# Five years of insights from the Career Optimism Index: Shifting sentiments and the future of work

Published in[Phoenix Scholar](/research/publications/phoenix-scholar.html)  
[Volume 9 Issue 1, Page 2](/research/publications/phoenix-scholar/vol-9-issue-1.html), Fall, 2026

https://doi.org/10.64657/QLPB8687

---

## Authors

Christine Marquis, DM  
Marlene Blake, Ph.D.  
Scott McCalla, DM

---

## Abstract

Over the past five years, the Career Optimism Index (COI) has functioned as a longitudinal barometer of worker sentiment and employer alignment, capturing the dynamic sentiment of career confidence in the United States. Published annually by the University of Phoenix (UOPX), the Index documents shifting perceptions of career confidence across periods marked by pandemic recovery, labor market volatility, inflationary pressure, and accelerated technological transformation. Across these transitions, the COI reveals not merely fluctuations in optimism, but a deeper structural recalibration in how workers conceptualize security, growth, and institutional trust.

[Download PDF](https://www.phoenix.edu/content/dam/edu/research/doc/phoenix-scholar/volume-9-issue-1.pdf)