New Insights on the Gender Gap in Negotiation, Competition, and Career Choices

Abstract

Despite years of research and initiatives aimed at attenuating the gender gap in organizational contexts, women remain underrepresented, particularly in positions of power and status. A robust body of work on supply-side explanations suggest that some of this gender gap stems from gender differences in participation in behaviors that facilitate career advancements, such as negotiating a higher salary, competing for promotions, and pursuing career aspirations over family. Further, this body of work suggests that this gender gap arises from dispositional differences, and that women are less likely than men to engage in these behaviors across most, if not all, contexts. In this symposium, we push back against this narrative that women are less willing to negotiate, less competitive, and less career-oriented than men. We adopt a contextual lens to broaden our understanding of why women do not engage in behaviors that facilitate career advancement. Together, these talks broaden our understanding of the gender gap in negotiation, competition, and career choices, by providing strong evidence that these gender gaps do not stem purely from dispositional differences, but often arise in reaction to institutional and social barriers. The Effect of Dyad Gender Composition on Negotiation Behaviors Presenter: Anyi Ma; Duke U. Presenter: Estelle Archibold; Case Western Reserve U. The Dynamics of Gender and Alternatives in Negotiation Presenter: Jennifer Dannals; Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth Presenter: Julian Jake Zlatev; Harvard Business School Presenter: Nir Halevy; Stanford U. Presenter: Margaret A. Neale; Stanford U. Gender Role Mindsets: A Lens for Examining Who Can