Women and women of color in leadership: Complexity, identity, and intersectionality.

This article describes the challenges that women and women of color face in their quest to achieve and perform in leadership roles in work settings. We discuss the barriers that women encounter and specifically address the dimensions of gender and race and their impact on leadership. We identify the factors associated with gender evaluations of leaders and the stereotypes and other challenges faced by White women and women of color. We use ideas concerning identity and the intersection of multiple identities to understand the way in which gender mediates and shapes the experience of women in the workplace. We conclude with suggestions for research and theory development that may more fully capture the complex experience of women who serve as leaders. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychosocial and leadership identities among leaders of identity-based campus organizations.

In this article, we describe a qualitative study of identities of 18 college students leading identity-based campus organizations at 1 large public institution. Identity-based organizations are those registered student groups whose mission includes serving the educational, cultural, social, or other needs and interests of students from a given psychosocial identity (e.g., race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation). We observed 2 paths that students followed through their leadership experience: (1) A “parallel” path in which students experienced their psychosocial identity and their leadership identity separately, and (2) a “merged” path in which students merged these identities into a sense of being, for example, a “gay leader” or a “Latina activist.” Based on our findings that student leaders in identity-based organizations experience both psychosocial identities and leadership identities as salient—whether parallel or merged—we make recommendations for higher education practice, policy, and research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Biases in appraisals of women leaders.

In a variety of group settings, members favor men over women when selecting and evaluating leaders, even when actual leadership behaviors are held constant. Leadership categorization theory (R. B. Lord & K. J. Maher, 1991) and social role theory (A. H. Eagly, 1987) suggest that these biases result from discrepancies between individuals' stereotypes about women and their implicit prototypes of leaders. The authors examined this role-incongruence hypothesis in small groups led by women who adopted a relationship- or task-oriented leadership style. Group members with liberal attitudes regarding women's roles responded positively to both leadership types. Group members with conservative attitudes felt the task-oriented leader was more effective, but they also rated her more negatively on measures of collegiality. These results suggest that individuals' reactions to women leaders are tempered by their expectations about the role of women and men in contemporary society. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender and the effectiveness of leaders: A meta-analysis.

This article presents a synthesis of research on the relative effectiveness of women and men who occupy leadership and managerial roles. Aggregated over the organizational and laboratory experimental studies in the sample, male and female leaders were equally effective. However, consistent with the assumption that the congruence of leadership roles with leaders' gender enhances effectiveness, men were more effective than women in roles that were defined in more masculine terms, and women were more effective than men in roles that were defined in less masculine terms. Also, men were more effective than women to the extent that leader and subordinate roles were male-dominated numerically. These and other findings are discussed from the perspective of social-role theory of sex differences in social behavior as well as from alternative perspectives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender and the evaluation of leaders: A meta-analysis.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 112(3) of Psychological Bulletin (see record 2008-10512-001). Some of the numbers in the Value columns of Table 1, page 11, were aligned incorrectly. The corrected version of Table 1 is provided in the erratum.] Reviews research on the evaluation of women and men that occupy leadership roles. While holding the characteristics, except for sex, constant and varying the sex of the leader, these experiments investigated whether people are biased against female leaders and managers. Although this research showed only a small overall tendency for Ss to evaluate female leaders less favorably than male ones, this tendency was more pronounced under certain circumstances. Specifically, women in leadership positions were devalued relative to their male counterparts when leadership was carried out in stereotypically masculine styles, especially when this style was autocratic or directive. Also, the devaluation of women was greater when leaders occupied male-dominated roles and when the evaluators were men. Findings are interpreted from a perspective that emphasizes the influence of gender roles within organizational settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender and leadership style: A meta-analysis.

Research comparing the leadership styles of women and men is reviewed, and evidence is found for both the presence and absence of differences between the sexes. In contrast to the gender-stereotypic expectation that women lead in an interpersonally oriented style and men in a task-oriented style, female and male leaders did not differ in these two styles in organizational studies. However, these aspects of leadership style were somewhat gender stereotypic in the two other classes of leadership studies investigated, namely (a) laboratory experiments and (b) assessment studies, which were defined as research that assessed the leadership styles of people not selected for occupancy of leadership roles. Consistent with stereotypic expectations about a different aspect of leadership style, the tendency to lead democratically or autocratically, women tended to adopt a more democratic or participative style and a less autocratic or directive style than did men. This sex difference appeared in all three classes of leadership studies, including those conducted in organizations. These and other findings are interpreted in terms of a social role theory of sex differences in social behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Gender and the evaluation of leaders: A meta-analysis": Correction to Eagly et al.

