Schussler Elisabeth E
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996.
CBE Life Sci Educ. 2025 Jun 1;24(2):ar22. doi: 10.1187/cbe.24-05-0150.
Biologists pursuing faculty jobs are often married to other biologists who may also desire faculty positions. This increases the complexity of the job search, with little guidance for early career researchers about doing this successfully. Couples have been surveyed, but less research qualitatively investigates the lived experiences of couples seeking jobs together. These stories may inform professional development about navigating joint job searches. This study interviewed 18 biologists who were part of a couple who were currently or had sought jobs together. Interviews asked about the strategies and supports guiding their job search, their decisions and compromises, and the emotions they experienced. The transcripts underwent thematic analysis to identify six themes related to strategies (advice, hiding their partner, and searching for jobs), negotiations, compromises (types and tensions), apprehensions, reconciliations, and reflections. Communication to identify joint priorities informed the couple's choices and compromises during the search. There were many emotional burdens related to navigating together. The participants expressed their struggles to understand institutional practices on dual career hires, suggesting a need to provide professional development to early career researchers, particularly in the areas of discussions about job search expectations and potential outcomes, and anticipation of emotional reactions.
寻求教职工作的生物学家通常与其他可能也渴望获得教职的生物学家结婚。这增加了求职的复杂性，而对于早期职业研究人员来说，几乎没有关于如何成功做到这一点的指导。虽然对夫妻进行过调查，但较少有研究从质性角度调查共同求职夫妻的生活经历。这些经历或许能为共同求职的职业发展提供参考。本研究采访了18位生物学家，他们都是夫妻中的一方，目前正在共同求职或曾一起求职。访谈询问了指导他们求职的策略和支持、他们的决定和妥协，以及他们所经历的情绪。访谈记录经过主题分析，确定了与策略（建议、隐瞒伴侣和求职）、协商、妥协（类型和矛盾）、担忧、和解及反思相关的六个主题。明确共同优先事项的沟通为夫妻在求职过程中的选择和妥协提供了依据。共同应对求职带来了许多情感负担。参与者表示，他们难以理解机构在双职工招聘方面的做法，这表明有必要为早期职业研究人员提供职业发展支持，特别是在求职期望和潜在结果讨论以及对情绪反应预期等方面。
