Reconsidering gender and public administration: Five steps beyond conventional research

Canadian Public Administration

Volumn 40, Issue 4, 1997, Pages 563-581

  Phillips, Susan D ^a   Little, Brian R ^a   Goodine, Laura A ^a  

^a NONE

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

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EID: 0347703305     PISSN: 00084840     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1754-7121.1997.tb02173.x     Document Type: Article

References (47)

1. In respect of the confidentiality of our interviews, we have used pseudonyms.
2. A. Hochschild, The Second Shift: Working Parents and the Revolution at Home (New York: Viking, 1989).
3. This research has been funded by the Canadian Centre for Management Development and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada under the Strategic Granting Category, "Women and Change." Our research has focused on managers and those in the feeder categories to management, but we recognize that issues related to women in management are only one part of broader research questions about gender and public administration.
4. F.N. Schwartz, "Management Women and the New Facts of Life," Harvard Business Review (January/February 1989), pp. 65-76; cf. C.E. Olofson, "Management Women: Debating the Facts of Life," Harvard Business Review (May/June 1989), pp. 182-214.
5. F.N. Schwartz, "Management Women and the New Facts of Life," Harvard Business Review (January/February 1989), pp. 65-76; cf. C.E. Olofson, "Management Women: Debating the Facts of Life," Harvard Business Review (May/June 1989), pp. 182-214.
6. J. Marshall, Women Managers: Travellers in a Male World (Chichester: Wiley, 1984) makes the case that women have similar motivations towards work to those of men. For a contrasting view, see Yvonne Due Billing and Mats Alvesson, Gender, Managers and Organizations (New York: de Gruyter, 1994), p. 82. It is well documented, however, that there are differences in motivation according to occupational level, with women in higher levels feeling greater motivation and commitment towards paid work. See A.R. Hochschild, Time Bind: When Work Becomes Home and Home Becomes Work (New York: Metropolitan Books, 1997), Chapter 4.
7. J. Marshall, Women Managers: Travellers in a Male World (Chichester: Wiley, 1984) makes the case that women have similar motivations towards work to those of men. For a contrasting view, see Yvonne Due Billing and Mats Alvesson, Gender, Managers and Organizations (New York: de Gruyter, 1994), p. 82. It is well documented, however, that there are differences in motivation according to occupational level, with women in higher levels feeling greater motivation and commitment towards paid work. See A.R. Hochschild, Time Bind: When Work Becomes Home and Home Becomes Work (New York: Metropolitan Books, 1997), Chapter 4.
8. J. Marshall, Women Managers: Travellers in a Male World (Chichester: Wiley, 1984) makes the case that women have similar motivations towards work to those of men. For a contrasting view, see Yvonne Due Billing and Mats Alvesson, Gender, Managers and Organizations (New York: de Gruyter, 1994), p. 82. It is well documented, however, that there are differences in motivation according to occupational level, with women in higher levels feeling greater motivation and commitment towards paid work. See A.R. Hochschild, Time Bind: When Work Becomes Home and Home Becomes Work (New York: Metropolitan Books, 1997), Chapter 4.
9. See, for example, L.E. Duxbury and C.A. Higgins, "Gender Differences in Work-Family Conflict," Journal of Applied Psychology 76, no. 1 (April 1991), pp. 60-74.
10. See P.A. Thoits, "Multiple Identities: Examining Gender and Marital Status Differences in Distress," American Sociological Review 51, no. 2 (April 1986), pp. 259-72.
11. Hochschild, Time Bind: When Work Becomes Home and Home Becomes Work, pp. 200-201.
12. On this point, see also E.A. Fagenson, "At the Heart of Women in Management Research: Theoretical and Methodological Approaches and Their Biases," Journal of Business Ethics 9, no. 4-5 (April/May 1990), pp. 267-74; and R.T. Mowday and R.I. Sutton, "Organizational Behavior: Linking Individuals to Groups to Organizational Contexts," Annual Review of Psychology 44 (1993) pp. 195-229.
13. On this point, see also E.A. Fagenson, "At the Heart of Women in Management Research: Theoretical and Methodological Approaches and Their Biases," Journal of Business Ethics 9, no. 4-5 (April/May 1990), pp. 267-74; and R.T. Mowday and R.I. Sutton, "Organizational Behavior: Linking Individuals to Groups to Organizational Contexts," Annual Review of Psychology 44 (1993) pp. 195-229.
14. B.R. Little, "Personal Projects: A Rationale and Method for Investigation," Environment and Behavior 15, no. 3 (May 1983), pp. 273-309; and B.R. Little, "Personal Projects Analysis: Trivial Pursuits, Magnificent Obsessions, and the Search for Coherence," in D.M. Buss and N. Cantor, eds., Personality Psychology: Recent Trends and Emerging Directions (New York: Springer-Verlag, 1989), pp. 15-32.
