages on social media. For example, production companies embed these messages within story lines for entertainment TV. On social media, career-related messages come from actors that adolescents follow, such as celebrities (Eyal et al., 2020; Vandendriessche et al., 2021), and unfamous people (Hardof-Jaffe et al., 2020), like older studying/working peers or relatives who are part of the adolescent’s social media network. Research on Internet as a VAS source (Levine & Aley, 2022) has not explored the ways peers communicate career-related information online, although the literature highlighted the need for this research.

Different media contexts promote distinct career-related messages regarding tasks and skills. Whereas entertainment TV showcases adventurous and high-status careers (e.g., criminal investigators) (Warren et al., 2016), career-related content on social media is probably more diverse because it comes from both the popular socialization actors (e.g., celebrities) and “average, everyday workers,” such as teachers and nurses (Hardof-Jaffe et al., 2020; Kerr et al., 2020). Media similarities in the portrayal of work tasks and skills have also been noted. For instance, TV often portrays police officers solving murder cases and analyzing DNA, tasks that require technical and problem-solving skills (Ley et al., 2012), and nurses share posts on social media about examining and diagnosing patients, which also require specialized skills, in this case, social and problem-solving skills (Kerr et al., 2020).

Entertainment TV and social media are also similar in (in)directly promoting work values and ethics. Entertainment TV highlights intrinsic values of performing interesting tasks (e.g., by portraying adventurous professions) and skill utilization (e.g., by portraying success), as well as extrinsic work values of leisure time (e.g., work-life balance problems), work surroundings (e.g., unsafe work environment), and social relations (e.g., harassment of co-workers; e.g., Warren et al., 2016). Likewise, social media posts promote the intrinsic work values associated with performing interesting work (e.g., posts about professional events) and skill utilization (e.g., posts about success) and the extrinsic work values of leisure time and social relationships (Eyal et al., 2020; Kerr et al., 2020). Moreover, both TV and social media have promoted certain work ethics by portraying individuals who work hard to succeed (Kerr et al., 2020; Warren et al., 2016).

Cultivation of Career-Related Messages via Entertainment TV and Social Media

Cultivation theory (Gerbner & Gross, 1976) may explain how entertainment television’s and social media’s career-related portrayals can affect adolescents. This theory posits that TV offers individuals “a window to the reality” about careers by portraying messages that highlight certain aspects of careers. Long-term exposure to such messages may influence individuals’ beliefs, values, and expectations about careers in a way that it aligns with those conveyed through the media messages. A process of homogenization occurs when individuals using the same media have highly similar beliefs about, for instance, which skills or work values are important in careers (Gerbner & Gross, 1976). The literature about cultivation effects indicates that TV genres should be considered in analyzing this phenomenon because their formats typically call for different ways of presenting messages, such as fiction vs. reality (Grabe & Drew, 2007). Although cultivation theory originally focused on TV, it has also been applied to examine the content exposure effects of social media use (Stein et al., 2021).

Quantitative evidence indicates that media messages cultivate individuals’ appreciation of certain work tasks/skills, work values, and work ethics (Aley & Levine, 2022; Hoffner et al., 2008). Levine and Hoffner (2006) suggested that, although adolescents learned little about job requirements from entertainment TV, they did learn about certain work values by recognizing the importance of positive job aspects (e.g., social relations at work) and negative job aspects (e.g., uninteresting tasks, stressful work). Research among emerging adult participants further revealed links between the portrayals of TV show characters’ work values and the importance the participants attached to those work values (Hoffner et al., 2008; Wenhold & Harrison, 2019). Similarly, a study focused on social media indicated emerging adults’ beliefs about celebrities’ work ethics related to the importance they attached to those ethics (Aley & Levine, 2022). Prior studies (e.g., Aley & Levine, 2022), however, did not combine multiple career aspects (tasks/skills, work values, ethics), focused only on one medium, and/or focused on emerging adults but not adolescents. To address these gaps, we posed the following RQ:

RQ2: Which work tasks, skills, work values, and work ethics are cultivated when adolescents view career-related messages through entertainment TV and social media, and do these cultivation effects of entertainment TV versus social media differ?

Perceived Realism of Career-Related Messages on Entertainment TV and Social Media

Media learning processes depend on users’ levels of perceived realism and may serve as an important moderator in cultivation processes (Ward & Carlson, 2013). Research confirmed that individuals learn more from media and are more likely to adjust their views and behaviors when messages are perceived as realistic (Ward & Carlson, 2013). As such, perceived realism potentially plays a role in adolescents’ cultivation of the professional world (work tasks/skills/values/ethics) from entertainment TV and social media. One study on entertainment TV suggested adolescents found career-related messages unrealistic and one-sided (Levine & Hoffner, 2006), although the elements that caused such perceptions are unclear. A possible explanation is that fictional TV content was studied rather than reality entertainment content, which is delivered through unscripted programs that follow individuals in their daily lives, such as a reality show following real-life medics who are portrayed doing their job¹ (e.g., Topdokters in Belgium).

