Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Food and Humanity, cilt.6, 2026 (ESCI, Scopus)
This study empirically examines the evolution of gastronomy students’ vocational attitudes during mandatory internships, utilizing Kramer’s reality shock theory. Data were collected from 65 undergraduate students at a Turkish state university via a two-stage longitudinal monitoring protocol. Rather than focusing on immediate satisfaction, this study tracked attitude shifts before and after industrial exposure. The findings reveal that while general vocational attitudes remained stable, students lacking prior sectoral experience suffered a significant psychological decline. Furthermore, extrinsic factors such as salary and housing yielded no significant impact on vocational commitment, reinforcing that material conditions function primarily as hygiene factors. Ultimately, this study contributes to the existing literature by extending Kramer’s theory, providing longitudinal evidence that prior sectoral experience serves as a crucial psychological inoculation against the reality shock of industrial kitchens. Practical recommendations, including a mandatory culinary boot camp model, are proposed to manage expectations and mitigate early-career attrition.