Mothers' perceptions of their children pursuing work in the home and hospitality

This grounded theory study investigates the perceptions and attitudes of mothers towards their children selecting future careers related to work in the home and/or in hospitality. This research note presents findings on a qualitative study with 25 Australian women exploring mothers' perceptions of hospitality and the home as a career and profession. Previous studies have found that parents play an important role in career selection of their children and that the decision to choose a hospitality career often began in the home. The findings suggest that mothers were supportive of their children selecting a hospitality career if that is what they wanted. It also found that mothers understood this line of work in different ways, with ` career' connoting a person's life trajectory and 'profession' being associated with education. These participants recognized the intrinsic value of the work in the home and hospitality and their contribution to society, but acknowledge that society generally does not value this work. In this sense, the mothers' perceptions reflect broader societal perceptions of hospitality work, but suggest avenues for revaluing work in the home. Because the findings in this study are unique to Australia, there may be value for further research internationally.