How are women's glass ceiling beliefs related to career success?

Self-Compassion, Work Engagement and Job Performance among Intensive Care Nurses during COVID-19 Pandemic: The Mediation Role of Mental Health and the Moderating Role of Gender

(1) Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted attention on the importance of certain variables in predicting job performance. Among these, mental health is one of the main variables affected by this pandemic. It can have an important mediating role in predicting job performance by individual, occupational, and organizational variables, especially in the nursing community. However, there is little information about its mediation role among the predictors of job performance. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the role of mental health as a mediating factor in the influence of self-compassion and work engagement on ICU nurses' job performance during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the moderating effect of gender on all model relations. A survey of 424 ICU nurses (men 193 and women 231) was undertaken in three Coronavirus hospitals in Isfahan, Iran. (2) Method: Questionnaires were distributed and collected among the statistical sample, and the data from the questionnaires were analyzed using AMOS24 software (version 24). The research model was evaluated in two stages (the main model and the two sub-models in two gender groups). (3) Result: The analysis revealed that work engagement (β = 0.42, p < 0.001), mental health (β = 0.54, p < 0.001) and job performance (β = 0.51, p < 0.001) were discovered to be positively related to self-compassion. Work engagement is positively associated with mental health (β = 0.16, p < 0.01) and job performance (β = 0.21, p < 0.001), and mental health is linked positively to job performance (β = 0.23, p < 0.001). Furthermore, the effects of self-compassion and work engagement on job performance are mediated by mental health. According to the findings, gender moderates the link between self-compassion and work engagement, work engagement and job performance, and self-compassion and job performance. (4) Conclusion: Mental health has a mediating role in the effect of self-compassion and work engagement on ICU nurses' job performance. Gender also acted as a moderator in some relationships. Males are dominant in all of these relationships as compared to females.

The subjective career success of women: The role of personal resources

Introduction

Research on women’s career success has been the subject of extensive investigations, emphasizing the barriers they encounter in their careers. However, far less attention has been given to the personal resources that promote women’s career success. The purpose of our study was to provide more conclusive evidence regarding the role that personal resources such as resilience and grit can play in the relationship between women’s person-environment fit and the perceptions of their career success. Underpinned by the Job Demands Resources and social cognitive theory, our study aims to investigate whether resilience and grit could either explain how person-environment fit translates into feelings of subjective career success or could strengthen this relationship.

Method

A cross-sectional online survey research design was used, and a convenience sample of 408 female employees was obtained. Relationships were explored through structural equation modelling.

Results

When controlling for age, the findings of this study revealed significantly positive relationships between the constructs, with person-environment fit, resilience, and grit, explaining a large portion of the variance in subjective career success. Although our data supported the mediating role of grit and resilience in the person-environment fit and subjective career success relationship, the moderating effects of grit and resilience could not be established.

Discussion

These findings illustrate both grit and resilience as mechanisms that indirectly affect the person-environment fit and subjective career success relationship of women. However, our findings indicate that resilience and grit cannot be considered mechanisms that would buffer against poor person-environment fit’s effect on their career success perceptions. Firstly, our study advances our understanding of the roles personal resources such as resilience and grit play in women’s career success as ways to overcome obstacles and workplace barriers. Secondly, using the motivational process of the Job Demands Resources Framework as theoretical background, we contribute by shedding light on how personal resources (resilience and grit) can be considered underlying factors influencing the person-environment fit and career success relationship for women. If women experience good person-environment fit, there is a greater opportunity for developing resilience and grit and, consequently, subjective career success.

How Impactful Are Grit, I-Deals, and the Glass Ceiling on Subjective Career Success?

Due to the ever-changing organizational and societal conditions that make reliance on external definitions of success unworkable or undesirable, subjective career success has remained a critical topic in careers studies. Among the drivers of subjective career success, research has identified personality traits and job resources as essential sources. Grit, in the form of a personality trait, together with I-deals (job resource) and perceptions of employees’ glass ceiling can provide new insights regarding factors, which can heighten employees’ subjective career success. Therefore, the main purpose of the study is to investigate the direct and indirect effect of grit on each dimension of subjective career success via I-deals and perceptions of the glass ceiling. Surveys from 221 female security forces from both private and public sector in Oyo state, Nigeria, were collected and the data was analyzed using the smartPLS. The results showed that grit is positively related to I-deals, glass ceiling and career satisfaction, but not to happiness, psychological wellbeing, and work engagement. I-deals mediated the relationship between grit and subjective career success’ dimensions, while the glass ceiling did not. This study was able to infer that personality trait (grit) has much to relate with how women perceive the existence of the glass ceiling in their organization.

