Role Conflict and Career Advancement Among African American Women in Nontraditional Professions

To investigate differences in the career experiences of Black women in traditional and nontraditional professions, a sample of Black professional women in traditional (e.g., social work, teaching, counseling) and nontraditional (e.g., law, medicine, engineering) professions were mailed a questionnaire asking about career experiences, family life, and other personal characteristics. Marriage was reported to be more of a career barrier for nontraditionals than traditionals. Nontraditionals also reported more career‐related marital discord than did traditionals. Nontraditionals were more likely to report barriers to career success such as racial and gender discrimination, limited opportunities to develop political clout, and colleagues' doubts about their competence. Nontraditionals also reported less peer support than did traditionals.