Reports an error in "Gender and the evaluation of leaders: A meta-analysis" by Alice H. Eagly, Mona G. Makhijani and Bruce G. Klonsky (Psychological Bulletin, 1992[Jan], Vol 111[1], 3-22). Some of the numbers in the Value columns of Table 1, page 11, were aligned incorrectly. The corrected version of Table 1 is provided in the erratum. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1992-16290-001.) Reviews research on the evaluation of women and men that occupy leadership roles. While holding the characteristics, except for sex, constant and varying the sex of the leader, these experiments investigated whether people are biased against female leaders and managers. Although this research showed only a small overall tendency for Ss to evaluate female leaders less favorably than male ones, this tendency was more pronounced under certain circumstances. Specifically, women in leadership positions were devalued relative to their male counterparts when leadership was carried out in stereotypically masculine styles, especially when this style was autocratic or directive. Also, the devaluation of women was greater when leaders occupied male-dominated roles and when the evaluators were men. Findings are interpreted from a perspective that emphasizes the influence of gender roles within organizational settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relational identity theory: A systematic approach for transforming the emotional dimension of conflict.

Emotions are a vital dimension in conflicts among nation-states and communities affiliated by common ethnic, economic, or political interests. Yet the individuals most responsible for managing such conflicts—heads of state, CEOs, intellectual or religious leaders—are often blind to the psychological forces affecting their interests. During 20 years of international research, consulting, and teaching, I have developed a program for teaching thought leaders how to apply psychological principles to achieve their aims while also reducing negative outcomes such as violence, social upheaval, and economic displacement. In this article, I present relational identity theory (RIT), a theoretical and intellectual framework I have originated to help people understand and deal with key emotional dimensions of conflict management. I argue that national and communal bonds are essentially tribal in nature, and I describe how a tribe's unaddressed relational identity concerns make it susceptible to what I term the tribes effect, a rigidification of its relational identity. I provide strategies based on RIT for mitigating the tribes effect and thus enhancing global security. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an affirmative lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender leadership paradigm.

This article presents an affirmative paradigm for understanding the leadership of sexual minorities—that is, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. Although research on LGBT issues in leadership to date is almost nonexistent, there are several bodies of literature that can contribute to an understanding of the unique leadership challenges faced by sexual minority people. These include the literatures on stigma and marginalization, leadership in particular status groups (e.g., college students, women), and LGBT vocational issues (especially workplace climate and identity disclosure). We propose a new, multidimensional model of LGBT leadership enactment that incorporates sexual orientation (particularly regarding identity disclosure), gender orientation (including leader gender), and the situation (conceptualized here as group composition); the model also is embedded in context, the most relevant factors that affect the enactment of leadership being stigma and marginalization. We explicate this model with findings and concepts from relevant literatures, and we conclude the article with recommendations for building a scholarly literature in LGBT leadership. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Influence of gender in family evaluations: A comparison of trained and untrained observer perceptions of matriarchal and patriarchal family interviews.

Examined how training and experience, family roles, and gender of observed family leadership affect ratings of both family and individual parent functioning. Seventy experienced therapists and 70 clinically naive individuals rated 2 videotaped family interviews. One interview demonstrated a matriarchal style of family interaction and the other demonstrated a patriarchal style. Ratings from the 2 groups of observers were compared to determine the effects of training and experience. The effects of leader gender were determined by comparing ratings of the 2 family interviews. Ratings of the mother and the father from the 2 interviews were compared to determine the effects of family roles. Results suggest that experienced observers in assessments of family functioning are vulnerable to biased views of mother-led families. In assessments of parent functioning, results suggest that although training and experience may promote more critical ratings, vulnerability to biased views of women as family leaders is not significantly affected. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An ecological perspective on leadership theory, research, and practice.

Current theories of leadership are based mainly on the industrial paradigm emphasizing the preeminence of positional leaders and the machine-like qualities of organizations. Evolutionary and attributional biases tend to reinforce the industrial paradigm. The authors propose an ecological theory of leadership that makes 4 important assertions: (a) Effective leadership processes involve temporary resolutions of a tension between the traditional industrial approach and the neglected ecological approach; (b) specific leaders are less important than they appear because the ecological context is more important than what leaders decide to do; (c) organizations are more adaptive when there is a diversity of genuine input into decision-making processes; and (d) leadership itself is an emergent process arising from the human interactions that make up the organization. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A two-dimensional model of intergroup leadership: The case of national diversity.

The model presented argues that leadership involves bringing together not only diverse individuals but also the subgroups to which they belong. The model further argues that this does not require replacing people’s subgroup identities with a superordinate group identity (turning “us” and “them” into “we”); bringing together diverse individuals and their subgroups can be accomplished by promoting positive relations among subgroups, even as their distinctive identities (their senses of “us” and “them”) remain. The model conceptualizes positive and negative intergroup attitudes as two independent dimensions of intergroup relations, each with distinct antecedents and distinct associated outcomes. Leaders seeking to create a collective from diverse subgroups must therefore (a) reduce negative intergroup attitudes and (b) increase positive intergroup attitudes. The author applies the model to organizational contexts of national diversity, but it can be applied to leadership across other forms of diversity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Employee customer orientation in manufacturing organizations: Joint influences of customer proximity and the senior leadership team.

