1Gender and LeadershipChapter 15Northouse, Leade

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Gender and Leadership
Chapter 15
Northouse, Leadership 8e. © SAGE Publications, 2019.
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Overview
Women and Leadership Perspective
The Glass Ceiling Turned Labyrinth
Evidence of the Leadership Labyrinth
Understanding the Labyrinth
Gender Differences in Leadership Styles and Effectiveness
Navigating the Labyrinth
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Gender and Leadership Approach Description
Historical View

Gender and leadership
Researchers ignored issues related to gender and leadership
until the 1970s
Scholars started by asking “Can women lead?”
Changed by women in leadership
Presence of women in corporate and political leadership
Highly effective female leaders--PepsiCo’s CEO, GM’s CEO,
General Ann Dunwoody, and so on.
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Gender and Leadership Approach Description
Historical View
Current research primary questions
Do men and women lead differently?
Are men more effective leaders than women?
Why are women underrepresented in elite leadership roles?
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Women
Currently outnumber men in higher education--57% of
bachelor’s degrees, 60% of master’s degrees, more than 50% of

doctorates, nearly half of professional degrees (Catalyst, 2017).
Make up nearly half of the U.S. labor force--47%
Still are underrepresented in upper echelons of America’s
corporations and political system
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Women
Represent only 5.4% of Fortune 500 CEOs (Brown, 2017)
Hold only 20.2% of Fortune 500 board seats (Catalyst, 2017)
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Women in Politics
105 of the 535 seats in the U.S. Congress = 19.6%
21%: Senate; 19.3%: House of Representatives
Women of color occupy just 38 seats (Center for Women and
Politics, 2017a,b)
World average of women’s representation in national
legislatures or parliaments is 23.3%. The United States is
ranked 101st out of 193 countries (Inter-Parliamentary Union,
2017).
High-ranking U.S. women military officers = 6.9% (U.S. Dept.
of Defense, 2014)

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The Gender Gap in Leadership
Global phenomenon whereby women are disproportionately
concentrated in lower level and lower authority leadership
positions than men. (Powell & Graves, 2003)
Three types of explanations
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Figure 15.1: Understanding the Leadership Labyrinth
Human Capital Differences
Pipeline Problem--Women have less education, training, and
work experience than men resulting in a dearth of qualified
women.
Pipeline is not empty but leaking--Explanation that women
haven’t been in managerial positions long enough for natural
career progression to occur (Heilman, 1997); not supported by

research.
Domestic division of labor--Explanation that women self-select
out of leadership tracks by choosing “mommy track” positions
that do not funnel into leadership positions (Belkin, 2003;
Ehrlich, 1989; Wadman, 1992); not supported by research
(Eagly & Carli, 2004).
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Women
do have somewhat less work experience and continuity than
men, largely due to disproportionate responsibility women
assume for child rearing and domestic duties
respond to work-home conflicts by not marrying, not having
children, becoming “superwomen,” taking leaves of absence or
working part time
who use flextime and workplace leave are often marginalized;
taking time off from a career makes reentry difficult (Williams,
2010)
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Women
occupy more than half of all management and professional

positions (Catalyst, 2017) but have fewer developmental
opportunities
Have fewer responsibilities in the same jobs as men
are less likely to receive encouragement, be included in key
networks, and receive formal job training than their male
counterparts
confront greater barriers to establishing informal mentor
relationships
are more likely to be put in precarious leadership situations
associated with greater risk and criticism
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Gender Differences in Leadership Styles and Effectiveness
Gender = social meaning ascribed to biological sex categories
Differences between men and women often assumed to be
natural consequence of innate differences
Contrary to stereotypical expectations, women leaders aren’t
less task oriented or more interpersonal than men leaders.
Women do lead in a more participative manner than men.
Adaptive style because women are devalued when they lead in a
masculine manner, occupy a typically masculine role, or when
evaluators are male.
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Transformational leadership
Women’s styles tend to be more transformational than men’s.
Even as transformational leaders, they are valued less than men.
Women engage in more contingent behavior than men.
Women tend to emphasize social values that promote others’
welfare to a greater extent than men.
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Effectiveness of Male and Female Leaders
Men and women equally effective overall
Men and women more effective in roles congruent with their
gender
Women less effective than men when role is masculinized
(military), when supervising large numbers of men, or when
rated by men
Somewhat more effective in education, government, social
service; substantially more effective in middle management
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Commitment to Employment and Motivation to Lead
Men and women show same level of identification and
commitment to paid employment roles.
Men and women both view roles as workers as secondary to
partner and parent roles.
Women less likely to promote themselves for leadership
positions.
Women less likely to emerge as group leaders; more likely to
serve as social facilitators.