Although seldom used in social media research, the literature suggests perceived realism has value for such research as adolescents can recognize when certain elements in individuals’ self-presentation are staged or too positively biased (Taba et al., 2010), which they perceive as unrealistic. Nevertheless, social media posts may be perceived as more realistic than entertainment TV. For instance, the results of one study involving emerging adults indicated the Internet was considered a more trusted source for career information compared to traditional media (e.g., TV; Levine & Aley, 2022). However, whether social media is also more trusted than traditional media by adolescents is unknown, as are the content elements that may garner more trust in certain media outlets. To gain more insights into adolescents’ perceptions of realism, we proposed a third RQ:

RQ3: How do adolescents experience and judge the perceived realism of career-related messages in entertainment TV and on social media and how do two processes differ?

Method

This study was approved by the Ethical Review Board of KU Leuven in Belgium. Instead of aiming to quantitatively evaluate relations between media use and vocational identity development, we aimed to understand adolescents’ own experiences (Gelo et al., 2008), so we chose focus group interviews, which allowed us to explore adolescents’ diverse perceptions about career-related messages in the media that help to shape those identities. These focus group interviews enabled us to capture communication and relational dynamics in the adolescent peer groups (Krueger, 2014). The group dynamics also benefited the participants as they were able to listen to peers’ ideas and consider this information when developing their own opinions.

Sample and Recruitment

In February 2020, focus groups comprising late adolescents (16–18 years old) were formed in Belgium² (see Supplemental Table S1). To recruit adolescents, principals at four high schools were contacted via a convenience sample; two agreed to participate. Each principal selected three classes that were available during school hours. Written passive parental consent was requested; written active consent was required from participants. Of the 52 adolescents recruited, eight were excluded for lack of parental consent or other reasons. This resulted in nine focus groups (n = 44 adolescents; M = 16.27; SD = 0.54; 56.82% female). Of the nine focus groups, seven were mixed-sex, one was male-only, and one was female-only. The pupils in eight focus groups (n = 38 adolescents) followed the general education track; one group (n = 6) included students who followed the technical education track. Each group included three to eight participants.

Data Collection and Materials

Focus groups were conducted in-person in quiet classrooms during class hours. Before the interviews, the adolescents were assured that their anonymity and confidentiality was guaranteed, and they received information about the study and contact information (for the researchers and youth organization for emotional support). Participants also filled in an in-take survey to measure socio-demographic variables. Group interaction was facilitated by seating the adolescents and moderator in a circle. The first author, two PhD researchers and one graduate student separately conducted the interviews. Teachers did not attend the interviews to encourage the adolescents to freely share their experiences.

Focus group moderators followed a topic list that focused on entertainment TV (fiction and reality TV) and different socialization actors on social media. In the context of social media, participants generally talked about the platforms they regularly used (e.g., Instagram, YouTube) and the career-related messages they encountered on those platforms. Before discussing each medium, we asked general ice-breaker questions. Afterward, we concentrated on individuals’ experiences and meanings attached to career-related messages they encountered. The related materials can be accessed through this link on OSF. As Krueger (2014) recommended, the moderators avoided bias in the discussion by leading the conversation flow and asking clarification questions. The interviews lasted 24 to 46 minutes and were audio recorded. Participants used pseudonyms to protect their identity, which are used when describing the results.

Data Analysis

The focus group interviews were transcribed verbatim and coded in Nvivo, and we combined deductive and inductive approaches during the analyses. Thematic analysis was conducted using Braun and Clarke’s (2012) six-step approach. Initially, the first author became familiar with the data by reading the transcripts and noting initial ideas. Second, we developed initial codes using a line-by-line coding system. A code was constructed when participants’ quotes within and between groups hinted at similar experiences; codes were constructed separately for TV and social media to make comparisons between these media outlets possible. In the third step, codes were categorized according to overarching themes; subsequently, the themes were revised (step 4) and defined (step 5), and the results were written (step 6). We examined how multiple codes could be interwoven into a specific theme. To answer RQ1, media selection processes were identified from the literature on motivations for media use (Brown et al., 2012). For RQ2, the theoretical conceptualizations of different work tasks/skills, values, and ethics (e.g., Super, 1962) were used to determine if adolescents cultivated these aspects when engaged with entertainment TV/social media. We also inductively explored other experiences that may not have appeared in the literature. To respond to RQ3, we inductively explored adolescents’ perceptions of perceived realism. All codes are listed in Table 1 in the appendix on OSF.

