Does management have a gender?: Antecedents of missing women in management positions

Abstract

In the last decades women, especially in the developed countries, had more opportunities of accessing a higher education and achieving careers traditionally pursued by men. Still, the percentage of women in the leading management positions is low. Are there specific antecedents, which explain the existing gap between men and women who made it to the very top of their careers? Using data from the World Value Survey, this thesis shows that the factors influencing this gap are diverse but lead to the following key conclusions. In older generations the gender gap in management positions is stronger and more present, and an increasing age is a contra productive fact for women that pursuit a management position. Belonging to a middle- or high-income class and having high education is positively related to female employment in general, as well as in management positions. Religion leads all in all to a lower participation in the labor market, and inhibits the career path of females more, than the one of males. The equality and liberalism that a democracy reinforces and promotes, reduces the difference between women and men in the labor market, fostering female participation. This inclination towards equality in the labor market and in high hierarchical positions is also supported by values such as trust and respect. Typical management attributes such as competition and risk preferences are important for the acquisition of a supervisor position, but do not increase the probability of a competitive or more risk-taking woman in a supervisor position. Does Management have a Gender? Antecedents of Missing