Men place more importance on power-related goals, associate
power with less negative outcomes, and are more likely to take
advantage of opportunities for professional advancement.
Men more likely to ask for what they want; women less likely to
negotiate or self-promote and receive more backlash when they
do.
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Prejudice
gender bias stemming from stereotyped expectations--“women
take care and men take charge”
Stereotypes = cognitive shortcuts that influence the way people
process information regarding groups and group members.
Gender stereotypes include beliefs about the attributes of men
and women and prescribe how men and women ought to be.
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Gender Stereotypes
Pervasive, well documented, and highly resistant to change
(Dodge, Gilroy, & Fenzel, 1995; Heilman, 2001)
Men are stereotyped with agentic characteristics
confidence, assertiveness, independence, rationality, and
decisiveness
Women are stereotyped with communal characteristics
concern for others, sensitivity, warmth, helpfulness, and

nurturance (Deaux & Kite, 1993; Heilman, 2001)
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Gender stereotypes explain numerous findings:
Women facing cross-pressures to be tough but not too “manly”
Greater difficulty for women to be viewed as effective in top
leadership roles (Eagly & Karau, 2002)
Penalties for women who violate gender stereotypes (for
example, Price Waterhouse vs. Ann Hopkins; media coverage of
2008 Hillary Clinton presidential run)
Decision-makers influenced by homosocial reproduction, a
tendency for a group to reproduce itself in its own image (for
example, Male leaders choosing male successors)
People high in social dominance orientation show stronger
preference for leaders who are White and male (Hoyt & Simon,
2016)
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How Stereotypes Affect Women Themselves
Pressure of tokenism (Kanter, 1977) and being scrutinized.

Women may assimilate to stereotype OR may counter the
stereotype. Depends on
leader’s self-efficacy
explicitness of the stereotype
type of task
gender composition of the group
power of the leader
whether stereotype threats are combined
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Intersectionality = People who have multiple identities (gender,
ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc.)
Have different leadership experiences
Black women may experience bias in leadership positions
differently than White women or Black men; sometimes
advantaged; sometimes disadvantaged
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Figure 15.2: Leadership Effectiveness
Factors contributing to leadership effectiveness and rise of
female leaders
Culture of many organizations is changing
Gendered work assumptions are being challenged
Organizations valuing flexible workers and diversity of top
managers and leaders
Developing effective and supportive mentoring relationships
Increasing parity in domestic responsibilities
Negotiating for valued positions and resources
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Factors contributing to leadership effectiveness and rise of
female leaders
Women’s foray into entrepreneurship (women-owned businesses
= 31% of privately owned firms)
Improving perceptions of women’s leadership by combining
communal and agentic qualities
Adopting transformational leadership style
Becoming more assertive without losing their femininity

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Women and Leadership
Strengths
Criticisms
Application
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Strengths
Understanding the research in gender and leadership can help
promote more women into upper echelons of leadership
Developing a more androgynous style of democratic leadership
Research on gender and leadership is productive in both
dispelling myths about the gender gap and shining a light on
aspects of the gender barrier that are difficult to see and
therefore are overlooked
Understanding many components of the labyrinth will give us
the tools necessary to combat this inequality from many
perspectives
Research addresses larger, more significant considerations
about gender and social systems
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Criticisms
Leadership researchers should put a greater emphasis on
understanding the role of gender, ethnicity, and sexual
orientation in leadership processes.
Researchers should examine the differences in the impact of
gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation on leadership.
Research in gender issues and leadership is predominantly in
Western contexts and should be expanded into other global
regions.
Research on gender and leadership should be expanded to
include closing the gender gap at home.
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Application
Make it easier for women to reach top positions by
Understanding obstacles that make up the labyrinth
Initiating tactics to eradicate inequality
Prejudice still a factor and needs to be addressed with
awareness
Women can manage biased perceptions of their leadership by
enacting individualized consideration and inspirational
motivation
Using effective negotiation techniques can enhance leadership
advancement
Changes in organizational culture, women’s career
development, mentoring opportunities, and increased numbers
of women in strategic positions will increase presence of
women in prominent leadership roles.