The role of glass ceiling in women's promotion to managerial positions from the perspective of faculty members at Iran University of Medical Sciences

BACKGROUND

In recent years, many changes have been observed in women's roles in organizations. In Iran, women face challenges to be promoted to high-level organizational positions. The present study aimed to examine the role of glass ceiling in promoting women to managerial positions from the perspective of the faculty members at Iran University of Medical Sciences.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This research was an applied study in terms of objectives and a descriptive-survey study in terms of data collection, variable monitoring and control, and generalizability. The statistical population of the study encompassed all clinical and basic sciences faculty members at Iran University of Medical Sciences in 2019-2020. The simple random sampling method was adopted, and the study instrument was the standard questionnaire of women's beliefs about glass ceiling developed by Smith (2012). To analyze the data, descriptive and inferential (namely paired-sample t-test and one-sample t-test) statistics were run in the SPSS software.

RESULTS

The results revealed that glass ceiling dimensions could predict 48% of the variance of women's promotion to managerial positions. Furthermore, a significant difference was noticed between men and women's perspectives toward glass ceiling (P < 0.001); however, there was no significant difference between the two groups of clinical and basic sciences (P > 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Failure to provide appropriate opportunities for qualified women to be promoted to managerial positions would result in nonexploitation of about half of the available capacities and talents. Women have unique abilities and soft skills in the human resource management. At the macro-level, policy-makers and planners to review the plans and delegation of organizational-managerial positions and also to further consider the role of women in managerial positions by observing gender justice and meeting criteria such as capability and expertise.

How Do Failed Entrepreneurs Cope with Their Prior Failure When They Seek Subsequent Re-Entry into Serial Entrepreneurship? Failed Entrepreneurs' Optimism and Defensive Pessimism and Coping Humor as a Moderator

Entrepreneurial failure is prevalent, and particularly when the COVID-19 crisis exacerbates the economic recession, it becomes even more prevalent. Entrepreneurs experience an intensive emotional crisis when their ventures fail, and this deleterious impact, including stress and emotional pain, may prevent failed entrepreneurs (FEs) from restarting; hence, how they cope with failure has received increased attention in recent years. However, most of the extant literature focuses on success rather than failure, and there is very limited literature on how FEs cope with the psychological and emotional crisis caused by failure. This study focuses on FEs' use of optimism and defensive pessimism as coping strategies within the mental simulation theory with respect to their re-entry intentions. It examines the impact of career ambition and public self-awareness on optimism, of the fear of failure (FoF) and self-doubt, on defensive pessimism, and of coping humor as a moderator. We used structural equation modeling to analyze the data of 277 Korean FEs who have actual entrepreneurial failure experiences and actively prepared for their re-entry. The results show that career ambitions and public self-awareness have an impact on optimism, and FoF and self-doubt lead to defensive pessimism. Coping humor also has a moderating effect on the path from defensive pessimism to the intention to re-enter. This study advances the literature on coping mechanisms that FEs employ to manage the negative impact of failure and prepare for their subsequent re-entry. Its theoretical model, based on the mental simulation theory combined with social comparison theory, provides a possible integrative framework that includes both the pervasively held view of entrepreneurs' optimism related to overconfidence and their defensive pessimism related to their vulnerability due to their ventures' failure. Thus, this study makes theoretical contributions to the literature of entrepreneurial failure, as well as practical implications for policymakers and educators who assist FEs in successfully coping with entrepreneurial failure and re-entry.

Psychological aspects of women’s career growth constraints and outcomes: A longitudinal study from India

This longitudinal study explores the relationships between glass ceiling beliefs (i.e. denial, resilience, resignation, and acceptance) and the outcomes of work commitment and work turnover intention, mediated via work engagement, across two time waves. Using data collected from 400 women employees (mean age = 36.67 years) from the banking sector in India, the study found support for the mediating role of work engagement between glass ceiling beliefs and both work commitment and work turnover intention over time. Glass ceiling beliefs of denial and resilience were related positively to work engagement and commitment and related negatively to turnover intention over time. Resignation and acceptance were related negatively to work engagement and work commitment and related positively to work turnover intention over time. Apart from theoretical implications to the career literature, the organizational implications of this study include framing policies that focus on development of optimistic beliefs and transformation of pessimistic beliefs.

Antecedents of women managers’ resilience: conceptual discussion and implications for HRM

Purpose

This paper aims to provide a framework with the antecedents of women managers’ resilience in SMEs.

Design/methodology/approach

This developmental study uses a comprehensive literature review and a set of propositions to identify the antecedent of women managers’ resilience and develops a conceptual framework for resilience.