Research Team and Positionality

The researchers’ backgrounds may have affected the study results (Braun & Clarke, 2012). Four female Caucasian researchers (i.e., first author, two PhD researchers, one graduate student) conducted the focus group interviews, but not all participants had the same ethnicity and sex as the researchers, which may have impacted their responses, which is a potential limitation. For example, the background of the researchers may have made female and Caucasian participants more comfortable to share their experiences. The face-to-face environment of the focus group interviews also may have impacted participants’ responses (Braun & Clarke, 2012). Efforts to make participants feel comfortable included seating them in a circle in a familiar environment (their own school) and encouraging them to share their ideas. Nevertheless, focus group interviews, compared to in-depth interviews, allow for a more naturalistic environment (Braun & Clarke, 2012).

Results

Explaining How Adolescents Received Career-Related Messages via Media (RQ1)

Almost all participants encountered career-related messages via various forms of TV, including entertainment/reality series and movies. Most career-related messages participants encountered on social media came from “proximal socialization actors,” or people the adolescents personally knew (work/school peers, family), and/or from “distal socialization actors,” such as celebrities/influencers, politicians, or others they did not know personally. Adolescents noticed such messages on popular social media platforms; Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube were the most frequently mentioned. Different themes emerged regarding adolescents’ intentional versus unintentional encounters.

Intentional exposure to career-related messages

Intentional exposure encapsulated multiple ways in which adolescents goal-oriented sought specific types of career-related messages. Two themes emerged: information seeking tailored to individual career interests and general information-seeking behavior.

Tailored information seeking about careers

Several participants actively searched entertainment TV and social media for portrayals of careers that aligned with their own career aspirations, interests, or backgrounds. Participants spontaneously referred to this intentional viewing process more so for entertainment TV than social media. Furthermore, adolescents’ information-seeking behavior in the context of fiction differed from such behavior related to reality entertainment TV. Although participants intentionally sought information about careers via both fiction and reality entertainment TV, they especially sought information about careers via fictional entertainment TV programming. For instance, Lia³ (girl, Group 3) indicated to see MindHunter, a Netflix show revolving around behavioral science and criminal psychology, as it aligned with her high school major study program and she anticipates a career in this profession.

Lia (Girl, Group 3): I have seen the series Mindhunter and I also study human sciences . . . I am very interested in criminology and somebody said that MindHunter is about that so I started watching that.

Soma participants noted former career aspirations led them to select career-related content in fiction and reality entertainment TV. For instance, Kelly (girl, Group 3) watched a program about criminal attorneys because she had “wanted to become a lawyer in the past.” Such practices of tailored information-seeking also appeared in social media usage. Some adolescents followed certain “distal socialization actors” whose professions aligned with their own career aspirations, such as athletes or veterinary assistants, on social media platforms such as Instagram and YouTube.

Jennifer (girl, Group 2): I follow people from my sport; it is a competition sport and the people who win a lot are also known in that world and I follow many of them on Instagram. Some of them are also a coach and then, there is somebody who really has an account to show what they are doing in a day, and I find it very interesting because I also do the same sport and I also want to become a coach, so that can inspire me.

General information-seeking about careers

A “broader” type of career-related information-seeking was also reported: participants sought career-related content through entertainment TV because “it gives a glimpse [of a job]” or “you can mirror, how it really works.” Similar practices occurred on social media. For instance, one participant followed an influencer for general information about the professional world. This influencer shared details about her training in business administration, and the participant found “it interesting to get to know more about that education, as it does not exist over here [in Belgium]” (Susan, girl, Group 2).

Unintentional exposure to career-related messages

Adolescents were also exposed to career-related messages on entertainment TV/social media unintentionally when they encountered such messages serendipitously. Unintentional exposure occurred when adolescents accidentally encountered career-related messages. Participants did not intentionally seek these messages but noticed them when consuming media for various reasons. We uncovered two themes when examining this exposure: (1) entertainment and (2) passing time and situational reasons.

Entertainment

Several participants received certain career-related messages via entertainment TV/social media, not because they aspired to related careers but because they happened upon the content and were entertained by it. They inadvertently encountered these messages within content they viewed because it appeared “interesting” or “nice.” As for social media, the adolescents reported intentionally following certain people because of the “type of person that they are.” Thus, they intentionally followed role models on social media platforms like Instagram because they “are a fan,” because they find the person “handsome” or because they “support” this person. Afterward, they may unintentionally see career-related content when these actors share content about their careers.

Passing time and situational reasons

Adolescents were unintentionally exposed to career-related messages when using media to pass time or for other situational reasons. For instance, Diego (boy, Group 9) encountered messages about people working in information and communication technology (ICT) when viewing fiction series because he was bored and “had nothing else to watch.”