15. B.R. Little, "Personal Projects: A Rationale and Method for Investigation," Environment and Behavior 15, no. 3 (May 1983), pp. 273-309; and B.R. Little, "Personal Projects Analysis: Trivial Pursuits, Magnificent Obsessions, and the Search for Coherence," in D.M. Buss and N. Cantor, eds., Personality Psychology: Recent Trends and Emerging Directions (New York: Springer-Verlag, 1989), pp. 15-32.
16. These and additional results of this study were reported in S.D. Phillips, B.R. Little and L. Goodine, Organizational Climate and Personal Projects: Gender Differences in the Public Service (Ottawa: CCMD, 1997).
17. L. Goodine, "A Personal Projects Perspective on Commitment" (Ph.D. diss. Department of Psychology, Carleton University, in preparation); and B.R. Little, "Personal Project Pursuit: Dimensions and Dynamics of Personal Meaning," in P.T.P. Wong and P.S. Fry, eds., Handbook of Personal Meaning: Theory, Research and Application (Hillsdale, N.J.: Erlbaum, in press).
18. L. Goodine, "A Personal Projects Perspective on Commitment" (Ph.D. diss. Department of Psychology, Carleton University, in preparation); and B.R. Little, "Personal Project Pursuit: Dimensions and Dynamics of Personal Meaning," in P.T.P. Wong and P.S. Fry, eds., Handbook of Personal Meaning: Theory, Research and Application (Hillsdale, N.J.: Erlbaum, in press).
19. C. Taylor, Sources of the Self: Making of the Modern Identity (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1989).
20. K.E. Weick and L.R. Berlinger, "Career Improvisation in Self Designing Organization," in M.B. Arthur, D.T. Hall and B.S. Lawrence, eds., Handbook of Career Theory (London: Cambridge University Press, 1989), p. 314.
21. The possible selves concept and methodological approach is described in H. Markus and P. Nurius, "Possible Selves: The Interface between Motivation and the Self-Concept," in K. Yardley and T. Honess, eds., Self and Identity: Psychosocial Perspectives (London: John Wiley & Sons, 1987), pp. 157-22.
22. We are in the process of re-interviewing these women to determine whether they, in fact, have chosen to leave the public service and, if so, whether they are more engaged in community activities as they had planned to be.
23. For a fuller discussion of free traits, see B.R. Little, "Free Traits, Personal Projects and Idio-Tapes: Three Tiers fo Personality Research," Psychological Inquiry 8 (1996), pp. 340-4; and B.R. Little, "Free Traits and Personal Contexts: Expanding a Social Ecological Model of Well- Being," in W.B. Walsh, K.H. Craik and R.H. Price, eds., New Directions in Person-Environment Psychology, 2nd edition (Hillsdale, N.J.: Erlbaum, in press).
24. For a fuller discussion of free traits, see B.R. Little, "Free Traits, Personal Projects and Idio- Tapes: Three Tiers fo Personality Research," Psychological Inquiry 8 (1996), pp. 340-4; and B.R. Little, "Free Traits and Personal Contexts: Expanding a Social Ecological Model of Well-Being," in W.B. Walsh, K.H. Craik and R.H. Price, eds., New Directions in Person-Environment Psychology, 2nd edition (Hillsdale, N.J.: Erlbaum, in press).
25. F.J. Sulloway, Born to Rebel: Birth Order, Family Dynamics, and Creative Lives (New York: Pantheon Books, 1996).
26. R.A. Cooke and D.M. Rouseau, "Behavioral Norms and Expectations: A Quantitative Approach to the Assessment of Organizational Culture," Group & Organizational Studies 13, no. 3 (September 1988), pp. 250-1. Organizational culture is generally regarded as the more encompassing concept. It is usually defined as the realities, values, symbols and rituals held in common by members of an organization that contribute to the creation of norms and expectations of behaviour. See E. H. Schein, Organizational Culture and Leadership: A Dynamic View (San Francisco: Jossey Bass). It is important to remember that the relevance of both concepts hinges on how climate or culture is perceived and experienced by the individual.
27. R.A. Cooke and D.M. Rouseau, "Behavioral Norms and Expectations: A Quantitative Approach to the Assessment of Organizational Culture," Group & Organizational Studies 13, no. 3 (September 1988), pp. 250-1. Organizational culture is generally regarded as the more encompassing concept. It is usually defined as the realities, values, symbols and rituals held in common by members of an organization that contribute to the creation of norms and expectations of behaviour. See E. H. Schein, Organizational Culture and Leadership: A Dynamic View (San Francisco: Jossey Bass). It is important to remember that the relevance of both concepts hinges on how climate or culture is perceived and experienced by the individual.
28. Task Force on Barriers to Women in the Public Service, Beneath the Veneer (Ottawa: Supply and Services Canada, 1990).
29. R.M. Kanter, Men and Women of the Corporation (New York: Basic Books, 1977).
