This study used social cognitive career theory to predict the career aspirations and tenure expectations of untenured female science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) assistant professors. We hypothesized that contextual variables (perceived career barriers and institutional support for work–life balance) would directly predict career aspirations and tenure expectations. We also expected that these contextual variables would be indirectly related to career aspirations and tenure expectations through our self-efficacy variables (faculty task-specific self-efficacy and impostor beliefs). Data were collected from 214 untenured female faculty in STEM departments. Path analyses indicated that the hypothesized model was a good fit for the data. Institutional support for work–life balance produced direct and indirect pathways to career aspirations through faculty task-specific self-efficacy and an indirect pathway to tenure expectations through impostor beliefs, whereas perceived career barriers produced a direct pathway to career aspirations. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

这项研究使用社会认知职业理论来预测未受聘女性科学，技术，工程和数学（STEM）助理教授的职业抱负和任期期望。我们假设情境变量（感知的职业障碍和机构对工作与生活平衡的支持）将直接预测职业抱负和任期期望。我们还期望通过我们的自我效能感变量（特定于教师任务的自我效能感和冒充者的信念），这些上下文变量将与职业理想和任期期望间接相关。数据收集自STEM部门的214名未受雇的女教师。路径分析表明，假设模型非常适合数据。对工作与生活平衡的机构支持，通过教师特定于任务的自我效能感，产生了直接和间接的职业理想途径，而通过冒名顶替者的信念则间接产生了任期期望，而感知的职业障碍产生了实现职业理想的直接途径。讨论了对研究和实践的意义。