One Group’s Advantage or Another Group’s Disadvantage? How Comparative Framing Shapes Explanations of, and Reactions to, Workplace Gender Inequality

Abstract

Gender inequality is usually described as women’s disadvantage, only rarely as men’s advantage. Moreover, it is often illustrated by metaphors such as the glass ceiling—an invisible barrier to women’s career advancement—metaphors that often also focus on women’s disadvantage. Two studies ( N = 228; N = 495) examined effects of these different ways of framing gender inequality. Participants read about gender inequality in leadership with a focus on either women or men, and either without a metaphor ( women underrepresented vs. men overrepresented) or with a women-focused or men-focused metaphor ( glass ceiling/ labyrinth vs. old boys’ club). Metaphors caused participants to perceive gender inequality as (somewhat) more important. Regardless of metaphor use, women-focused descriptions led to more explanations of inequality focusing on women relative to explanations focusing on men, as well as to more suggestions of interventions targeting women at the expense of interventions aimed at systemic changes.