The Perils of Gender Beliefs for Men Leaders as Change Agents for Gender Equality

Abstract

This article examines the potentially damaging role that gender beliefs can play in hindering women's equal representation in leadership positions. Based on a secondary analysis of a large‐scale EU‐wide survey (Eurobarometer 76.1), the article shows that essentialist gender beliefs lower support for equality interventions such as quotas or targets, particularly among men as leaders. The results show that discriminatory gender beliefs partially mediate this relationship and produce a more negative effect among men leaders. The paper contributes to understanding the role essentialist gender beliefs often lay the groundwork for gender discriminatory beliefs. Those in turn hinder support for effective gender equality measures. Gender essentialist beliefs can be held by everyone but are more prevalent among men leaders. We conclude that greater gender balance in leadership cannot be achieved without tackling underlying gender beliefs, particularly among men leaders since they are called upon to enact change. We thereby argue that simply asking for men to become change agents for gender equality is not an effective strategy if underlying gender beliefs are left unchallenged.

Gender Equality in Appointments of Board Members: The Role of Multiple Actors and their Dynamics

“…It also exemplifies that, while the frontrunners recognized and rejected essentialist gender differences, the men change agents' drive to appoint a woman was partly motivated by essentialist beliefs on gender differences (see also Humbert et al . 2018). Given that the men on the company's boards did act as change agents in this case – playing a vital role in a woman being appointed – but that their motives and strategies were clearly different from those of the frontrunners in the change process, we call these actors moderate change agents .…”

Introduction: Critically interrogating inclusion in organisations

“…Hence, inclusion presents a complex paradox here as without change to the mould, inclusion is not quite possible and yet the potential for change to the boundaries breeds discontent from the dominant majority as we have seen, for instance, with men resisting inclusion initiatives in organisations (see e.g. Humbert et al, 2019;Kelan, 2018).…”

CEOs as agents of change and continuity

“…The language of champions might make such behaviours more appealing to others who want to adopt it, but it also resonates with the idea that leaders engaging in gender equality are heroic (Kelan and Wratil, 2018;de Vries, 2015). Prior research has looked at how men in leadership positions hold more essential views, which hinders their potential to be change agents (Humbert et al, 2019). Other research has highlighted how men as change agents for gender equality are positioned, which in turn limits how men in leadership can unfold their power to change gender relations (Kelan, 2019).…”

“…While research on gender and leadership has focused on women's approaches and experiences of leadership, the role of leaders in advancing gender equality has more recently emerged as an important question for gender and leadership (Humbert et al, 2019;Kelan, 2019;Kelan and Wratil, 2018;de Vries, 2015). This conceptual shift from looking at women in leadership to looking at how leaders can create gender equality is significant because it allows consideration of the practices of leadersboth women and men -in respect to gender equality.…”