Pursuing a customer-focused strategy in manufacturing organizations requires employees across functions to embrace the importance of understanding customer needs and to align their everyday efforts with the goal of satisfying and retaining customers. Little prior research has examined what factors influence employee customer orientation in manufacturing settings. Drawing on the attraction-selection-attrition model, upper-echelons theory, and contingency theories of leadership, this study investigated the joint influences of functional roles' proximity to external customers and the senior leadership team's customer orientation on employee customer orientation. Hierarchical linear modeling results based on data obtained from 4,299 employees and 403 senior leaders from 42 facilities of a global manufacturer operating in 16 countries revealed that employees occupying customer-contact roles had the highest level of customer orientation, followed by employees occupying production roles, and then by those in support roles. In addition, there was a positive relationship between the senior leadership team's customer orientation and employee customer orientation for all 3 functional roles. The positive relationship between the senior leadership team and employee customer orientation was the strongest for employees in support roles, suggesting that lower levels of proximity to external customers may create a greater need for leadership in developing employees' customer-oriented attitudes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction to the special issue on diversity and leadership.

Theories of leadership have neglected diversity issues. As the population within the United States and in countries throughout the world becomes increasingly diverse, the contexts in which leadership occurs within institutions and communities will also become increasingly diverse. Attention to diversity is not simply about representation of leaders from diverse groups in the ranks of leadership. Attention to diversity means paradigm shifts in our theories of leadership so as to make them inclusive; it means incorporating explanations of how dimensions of diversity shape our understanding of leadership. It means paying attention to the perceptions and expectations of diverse leaders by diverse followers and to how bias influences the exercise of leadership. Although leadership theories have evolved and reflect changing social contexts, they remain silent on issues of equity, diversity, and social justice. Theories of leadership need to be expanded to incorporate diversity if they are to be relevant for the 21st century amidst new social contexts, emerging global concerns, and changing population demographics. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Leader–follower values congruence: Are socialized charismatic leaders better able to achieve it?

In a field study, the authors investigated the relationship between socialized charismatic leadership and values congruence between leaders and followers. Socialized charismatic leadership theory holds that charismatic leaders convey a values-based message and bring about values congruence between themselves and their followers. Yet, other research suggests that individuals' values are stable and closely linked to occupational membership and that employees' values are therefore likely to be quite difficult to change. Results of this study suggest that occupations are indeed associated with multiple types of employee values. The results also demonstrate that, for 3 of the 4 values studied, socialized charismatic leadership is associated with values congruence between the specific values leaders say they transmit to their followers and the values their followers say they use in work. The findings shed additional light on the values alignment process. Implications for research and practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender, motivation, and coping in the evaluation of leadership effectiveness.

Examined the effects of gender, coping, and motivational orientation in evaluating individual leadership. Ss were 17 female and 31 male graduate students in an intensive leadership development program at a leading business school. The Shanan Sentence Completion Technique, Jackson's Personality Research Form, and Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices were used to predict peer ratings of leadership at the end of the 9-mo program. The data reveal significant gender differences on the measures of motivation, with men showing higher levels of agentic instrumental tendencies and women exhibiting higher levels of communal-social qualities. These qualities, in turn were differentially correlated with evaluations of leadership. Women exhibiting strong agentic characteristics were negatively perceived as leaders. There was no relationship between agentic or communal qualities and evaluations of leadership received by male leaders. Finally, individuals with active coping tendencies were evaluated as more effective leaders for both genders. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The impact of previous leaders on the evaluation of new leaders: An alternative to prototype matching.

In 2 studies, this research demonstrated the existence of leader transference, a cognitive process whereby mental representations of previous leaders are activated and used for evaluation when new, similar leaders are encountered. The 1st study demonstrated that exposure to a new leader who was similar to a past leader led to erroneous generalization of leader characteristics and associated underlying attributions. The 2nd study showed that expectations of just treatment and abuse were also subject to transfer from old to new, similar leaders, although positive and negative affective responses were not. Results suggested that individuals exposed to a leader who was not reminiscent of an old leader were more likely to use a general leader prototype to form leader expectations, whereas individuals exposed to a leader who was similar to an old leader activated a significant other mental representation for use in making judgments. These results have implications for individual- and relational-level processes as characterized by implicit leadership theory and leader-member exchange theory as well as macro theories of leader succession and organizational culture change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Fostering good citizenship through ethical leadership: Exploring the moderating role of gender and organizational politics.

Considering the implications of social exchange theory as a context for social role behavior, we tested relations between ethical leadership and both person- and task-focused organizational citizenship behavior and examined the roles played by employee gender and politics perceptions. Although social exchange theory predicts that ethical leadership is positively associated with citizenship, social role theory predicts that the nature of this relationship may vary on the basis of gender and politics perceptions. Results from data collected from 288 supervisor–subordinate dyads indicate that the pattern of male versus female employees' citizenship associated with ethical leadership depends significantly on their perceptions of politics. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Promoting more integrative strategies for leadership theory-building.

The agenda for theory and research in the field of leadership studies has evolved over the last 100 years from focuses on the internal dispositions associated with effective leaders to broader inquiries that include emphases on the cognitions, attributes, behaviors, and contexts in which leaders and followers are dynamically embedded and interact over time. Leadership theory and research has reached a point in its development at which it needs to move to the next level of integration--considering the dynamic interplay between leaders and followers, taking into account the prior, current, and emerging context--for continued progress to be made in advancing both the science and practice of leadership. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)