Career-related messages on both entertainment TV and on social media were also encountered because of “situational factors.” For instance, some participants encountered career-related messages from TV shows because another household member was watching it:

Lynn (girl, Group 5): Yes all those CSI things [series] are on TV in our household. My sister is, for instance, a big fan of it.

Interviewer: And you watch it with her?

Lynn (Girl, Group 5): Yes.

Social reasons that led to encountering career-related messages on social media also emerged, but differed from those related to entertainment TV. For example, some adolescents encountered career-related messages on social media from proximal socialization actors who were part of their social circle. Thomas (boy, Group 5), for instance, encountered messages because he “had a lot of friends who are studying in university, and they post when they go to the library to study” so he would “see the content [of their study subjects], but it does not appeal to me to do something similar. It is just interesting.” In the following excerpt from the transcripts, participants describe career-related messages they saw on their classmates’ parents’ Instagram and Facebook accounts.

Lieze (Girl, Group 8): My mom does that [sharing posts about doing someone’s nails] and she post every day one of her new clients who has new nails and say happy customer and those things

Interviewer (to Nienke): and you follow her mother too?

Nienke (Girl, Group 8): yes on Facebook

Wolter (Boy, Group 8): [I see]a lot [a lot of career-related messages from family members on social media]. My mother is an influencer.

Exploring Adolescents’ Learning About Important Career Aspects (RQ2)

To answer RQ2, we explored whether adolescents were cultivated to value particular work tasks and skills, work values, and work ethics differently because of the career-related messages they encountered via entertainment TV vs. social media.

Work tasks and skills

Work tasks and skills that were cultivated from entertainment TV related to the type of careers that adolescents noticed. Most participants learned about crime- and health-related professions (from fiction and reality TV), but other participants mentioned also learning about creative jobs and professionals, such as therapists, and teachers (from fiction TV).

Most participants learned from portrayals of work tasks and skills when viewing TV, and especially reality entertainment TV, yet some adolescents learned from careers depicted on fiction series that do not foreground characters’ careers in their story lines. For example, one participant noted the importance of process skills (e.g., active learning) conveyed through the series Friends.

Kelly (girl, Group 3): She [Rachel from Friends] eventually starts to work for Ralph Lauren, which is a high position, and, okay, you don’t get to see a lot [about her job] because the series is not about her job, but you see that she constantly needs to know about novel fashion trends, etc.

Participants especially learned four types of skills (and related tasks) when viewing both fiction and reality entertainment TV.⁴ TV cultivated tasks that require content skills (e.g., writing), problem-solving skills, social skills, and physical skills (see Supplemental Table S2). During the interviews, participants commented on police officers’ skills and tasks as portrayed on entertainment TV, including problem-solving, social, and physical skills.

Hugo (boy, Group 6): Work together. You see it in action movies; they have to work together to catch a criminal because he could not have done it on his own

Sander (boy, Group 6): Yes and hand-to-hand fights

Wout (boy, Group 6): And solving puzzles. [. . .] Sometimes you have a police officer, who has a whole case, with a whole [case] board of things that can be correct [information about the case]

Sander (boy, group 6): They have to be good with people. [. . .] For instance, when there is a kidnapping, they have to deal with that person.

A minority of participants (six across four focus groups) indicated that tasks related to process skills, technical skills, and resource management skills were cultivated through entertainment TV (Supplemental Table S2).

On social media, the participating adolescents indicated to learn about work tasks and skills from distal and proximal socialization actors who posted about specific careers/study fields. Examples and quotes from the focus groups that illustrate cultivated skills (and tasks related to these skills) can be found in Supplemental Table S2. The skills cultivated by social media were similar to those cultivated by entertainment TV. Interestingly, adolescents indicated that not all actors on social media cultivated the same skills. Most participants especially noticed social skills (among distal actors, e.g., persuasion, instructing) and content skills (among distal and proximal actors, e.g., writing) in social media posts. For instance, participants learned about the importance of “being confident in one’s viewpoint and opinion” (i.e., social skill) via politicians’ posts and about “sitting in a studio and writing” (i.e., content skills) via artists on social media. For only some participants, tasks related to process skills (among distal and proximal actors, e.g., active learning), physical skills (among distal actors), technical skills (among distal and proximal actors, e.g., technology design), resource management skills (among distal actors) were cultivated. For instance, for tasks related to resource management, such as financial/personnel/time management, general or private information could be shared by influencers on social media platforms, such as YouTube:

Marie (girl, Group 2): Yes, Mojo [an influencer] shares how much she earns or that she earns less on YouTube than in the past.

Susan (girl, Group 2): The equestrian YouTubers, they plan their day on camera, and say, “I have to do this” and “I have to call my manager,” but about earnings, they don’t talk about it that much.