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Culture and Leadership
Chapter 16
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Overview
Culture and Leadership Description
Culture Defined
Related Concepts
Dimensions of Culture
Clusters of World Cultures
Characteristics of Clusters
Leadership Behavior and Culture Clusters
Universally Desirable and Undesirable Leadership Attributes
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Culture and Leadership--focuses on a collection of related ideas
rather than a single unified theory
Globalization:
Increased after World War II
Increased interdependence between nations
Economic, social, technical, political
Has created many challenges
Need to design multi-national organizations
Identify and select leaders for these organizations
Manage organizations with culturally diverse employees
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Five cross-cultural competencies for Leaders (Adler
Bartholomew, 1992)
Understand business, political, and cultural environments
worldwide
Learn the perspectives, tastes, trends, and technologies of many
cultures
Be able to work simultaneously with people from many cultures
Be able to adapt to living and communicating in other cultures
Need to learn to relate to people from other cultures from a

position of equality rather than superiority
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Culture Defined
Culture:
learned beliefs, values, rules, norms, symbols, and traditions
that are common to a group of people
shared qualities of a group that make them unique
is the way of life, customs, and scripts of a group of people
Terms related to culture:
Multicultural--approach or system that takes more than one
culture into account
Diversity--existence of different cultures or ethnicities within a
group or organization
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Ethnocentrism
The tendency for individuals to place their own group (ethnic,
racial, or cultural) at the center of their observations of the
world
Perception that one’s own culture is better or more natural than
other cultures
Is a universal tendency, and each of us is ethnocentric to some

degree
Ethnocentrism can be a major obstacle to effective leadership
Prevents people from understanding or respecting other cul tures
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Prejudice
A largely fixed attitude, belief, or emotion held by an individual
about another individual or group
based on faulty or unsubstantiated data
Involves inflexible generalizations that are resistant to change
or evidence
Is self-oriented rather than other-oriented
Leaders face the challenge of dealing with their own prejudices
and those of followers
Can be toward the leader or leader’s culture
Can face followers who represent culturally different groups,
and they may have their own prejudices toward one another
A skilled leader needs to find ways to negotiate with followers
from various cultural backgrounds
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Hall (1976) reported that a primary characteristic of cultures is
degree of focus--on the individual (individualistic) or on the
group (collectivistic)
Trompenaars (1994) classified an organization’s culture into
two dimensions:
Egalitarian-hierarchical--degree to which cultures exhibit
shared power versus hierarchical power
Person-task orientation--extent to which cultures emphasize
human interaction versus focusing on tasks
Hofstede (1980, 2001) benchmark research identified five major
dimensions on which cultures differ
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House et al.’s (2004) research on the relationship between
culture and leadership resulted in the GLOBE research program
Initiated in 1991--this program involved more than 160
investigators
Used quantitative methods to study the responses of 17,000
managers in more than 950 organizations, 62 different cultures
Developed a classification of cultural dimensions--identified
nine cultural dimensions
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Nine Cultural Dimensions
Uncertainty Avoidance
Extent to which a society, organization, or group relies on
established social norms, rituals, and procedures to avoid
uncertainty
For example, United States promotes entrepreneurship; Middle
Eastern countries value careful business negotiations built on
long-term trusted relationships
Power Distance
Degree to which members of a group expect and agree that
power should be shared unequally
Which power bases (legitimate, expert, etc.) are preferred in a
culture
For example, India caste system where everyone has his/her
“rightful place”
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Institutional Collectivism
Degree to which an organization or society encourages
institutional or societal collective action
For example, North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-II, who
uses military to oversee development of cultural values of
collective effort and non-material incentives
In-Group Collectivism
Degree to which people express pride, loyalty, and cohesiveness
in their organizations or families
For example, some Middle Eastern cultures regard family and
religious affiliation above all else; honor killings of family

