Abstract
Research has shown that men and women are similar in their capabilities and management competence; however, there appears to be a “glass ceiling” which poses invisible barriers to their promotion to management positions. One explanation for the existence of these barriers lies in stereotyped, biased attitudes toward women in executive positions. This study supports earlier findings that attitudes of men toward women in executive positions are generally negative, while the attitudes of women are generally positive. Additionally, we found that an individual's level of cognitive moral development correlates significantly with attitudes toward women executives. Limitations of the present study and implications for ethics and diversity training in organizations are discussed.
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Debbie Thorne is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at The University of Tampa. She earned her doctorate in 1993. Her research has been published in conference proceedings and in The Journal of Teaching in International Business and The Journal of Business Ethics.
Linda Howell Everett is an Associate Professor of Management in the Master of Arts in Organizational Management program at Trevecca College, Nashville, Tennessee. Her research interests include business ethics, decision making, risk, and mergers and acquisitions.
Carol Danehower is an Assistant Professor of Management in the Fogelman College of Business and Economics at The University of Memphis. Her research interests include gender issues, employee motivation, and employee benefits.
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Everett, L., Thorne, D. & Danehower, C. Cognitive moral development and attitudes toward women executives. J Bus Ethics 15, 1227–1235 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00412821
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00412821