Findings

The results indicate that in addition to personal resilience traits, interactive engagement with the work environment, career adaptability and positive human resource management (HRM) interventions are the main antecedents of women managers’ resilience.

Research limitations/implications

This paper contributes to theory by providing a new perspective on the study of resilience as a process at the organisational level and as a trait at personal level. It contributes to the women employee-centric resilience discussion in HRM literature and explores the relationship between resilience and women managers’ career progression. This is a developmental study, and despite the strengths of the undertaken approach, there are a number of limitations due to the lack of empirical evidence. Therefore, future research activities should focus on validating the framework and determining any potential boundaries of this resilience framework.

Practical implications

The study reveals a number of practical implications leading to a recommended resilience toolkit for HR managers of organisations to develop and promote resilience in their women managers and aspiring managers.

Social implications

The social implications of this study include the social relationships within the work-setting, better employee engagement and interaction with the work environment and flexible career progression pathways.

Originality/value

The paper is based on rich conceptual and theoretical discussion that identifies the key antecedents of women managers’ resilience. The study also conceptually establishes the moderating relationship between women managers’ resilience and work stress and burnout.

Women’s glass ceiling beliefs predict work engagement and burnout

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between glass ceiling beliefs, work engagement, and burnout.

Design/methodology/approach

A research model was developed based on the constructs from the Career Path Survey (CPS) and a literature review of research related to work engagement and burnout. Data from a cross-sectional study of 467 female employees from banks in India were collated and empirically tested, using structural equation modeling.

Findings

Denial and resilience were positively related to work engagement and negatively to burnout. Resignation and acceptance had a positive relationship with burnout and a negative relationship with work engagement.

Research limitations/implications

Further longitudinal studies focusing on different occupational sectors and career aspects can be considered for a more accurate and generalized insight into this concept.

Practical implications

Glass ceiling survey can be considered as an input for human resource functions for effectiveness of the organization.

Originality/value

This paper is the first to analyze the connection between the beliefs that women have about the glass ceiling and burnout and its components.

Theoretical Framework of Glass Ceiling

Working women worldwide have faced career difficulties. Examples of this include women academic leaders in India where negative cultural beliefs about women moving to the top-management positions (also referred to as glass ceiling) still exist. Although they are highly educated and competent workers, they have unequal opportunities to be organizational leaders or top executives. Academic women with greater knowledge and abilities can actually perform as academic leaders, and they can support educational development of the country. Government and educational institutions should realize the potential of academic women and provide them with equal opportunities for career advancement in organizations. In order to get a better understanding of glass ceiling of India’s women academic leaders, the concepts and theories related to glass ceiling, particularly in the Asian context, are discussed in this article. It provides a theoretical framework of glass ceiling which is based on two theories of justice, namely Rawlsian theory and utilitarian theory. Educational institutions that more effectively apply the theoretical framework of justice to their management practices are hypothesized to have lesser glass ceiling problems than others.

Give and you shall receive: investing in the careers of women professionals

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to explore what organizations can do to facilitate the retention and advancement of women professionals into top leadership positions. A social exchange framework is applied to examine ways organizations can signal support for and investment in the careers of women professionals, and ultimately the long-term work relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

– This paper employed a qualitative methodology; specifically, semi-structured interviews with 20 women executives, in primarily the US hospitality industry, were conducted. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and content analyzed.

Findings

– Organizations are likely to strengthen the retention of their female professionals if they signal support through purposeful, long-term career development that provides a sightline to the top, and ultimately creates more female role models in senior-level positions. Organizations can also signal support through offering autonomy over how work is completed, and designing infrastructures of support to sustain professionals during mid-career stages. Findings are used to present a work-exchange model of career development.

Research limitations/implications

– This research is an exploratory study that is limited in its scope and generalizability.

Practical implications

– The proposed work-exchange model can be used to comprehensively structures initiatives that would signal organizational support to – and long-term investment in – female professionals and enable them to develop their career paths within their organizations.

Originality/value

– Through offering a work-exchange model of career development, this paper identifies components of organizational support from a careers perspective, and highlights the factors that could potentially contribute to long-term growth and retention of women professionals.

Work Engagement and Career

Work engagement is currently one of the most studied topics in organizational science. Moreover, from the various performance-based perspectives of human resource development (HRD), work engagement is closely tied to employees’ career. However, although research on work engagement and career has been conducted, more research is necessary to understand these concepts and investigate their relationship given their positive influences on organizations. More specifically, a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between work engagement and career that draws on the extant literature is both relevant to and beneficial for HRD professionals seeking to design and implement career-related strategies to enhance individual employees’ levels of work engagement. Thus, this study aims to examine the relationship between work engagement and career, ultimately synthesizing current studies into an integrated framework that describes the work engagement–career relationship and suggests future research agendas.

