The role of culture and gender in the choice of a career in management

Abstract

PurposeThe paper addresses the influence of culture and gender on the choice of a management career among men and women MBA students in Israel, the USA, the UK, Turkey, Cyprus, Hungary and India. The culture by gender comparison enabled an examination of five theories: two that focused on culture (Hofstede's and an application of Schneider's ASA model) and three that focused on gender (evolutionary theory, social role theory and social construction theory). The five theories have contradictory predictions about the relative influence of culture and gender.Design/methodology/approachSeven hundred and forty‐seven MBA students (390 male and 357 female and approximately 100 in each country) responded to a self‐report measure that was assembled especially for the purpose of the study.FindingsThe findings showed large cross‐cultural differences and small gender differences in the influences and aspirations associated with a career choice in management.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings support Hofstede's research and social construction theory, which predicted the cross‐cultural differences. They provide some support for social role theory, which predicted both gender and cross‐cultural differences, and very limited support for evolutionary theory, which predicted large and universal gender differences, and for the application of Schneider's ASA model, which predicted no cross‐cultural differences.Originality/valueThe findings are important in light of the small percentage of women in top management positions and the view of an MBA as means for breaking through the glass ceiling into top management. The findings can be translated to recommendations for encouraging women's entry into management.

Female manager career success: the importance of individual and organizational factors in South Korea

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Impact of Prior Entrepreneurial Exposure on Entrepreneurial Intention — Cross-Cultural Evidence

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The Influence of National Culture on Business Students' Career Attitudes – An Analysis of Eight Countries

“…Despite the comprehensive research on career decision making, the influence of culture or nationality has been widely neglected so far. Following the social construction theory (Berger & Luckmann, 1966), which predicts cultural differences in career planning (Malach-Pines & Kaspi-Baruch, 2008), culture plays a significant role in the way individuals make career decisions (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 2000). The influence of cultural-contextual factors on individuals' career behaviors and outcomes has been identified in the literature (e.g.…”