Work values

Adolescents learned about the importance of intrinsic and extrinsic work values via both media outlets, but the work values and the extent to which they were differed for entertainment TV versus social media. Specifically, differences were found in genres and socialization actors who cultivated the work values.⁵

The adolescents discussed which work values (and the importance of which work values) were especially cultivated on TV (see S3). Participants noted that the most common extrinsic work values that were cultivated via TV (both fiction and reality) related to the importance of leisure time and earning potential. Differences emerged in how work values were cultivated. For instance, adolescents indicated learning about the importance of leisure time by seeing characters experience negative outcomes (e.g., burnout, family problems) due to a lack of work-life balance, while they learned the importance of earning potential from TV series such as Gossip Girl. Anne-Catrine (girl, Group 1) indicated “I am watching Gossip Girl, and those [characters] are especially, those high [elite class] with a lot of money”. Participants particularly admired these characters.

Some participants indicated that entertainment TV cultivated the importance of the following extrinsic work values: safe work environment (fiction TV), good working relations (fiction and reality TV), job security (fiction TV), and job prestige (fiction TV; see S3). Adolescents learned about the importance of job stability from the portrayal of negative outcomes that emerged following a lack of job stability.

Entertainment TV cultivated one or more of the four intrinsic work values that follow: skill utilization/achievement (fiction TV), enjoyable tasks (fiction TV), task variety (fiction TV) and altruism (reality TV; see S3). For instance, an appreciation for skill utilization/achievement was cultivated when characters were rewarded when they performed well in their jobs. Miel (boy, Group 5), for example, described a skilled professor who got rewarded because “the classroom is always full, and everyone is always fascinated.”

On the other hand, the participants recounted learning from social media about the importance of four extrinsic work values: leisure time (distal and proximal actors), job prestige (distal and proximal actors), good working relationships (distal actors), earning potential (distal actors). However, they did not learn about the importance of safe work environments and job stability (values that were cultivated via TV; see S3).

For instance, adolescents learned about the importance of leisure time from actors’ posts that reflected being rewarded for maintaining sufficient leisure time (in addition to their jobs/study fields) with the possibility of engaging in enjoyable activities. Yet, they also learned the same value when individuals shared negative outcomes of setting aside too little leisure time, such as emotional exhaustion. Other values, like earning potential, were especially cultivated with positive rewards. This was seen among influencers on platforms like Instagram.

Jean (boy, Group 3): And they post 10 stories in one day.

Kelly (girl, Group 3): And show how rich they are.

Fran (girl, Group 3): Which clothes they have, which house, where they go on vacation.

The intrinsic work values that were especially cultivated included skill utilization/achievement (proximal and distal actors), performing interesting/enjoyable tasks (proximal and distal actors) and altruism (distal actors). For instance, adolescents learned about the importance of skill utilization/achievement when individuals portrayed themselves as being rewarded or admired for achieving objectives and performing well in their jobs/studies. Rewards also followed acts of altruism when individuals performed a job that could “give something back.” This sense of altruism may result from high earnings.

Laura (girl, Group 9): They [influencers/celebrities] do things beyond [their profession], and because they earn so much money, they can support actions or share it [the actions they support]with their followers.

Work ethics

Adolescents discussed the cultivation of work behaviors by the media and recalled especially learning about two work ethics: hard work and work centrality.

Hard work

The importance of “working hard to succeed” was cultivated via fiction/reality entertainment TV and on social media (among distal socialization actors) for some participants. Differences in how this value was cultivated by TV and by social media were uncovered. Working hard was important to succeed, as portrayed on TV. Jeroen (boy, Group 7) received the message from Dr. Murphy from the Good Doctor that “does his best to become a good doctor.” On social media, this work ethic may not always appear important because some people, like celebrities, work hard, while others, like influencers do not.

Laura (girl, group 9): I don’t know, because they [influencers] make more for their profession, yes, they receive things and have to make pictures of it or so, but, I think that they don’t work as hard as singers, as they have to do a lot of shows and interviews.

Diego (boy, Group 9): I think that singers and actors have to work harder because influencers are famous for their social media and singers for their talent and what they have to do.

Work centrality

Some participants learned about the importance and centrality of work from reality TV and from distal socialization actors (influencers, celebrities). Adolescents learned this value from reality series, such as Keeping Up with the Kardashians and from the social media profiles of actors like the Kardashians who continued to work or pursued educations, despite being financially comfortable enough not to need a paycheck. For instance, Jana (girl, Group 7) mentioned Kim Kardashian, nothing that “She did not quit, even after becoming famous. She keeps doing what she does [professionally].”

Adolescents’ Experiences with Perceived Realism in Career-Related Messages (RQ3)

In answer to RQ3, perceived realism decreased when messages contained narrow portrayals of career tasks/skills, dramatized work-related events, and presented an unbalanced depiction of work values.

