The Influence of Socioeconomic Factors on Women’s Career Advancement in Sri Lanka’s Apparel Industry: The Mediating Role of Educational Attainment
Keywords:
Socio-Economic Factors, Education Attainment,, Women’s Career Advancement, Apparel Sector, Gender Equality, Sri LankaAbstract
This concept paper develops a holistic framework that conceptualizes educational attainment as a mediating instrument permitting women to convert socioeconomic constraints into career advancement. Correspondingly this framework embeds the Human Capital Theory, which theorizes education as a strategic investment for women’s career advancement and also the Social role Theory which explains how societal expectation limit the women’s career advancement while the Glass Ceiling Theory assimilates the systemic barriers that hamper women advancing from junior positions to top leadership positions, despite having equivalent or greater credentials. Grounded by these perspectives this study examines the role of Socioeconomic factors on women's career advancement with the mediation effect of educational attainment among apparel sector executives in Sri Lanka. Consequently, the extensive literature synthesize multiple disciplines which emphasizes the factors influencing women’s career advancement. Accordingly the proposed conceptual framework provides evidence based actionable recommendations for policymakers, Organization decision makers and educators to promote women’s career advancement, remove systemic obstacles and support gender equity in apparel industry in Sri Lanka.
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