30. We also assessed the impact of organizational climate by including a dimension in the personal projects matrix that measures the perceived supportiveness and, second, the perceived hindrance of the culture for the conduct of one's projects. We then correlated the ratings on these dimensions with ratings on job satisfaction. Although there are no gender differences in level of job satisfaction, there are major differences in the way satisfaction is linked to organizational climates. Although perceived supportiveness of the organizational climate is strongly correlated with job satisfaction (significant at p < .000) for women, it is not significantly related to job satisfaction for men at all. However, for men, what is important is the perceived hindrance of the culture. This suggests that women scan their environments looking for potential sources of support (or lack of it) that can be drawn on as they undertake their work projects, while men are scanning ways in which their projects may be impeded. The latter implies a more individualist approach to the conduct of one's projects in which the primary goal is to ensure not being frustrated in project completion.
31. C. Gilligan, In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and Women's Development (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1982).
32. J.W. Berry and D.L. Sam, "Acculturation and Adaptation," in J.W. Berry, M.H. Segall and C. Kagitcibasi, eds., Handbook of Cross-Cultural Psychology, vol. 3, Social Behavior and Applications (Boston: Allyn and Bacon, in press).
33. K. Korabik, "Strangers in a Strange Land: Women Managers and the Legitimization of Authority." Paper presented to the annual meeting of the Canadian Psychological Association, Montreal, 1993.
34. See, for example, M. Hennig and A. Jardim, The Managerial Woman (New York: Anchor Press, 1978); and S.M. Donnell and J. Hall, "Men and Women as Managers: A Significant Case of No Significant Difference," Organizational Dynamics 8, no. 4 (Spring 1980), pp. 60-76.
35. See, for example, M. Hennig and A. Jardim, The Managerial Woman (New York: Anchor Press, 1978); and S.M. Donnell and J. Hall, "Men and Women as Managers: A Significant Case of No Significant Difference," Organizational Dynamics 8, no. 4 (Spring 1980), pp. 60-76.
36. J. Rosener, "Ways Women Lead," Harvard Business Review (November/December 1990), pp. 119-20.
37. J. Wajcman, "Desperately Seeking Differences: Is Management Style Gendered?" British Journal of Industrial Relations 34, no. 3 (September 1996), p. 334.
38. Canada, Treasury Board Secretariat, Employment Statistics for the Federal Public Service April 1, 1996 to March 31, 1997 (Ottawa: Treasury Board Secretariat, 1997), p. 18.
39. Canada, Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to Cabinet, [Jocelyne Bourgon] Fourth Annual Report to the Prime Minister on the Public Service of Canada (Ottawa: Privy Council Office, 1997), p. 46.
40. Figures provided by the Treasury Board Secretariat, "Public Service Employment and Payroll by Employment Class, 1997" table. Naturally, this concentration of women at the lower end of the executive category is reflected in salaries. Women constitute only 16.8 per cent of the permanent employees (N = 3,382) earning over $80,000 and only 15.7 per cent of those (N = 694) earning over $100,000 per year. Treasury Board Secretariat, Employment Statistics for the Federal Public Service April 1, 1996 to March 31, 1997, calculated from p. 16.
41. Clerk of the Privy Council, Fourth Annual Report to the Prime Minister, p. 46.
42. Ibid., p. 58.
43. In fiscal year 1990-91, there were ninety-seven external (forty-five women and fifty-two men) and twenty-five internal (seventeen women and eight men) recruits into the management trainee program. Of this cohort, seventy-six successfully completed the program. The dramatic decline in recruitment began in fiscal year 1994-95, with a total of only twenty-five people entering the program. In the past two years, no visible minorities or aboriginal people and only two persons with disabilities have begun the program. Figures are taken from "Management Trainees 1991-1996," provided by Recruitment Programs and Priority Administration Directorate, Public Service Commission, 1997.
44. See, for example, Linda Duxbury, Men and Women Working as Partners: A Reality Check of Canadian Organizations (Ottawa: Centre for Research and Education on Women and Work, Carleton University, 1996), pp. 12-14; and Task Force on Barriers to Women in the Public Service, Beneath the Veneer, vol. 1, pp. 53-4.
45. See, for example, Linda Duxbury, Men and Women Working as Partners: A Reality Check of Canadian Organizations (Ottawa: Centre for Research and Education on Women and Work, Carleton University, 1996), pp. 12-14; and Task Force on Barriers to Women in the Public Service, Beneath the Veneer, vol. 1, pp. 53-4.
46. Clerk of the Privy Council, Fourth Annual Report to the Prime Minister, p. 38.
47. At the federal level, La Relève is an attempt to renew and revitalize the public service, but it is primarily a central-agency initiative led by the clerk of the Privy Council. Its sucess will depend on whether departments that now hold the real power are in fact committed to its goals. In many respects, it goals are not that different from those of PS2000, the major, but largely failed, attempt at public-service reform by the Mulroney goverment.