Narrow portrayals of required tasks and skills in careers

Especially with fictional TV programing, perceived realism decreased if careers were portrayed as too easy, with too limited tasks and skills.

Joanna (girl, Group 1): I also think that some jobs are oversimplified or that they are unnecessary, like police officers. You have series that are more serious and where police officers do their job, but you also have other series where police officers sit in their car and wait to see what happens with donuts in their hands. But it is frequently portrayed. Look a police officer does something. They are not always eating donuts in the car and waiting in a parking lot until something happens.

Overall, compared to entertainment TV, reality TV was seen as more realistic by most participants because of its ability to depict how complicated work tasks and skills can be. At the same time, participants were also aware of choices made in media production processes. More specifically, participants indicated that a limited set of tasks or skills were sometimes shown in reality TV because “they [the programs] cannot just show everything”; for example, in certain cases, a person’s job may involve working with private information, such as with a lawyer or psychologist.

Similarly, on social media, some career-related messages (especially from students as proximal actors) portrayed careers as too limited in terms of tasks and skills. Adolescents realized that this was a “superficial” portrayal of work tasks in study fields.

Dramatization of work-related events

Too adventurous or dramatic (work-related) events in characters’ careers lowered the degree of realism. Dramatic content elements were, according to adolescents, especially present in fictional TV. Participants were aware of the media production reasons for such exaggerations as “[producers] do everything to get a great rating and to make it captivating” (Mathieu, boy, Group 4). This was different for reality entertainment TV. With few exceptions, most participants described reality TV as more realistic because of the absence of dramatic elements. Reality entertainment focused more on showing “how people really do their job” and presents the information “like a documentary that shows the whole thing” without dramatic story lines and work-related events.

Jean-David (boy, Group 4): With Emergency Center [a Dutch reality entertainment series], is it real life, what really happens, with 9-1-1, it is a script that has to be followed. I think that Emergency Center is similar to reality.

Some participants also noticed the dramatization of work-related events on social media. Participants revealed that distal actors (especially influencers) dramatize work tasks and events by highlighting “eventful days in their life as influencers.”

Unbalanced portrayals of work values

In entertainment TV and social media, perceived realism also depended on how work values were portrayed. The portrayal of individuals in jobs in which the work values appeared too positive (i.e., work values are always satisfied and/or rewarded) or too negative (i.e., work values are never satisfied and/or the person experiences too many negative consequences), undermined the perceived realism of the message. Thus, the conclusion can be drawn that a balanced view of work values increases perceived realism.

In entertainment TV, the most prevalent example of the unbalanced portrayal of work values was the portrayal of the intrinsic work value of skill utilization/achievement. Characters who always achieved success in their career and could always use their skills without failing, were perceived as less realistic than characters who were not always successful. For instance, Lynn (girl, Group 5) indicated that “doctors in drama series, they always look perfect; they can solve everything. Nobody is perfect, and everyone makes mistakes in their job.”

Similar differences between too positive and too negative portrayals of work values also existed on social media. If both distal and proximal socialization actors’ work value were too positively biased (the work value was always met), the messages were perceived as unrealistic. One unique element for proximal ties (but not distal ties) was that this too positive portrayal of a person’s job through posts on social media could be countered through offline conversations.

Femke (girl, Group 9): Yes, I have a cousin who is a kindergarten teacher, and she sometimes shares a picture about her class and stuff, but it is always how nice it is with those children but if you talk with her in real-life, then she is like “oh it is so tiring with all those children.”

Likewise, if work values were portrayed as too negatively biased on social media (work values never being satisfied and always receiving negative consequences), those messages were also perceived as unrealistic. When both negative and positive portrayals of work values were highlighted on social media, messages were perceived as realistic.

Susan (girl, Group 2): I think that she [veterinary assistant] was mainly positive about her job because she had nice colleagues and she also posted when something negative happened, if something happened with an animal or so.

Interviewer: So she showed two sides of the story, not only the positive things.

Susan (girl, Group 2): Yes because otherwise you receive a distorted image of the profession.

Discussion

This study uncovered insights into adolescents’ reception of career-related messages, the media’s cultivation of work tasks/skills/values/ethics, and the perceived realism of career-related messages in media. Several conclusions can be drawn from the results.

First, RQ1 examined how adolescents received career-related messages through entertainment TV/social media and how this reception differed according to these media outlets. Adolescents encountered career-related messages similarly when using entertainment TV versus social media. Especially for entertainment TV, participants’ career aspirations led them to intentionally select messages. This aligns with insights from the SESAM model (Knobloch-Westerwick, 2015), according to which identity drives media selection. In line with studies on need gratification by media (Whiting & Williams, 2013), adolescents also encountered career-related messages unintentionally when using media for social interactions.

