Discussions of women’s underrepresentation in high level
leadership positions generally revolve around three types of explanations (Figure 15.1).
The first set of explanations highlights differences in women’s and men’s investments in human capital.
The next category of explanations considers gender differences between women and men.
The final type of explanation focuses on prejudice and discrimination against female leaders. p. 577
Human Capital Differences.
This supposed lack of human capital is said to result in a dearth of qualified women, sometimes called a “pipeline problem.” However, a closer look at the numbers reveals that women are indeed in the pipeline, but that the pipeline is leaking. p.577
Women do have somewhat less work experience and employment continuity than men, driven largely by the disproportionate responsibility women assume for child rearing and domestic duties (Bowles & McGinn, 2005; Eagly & Carli, 2007). p. 578
Some women choose not to marry or have children, others choose to become “superwomen” and attempt to excel in
every role, and others take leaves of absence, take sick days, or choose part-time employment to juggle these work–home conflicts (Hewlett, 2002; Nieva & Gutek, 1981). p. 578
In addition to having fewer responsibilities in the same jobs as men, women are less likely to receive encouragement, be
included in key networks, and receive formal job training than their male counterparts (Knoke & Ishio, 1998; Morrison & Von Glinow, 1990; Ohlott, Ruderman, & McCauley, 1994; Powell & Graves, 2003). p. 579
Gender Differences in Leadership Styles and Effectiveness
Other arguments attempting to explain the leadership gap revolve around the notion that women are just different from men. p. 580
Meta-analyses of research examining style differences between women and men found that, contrary to stereotypic expectations, women were not found to lead in a more
interpersonally oriented and less task-oriented manner than men in organizational studies.
For example, women tend to emphasize social values that promote others’ welfare to a greater extent than men (Schwartz & Rubel, 2005), p. 581
women are more likely to take on informal, as opposed to official, leadership roles, and use terms such as facilitator or
organizer instead of leader (Andrews, 1992; Fletcher, 2001). p. 581
Furthermore, men are more likely than women to ask for what they want (Babcock & Laschever, 2003). Reaching elite leadership positions is not done in a vacuum; people must negotiate with others to access the right positions, experiences, opportunities, resources, and assistance in both the professional and domestic spheres. p. 581
Women face significant gender biases and social disincentives when they self promote and negotiate. p. 582
Prejudice
Gender stereotypes are pervasive, well documented, and highly resistant to change (Dodge, Gilroy, & Fenzel, 1995; Heilman, 2001). Gender stereotypes both describe stereotypic beliefs about the attributes of women and men, and prescribe how men and women ought to be (Burgess &
Borgida, 1999; Glick & Fiske, 1999). p. 582
As leaders, they should be masculine and tough, but as women, they should not be “too manly.” p. 583
People prefer similar others and report the most
positive decisions about and evaluations of people who are most like them, biases that can
clearly disadvantage women when male leaders are looking for replacements. p.584
Whether the threat of the gender–leader stereotype is met
with vulnerability or reactance responses depends on factors such as the leader’s selfefficacy, the explicitness of the stereotype, the type of task, the group sex-composition, and
the power that the leader holds (Bergeron, Block, & Echtenkamp, 2006; Davies, Spencer, & Steele, 2005; Hoyt & Blascovich, 2007, 2010; Kray, Reb, Galinsky, & Thompson,
2004; Kray, Thompson, & Galinsky, 2001). p. 584