From female leadership advantage to female leadership deficit

Purpose

– This paper takes an institutional approach to identify cognitive, normative, and regulatory factors affecting women’s business leadership in an under-studied traditional society. The purpose of this paper is to assess how such forces work to create a case of female leadership deficit (FLD) in Lebanon.

Design/methodology/approach

– The authors analyze interview data to identify themes linking women’s leadership with societal institutional forces. The qualitative analysis provides an understanding at the societal level of analysis which is only partially tempered through organizational structures.

Findings

– Misalignments among cognitive, normative, and regulative pillars inhibit real change. Organizational structures are not highly salient as the most important factors affecting women’s leadership. Rather, patriarchal structures, explicit favoring of males over females, and assignment of women to nurturing roles within the private sphere of the family are the major limiting factors impeding women’s ascension to leadership.

Research limitations/implications

– A promise of the institutional approach is enhancing the capacity to make meaningful comparisons between societies. This opens the door to uncovering whether documentable changes in regulations, cognitions, values, and norms regarding women in business leadership, will lead to observable changes in the size of FLD.

Originality/value

– This study presents a case of institutional pluralism where a positive force in one direction (regulatory) is sometimes opposed by other forces (cognitive and normative) limiting meaningful change. This study helps to explain why societies differ in the size of the FLD and to identify factors that predict within societal changes in the size of this deficit over time.

The Glass Ceiling and Executive Careers

With respect to how the enduring challenge of the glass ceiling might be resolved, one position holds that parity in the executive ranks will be achieved, given enough women entering the managerial pipeline. However, there is scant evidence that such a pipeline exists, and pre-career women’s attitudes toward executive work remain to be better understood. Guided by theories of social role and stereotype threat, and research on work–life balance and culture, the study uses thematic discourse analysis to explore executive attitudes in an ethnically diverse sample of 69 Canadian undergraduate women in business. We find that they perceive the glass ceiling in stereotype threatening ways, blame their personal limitations and work–family choices for its existence, and sense a range of obstacles to their advancement. Although some expressed a desire for work–family balance, participants predominantly restricted career choices to favor one over the other. Implications, recommendations, and limitations are also discussed.

Career development and individuals with physical disabilities

Purpose

– Few studies have focussed on the situation of employees with physical disabilities from the perspective of human resources management – in particular on the career development expectations of this group. The purpose of this paper is to meet this need by focussing on individuals with physical disabilities in Andalusia (Spain). It analyzes three key aspects: whether the perception of discrimination is related to the perception of inequity due to their disabilities, with this relationship being moderated by gender; whether these perceptions of inequality and discrimination lead to feelings of dissatisfaction with the employing organization; and whether the perception of discrimination mediates the relationship between perceived inequity and job dissatisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

– Using the theoretical framework of organizational justice, regression analysis is applied to test the hypotheses in a population of 459 employed people with physical disabilities.

Findings

– The results show that perceived discrimination is due to perceived inequity when peers who do not have a disability are used as comparative reference; however, this relationship is not moderated by gender. These perceptions of inequity and discrimination cause individuals to feel dissatisfaction in organizations, and a mediating effect is found for the perception of discrimination in professional development opportunities. The control variables considered, age and education, are not significant in the relationships studied.

Originality/value

– An original and valued model is proposed to explain job dissatisfaction among employees with physical disabilities and the possibility of perceiving a dual disadvantage, in their possibilities for professional development. The model links together three variables that have not previously been linked all together in the literature – perceived inequity, perceived discrimination on the grounds of disability, and dissatisfaction – highlighting that perceived discrimination on the grounds of disability mediates the relationship between perceived inequity and dissatisfaction. This model can also examine whether a dual disadvantage is perceived owing to an individual's being a woman and having a disability, considering gender as a variable that moderates the relationship between perceived inequity and perceived discrimination on the grounds of disability.

Examining Social Class and Work Meaning Within the Psychology of Working Framework

In this article, we used the psychology of working framework to examine how social class relates to the experience of meaningful work with two samples of working adults. In Study 1, participants in higher social classes were more likely to experience work meaning than people in lower social classes. Regardless of class, participants reported serving others or contributing to the greater good as the primary source of their work’s meaning. In Study 2, we used a latent, multiple mediator model to test whether the three components of work volition mediated the relation between social class and work meaning. The model was a good fit to the data and partially supported our hypotheses. Specifically, volition and financial constraints fully mediated the relation between social class and work meaning, suggesting that social class may be linked to work meaning due to increased volition and decreased financial constraints.