The masculinity and femininity of female executives (superwomen)

Abstract

Rarely do we see females climb up the ranks. This report aims to describe and evaluate the relationship between the masculinity and femininity of female managers who have climbed up or are in the process of climbing up ladder of management success. Personality Theory, which states that personality will lead to behavior, framed this study. Applying purposive sampling, 100 female managers from top management level (n = 24, Mage = 46 years), middle management level (n = 45, Mage = 40 years), and low management level (n = 31, Mage = 36 years) answered the one-shot survey online. The higher the rank (i.e. CEO, President, VP, etc), the higher the masculinity attributes of the female executive. Therefore it is implied that a female will rank higher if she exhibits masculine traits. Since all the female executives are androgynous, the concept of androgyny is also further evidence that personality does lead to behavior. Applying it to executives in the finance industry, there was a relationship between masculinity and rank. This was also applied to hoteliers, and there is no relationship between the masculinity and rank, and femininity and rank. An adjacent qualitative phase involving three respondents; a president, a bank branch manager, and an associate director, were interviewed. It was found that difference in industries and work orientation influenced their answer. Masculine attributes dominated their answers, and one overlying value encompassed what these female executives value the most: integrity. In conclusion, research verified that the Personality Theory of Trait is applied to the climbing up the corporate ladder of female executives.