Second, when delving deeper into adolescents’ reception of career-related messages (RQ1), the results suggested that adolescents received such messages not only from entertainment TV but also from social media (e.g., Instagram). In prior years, research focused on entertainment TV in VAS (Hoffner et al., 2008); yet, more recently, researchers have turned their attention to the role of Internet and social media and discovered Internet and social media as a new VAS source among emerging adults (Levine & Aley, 2022). Our results support these findings (Levine & Aley, 2022) and extend them to the late adolescents age group. Levine and Aley (2022) revealed that social media platforms, such as Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook were used by a minority of their participants for VAS. These platforms were also mentioned by our participants for encountering career-related content. However, in Levine and Aley’s study (2022), participants most frequently used organizational websites, career websites, and LinkedIn for career-related information. Our participants did not mention these sources, instead pointing to other sources like Instagram. This difference may be explained by differential media habits between developmental groups. Adolescents frequently use platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook, but barely use LinkedIn (Vandendriessche et al., 2021). Future quantitative research is encouraged to examine the impact of career-related Internet pages/social media platforms (Linkedin; Levine & Aley, 2022), as well as the impact of entertainment-focused social media (e.g., Instagram).

Additionally, adolescents learned about careers from distal and proximal ties on social media. The latter group was already considered an important offline socialization actor (Jablin, 2001). Potentially, the messages that are shared by these proximal ties on social media may become more nuanced when adolescents talk to these people offline. This may make adolescents reflect more on the accuracy of online messages. Quantitative studies can explore this reasoning and explore how offline socialization actors (e.g., peers) may affect adolescents’ perceptions of career-related content on social media (e.g., from peers).

Third, RQ2 examined which work tasks/skills, work values, and work ethics were cultivated when adolescents viewed career-related messages on entertainment TV/social media and how this cultivation differed according to these media outlets. The results indicated that certain work tasks/skills, work values, and work ethics were cultivated by both entertainment TV and social media. This aligns with cultivation theory (Gerbner & Gross, 1976), as entertainment TV/social media seemed to provide adolescents a “window to the reality” of careers from which they learn.

Our findings related to the socialization of work tasks/skills contradict research that indicated adolescents received little information about career requirements via TV (Levine & Hoffner, 2006). Adolescents in our study learned about tasks and basic/cross-functional skills via TV and social media, although certain skills, such as social skills, seemed more cultivated than others (e.g., systems skills).

Regarding the cultivation of work values (RQ2), the adolescents noticed that media cultivated intrinsic and extrinsic values. Still, more extrinsic than intrinsic values seemed to be cultivated by TV and social media. Learning to especially value extrinsic values because those are the work values the media promote, may be detrimental to an individual’s well-being because intrinsic values are considered more important to a person’s well-being than extrinsic values (Hegney et al., 2006). Quantitative studies may examine the relations between media use and the valuing of extrinsic values and its long-term impact on adolescents’ career aspirations and well-being. Such insights may be of practical relevance for media literacy training programs to help adolescents understand how media use may be detrimental to the development of one’s vocational identity (in terms of work values).

Although work ethic is a multidimensional construct (Miller et al., 2002), two dimensions in particular were cultivated via the media: the centrality of work and working hard to succeed (RQ2). Whether these results occurred because media only highlighted these work ethics or because adolescents selectively learned about these two work ethics is unclear. Content analyses examining media messages can further provide insight on this topic. Additionally, the messages regarding working hard to succeed were mixed from entertainment TV vs. social media. This may have implications for cultivation theory (Gerbner & Gross, 1976), which predominantly assumes a homogenous narrative is promoted in different media content. Future studies may examine how adolescents handle such mixed messages in media and how such messages relate to adolescents’ identity development (e.g., uncertainty).

Lastly, RQ3 examined how adolescents experienced the perceived realism of career-related messages on entertainment TV/social media and how the processes of the two media outlets differed. Our findings indicated that adolescents thought critically about career portrayals on TV, which aligns with findings from studies that indicated adolescents thought about the realism of career portrayals on TV (Levine & Hoffner, 2006). We extended these patterns to social media as well. Past studies suggested that participants found career-related messages in TV unrealistic (Levine & Hoffner, 2006), and that career information gained from the Internet was trusted more than the same information from mass media (e.g., TV; Levine & Aley, 2022). Our study contextualizes such findings as perceived realism may depend not only on the media outlet under consideration (TV vs. social media), but also on content elements. Such content element differences may explain why genre differences (e.g., fiction vs. reality TV) emerge. Realism was undermined by portrayals of narrow task and skill portrayals, dramatized work-related events, and unbalanced portrayals of work values (in terms of too positive and too negative portrayals).

Simultaneously, adolescents demonstrated certain levels of media literacy as they critically reflected on the realism of career-related messages. Adolescents were aware of media production processes, as they, for instance, realized that selective portrayals emerge (e.g., limited tasks). This aligns with the results of research that showed adolescents were aware of selective or positively biased portrayals in media (Taba et al., 2010).

