Storming the Last Bastions: Women Entering High Prestige Male-Dominated Occupations

Abstract

While substantial progress has occurred, men continue to predominate in a number of high-prestige occupations. Women entering prestigious and rewarding occupations predominated by men often experience biased perceptions, a sense of misfit to the position, and an unwelcoming workplace. In this symposium, five research teams from Canada, the U.K., the U.S., and Germany present new research examining women’s experiences in high prestige male-dominated fields. Deploying both quantitative and qualitative research methods in a global set of studies, together, these scholars trace the contemporary experiences of women in male-dominated fields from attraction, to selection, to participation/empowerment, to performance, and finally, the achievement of equal pay. Altogether, the combined set of findings provides a fresh understanding of contemporary challenges as well as new evidence-based solutions for improving women’s participation and experiences in these relatively munificent, high-prestige settings. Glass Cliff or Speed Bump? Gender Diversity in U.S. Mutual Fund Management Teams: 1992 – 2016 Presenter: Saurin Patel; Ivey Business School Presenter: Natasha Ouslis; Western U. Presenter: Alison M. Konrad; Ivey Business School Presenter: Kenneth Goh; Singapore Management U. Gendered Language & Entrepreneurial Joiners Presenter: Simon Parker; Ivey Business School Presenter: Mihwa Seong; Ivey Business School Big Questions and Plenty Guesswork: Female Candidates for Professorships in Male-Dominated Fields Presenter: Regina Dutz; Technical U. of Munich Presenter: Claudia Peus; Technical U. of Munich Ready to Put on Your Steel-Toed Boots?: Women in Construction Engineering Presenter: Amy Randel; San Diego State U. Presenter: Benjamin Martell Galvin; Brigham Young U. Presenter: Thais C. L. Alves; San Diego State U. Gender Pay Gaps and Pay Systems: Institutional and Structural Discrimination and Doctors in England Presenter: Carol Woodhams; U. of Surrey