members who have disgraced or defied the paternal leader of the
family
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Gender Egalitarianism
Degree to which an organization or society minimizes gender
role differences and promotes gender equality
For example, in Sweden, men and women share power equally.
Extensive welfare system allows both sexes to balance work and
family life
Assertiveness
Degree to which people in a culture are determined, assertive,
confrontational, and aggressive in their social relationships
For example, German managers use straightforward and direct
language; conflict and confrontational discussion are acceptable
workplace behaviors
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Future Orientation
Extent to which people engage in future-oriented behaviors such
as planning, investing in the future, and delaying gratification
For example, many Middle Eastern countries are concerned with
traditional values and ways of doing things; North Americans
believe they can plan and control the future and idealize change

for the sake of changing
Performance Orientation
Extent to which an organization or society encourages and
rewards group members for improved performance and
excellence
For example, standardized testing in U.S. schools
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Humane Orientation
Degree to which a culture encourages and rewards people for
being fair, altruistic, generous, caring, and kind to others.
For example, Switzerland’s helpfulness to others during and
after WW I and WW II. The country espouses tolerance and
responsibility as central educational goals.
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Clusters of World Cultures
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Figure 16.1: Country Clusters According to GLOBE
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Table 16.1: Cultural Clusters Classified on Cultural Dimensions
Characteristics include
Anglo--competitive and result oriented
Confucian Asia--result driven, encourage group working
together over individual goals
Eastern Europe--forceful, supportive of co-workers, treat
women with equality
Germanic Europe--value competition and aggressiveness and are
more result oriented
Latin America--loyal and devoted to their families and similar
groups
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Characteristics include

Latin Europe--value individual autonomy
Middle East--devoted and loyal to their own people, women
afforded less status
Nordic Europe--high priority on long-term success, women
treated with greater equality
Southern Asia--strong family and deep concern for their
communities
Sub-Sahara Africa--concerned and sensitive to others,
demonstrate strong family loyalty
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GLOBE research identified six global leadership behaviors
Charismatic/value-based leadership reflects the ability to
inspire, to motivate, and to expect high performance from others
based on strongly held core values.
Team-oriented leadership emphasizes team building and a
common purpose among team members.
Participative leadership reflects the degree to which leaders
involve others in making and implementing decisions.
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Humane-oriented leadership emphasizes being supportive,
considerate, compassionate, and generous.
Autonomous leadership refers to independent and individualistic
leadership, which includes being autonomous and unique.
Self-protective leadership reflects behaviors that ensure the
safety and security of the leader and the group.
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Desirable Leadership Attributes
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Table 16.2: Universally Desirable Leadership Attributes
Undesirable Leadership Attributes
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Table 16.3: Universally Undesirable Leadership Attributes

Strengths
Criticisms
Application
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Strengths
GLOBE study is a major study and, to date, the only study to
analyze how leadership is viewed by cultures in all parts of the
world.
Findings from GLOBE are valuable because they emerge from a
well-developed, quantitative research design.
GLOBE studies provide a classification of cultural dimensions
that is more expansive than the commonly used Hofstede
classification system.
GLOBE studies provide useful information about what is
universally accepted as good and bad leadership.
GLOBE studies provide a foundation for subsequent studies of
cross-cultural leadership.
The study of culture and leadership underscores the complexity
of the leadership process and how it is influenced by culture.
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Criticisms
Research does not provide a clear set of assumptions and

propositions that can form a single theory about the way culture
relates to leadership or influences the leadership process.
Labels and definitions of cultural dimensions and leadership
behaviors are somewhat vague, difficult at times to interpret or
to fully comprehend the findings about culture and leadership.
Subsequent research has found that GLOBE cultural dimensions
are often contradictory and don’t measure the same qualities
when used in quantitative studies.
This study focuses on what people perceive to be leadership and
ignores a large body of research that frames leadership in terms
of what leaders do (e.g., transformational leadership, path–goal
theory, skills approach).
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Criticisms
Researchers in the GLOBE study measured leadership with
subscales that represented a very broad range of behaviors and
as a result compromised the precision and validity of the
leadership measures.
The GLOBE studies tend to isolate a set of attributes that are
characteristic of effective leaders without considering the
influence of the situational effects.
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Application
The findings about culture can help leaders understand their
own cultural biases and preferences.
Different cultures have different ideas about what they want
from their leaders, and these findings help our leaders adapt
their styles to be more effective in different cultural settings.
The findings can help global leaders communicate more
effectively across cultural and geographic boundaries.
Information on culture and leadership can be used to build
culturally sensitive websites, design new employee orientation
programs, conduct programs in relocation training, and improve
global team effectiveness.
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