Limitations

Several limitations existed for this study. First, the sample consisted of adolescents in the general and technical educational track. As other educational tracks were not represented, the findings cannot be said to represent adolescents in those tracks. Research should invest in a sample with pupils following diverse educational tracks and career plans to investigate potential differences in media reception, cultivation, and perceived realism of career-related messages. Second, the country and culture in which our study was conducted may have impacted the results. For instance, adolescents selected media based on their own career aspirations. Perceptions of career barriers (e.g., financial barriers or other selection criteria for college) may differ across countries/cultures and this may be reflected in adolescents’ career aspirations. As Belgium does not have high (financial) barriers for choosing a study field in higher education, adolescents in our sample may have had more diverse career options since they may not have felt hindered by barriers. Our participants, thus, may have selected other content in media covering other types of professions. This selection may have influenced their cultivation of work tasks, skills, values, and ethics. Future studies may examine such cultural differences. Notably, the series that were mentioned during the focus group interviews were mostly produced in America or England. Additionally, although ethnic differences in vocational identities exist (Johnson, 2002), we did not examine such differences as we did not measure ethnicity. Because identity drives media selection (Knobloch-Westerwick, 2015), the participants’ ethnicity may have impacted their selection of career-related messages, as well as what they learned from such content. Furthermore, we did not account for differences in social media features (stories vs. timelines). Potentially, careers are highlighted differently in different features, and adolescents may learn differently from them. Research may examine this reasoning. Lastly, memory recall bias might have occurred in which participants did not accurately remember how they encountered career-related messages, what they learned, or how they perceived content. Other methods (e.g., diary studies) may capture adolescents’ experiences after encountering such messages.

Practical Implications

Our results have various practical implications. Career counselors may involve the role of media in VAS. For instance, training programs may create awareness about media’s role in VAS. Our insights can further facilitate discussions between adolescents and counselors or parents about career-related media content. Although we did not investigate the extent to which adolescents’ learning via media is accurate, future studies may investigate this. Such insights are important for media literacy trainings to create awareness of (mis)perceptions about careers that stem from the media. Because adolescents learn about careers when they intentionally or unintentionally encounter content on social media/TV, content producers should think critically about the image of careers they want to give.

Conclusion

This study examined the role of entertainment TV and social media in developing adolescents’ VAS. The study results revealed that adolescents receive career-related messages not only when they intentionally watch their favorite TV programs or use social media, but also when using these media for other purposes (e.g., entertainment, passing time). When viewing career-related messages on entertainment TV/social media, adolescents learned about important skills and tasks that are required for certain careers. They also learned about the importance of certain work values (especially extrinsic work values), and work ethics (especially work centrality and hard work). Adolescents were also critical when they encountered career-related messages on entertainment TV/social media. The way the career-related messages were portrayed, influenced whether adolescents perceived the messages as more vs. less realistic.

Supplemental Material

sj-pdf-1-jar-10.1177_07435584221140611 – Supplemental material for Exploring Late Adolescents’ Experiences with Career-Related Messages on Entertainment TV and in Social Media in Belgium: A Focus Group Study

Supplemental material, sj-pdf-1-jar-10.1177_07435584221140611 for Exploring Late Adolescents’ Experiences with Career-Related Messages on Entertainment TV and in Social Media in Belgium: A Focus Group Study by Ilse Vranken and Laura Vandenbosch in Journal of Adolescent Research

Footnotes

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Miss Sofie Vranken, Miss Lara Schreurs and Miss Sofie Borgers for their help in conducting the focus group interviews. We would also like to thank Miss Orpha de Lenne on her comments during the final revision round.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by the Research Foundation Flanders (FWO-Vlaanderen) under Grant 11G0220N.

ORCID iD

Ilse Vranken

Supplemental Material

Supplemental material for this article is available online.

Data Availability Statement

All the materials used during the focus group interviews and supplementary materials can be found in the Open Science framework at

Notes

Author Biographies

Ilse Vranken: Ilse Vranken (MA, KU Leuven) is a PhD fellow at the School for Mass Communication Research (KU Leuven, Belgium) funded by the Research Foundation Flanders (FWO). She studies the role of televised series and social media (e.g., TikTok, Instagram) in late adolescents’ vocational aspirations and beliefs. Her research also focuses on the effects of TV portrayals and social media portrayals of women in atypical careers (e.g., STEM-professions) on late adolescents.

Laura Vandenbosch: Laura Vandenbosch is a professor at the Leuven School for Mass Communication Research, KU Leuven, Belgium. The relationship between media and well-being is the core subject of her research, leading to international publications in several fields including developmental psychology, sexology, body image, social relationships and communication theory.

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