ABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to understand women’s experiences with second- generation gender bias in the Ghanaian banking sector. Women’s rate of advancement in leadership roles is currently higher than their rate of advancement into executive management roles in the workplace. Second-generation gender biases or implicit biases are one of the poorly addressed factors explaining the low percentages of women’s advancement into executive level management roles. First-generation gender biases are the intentional and visible acts of discrimination against women, but implicit gender bias is more obscure and almost invisible. It occurs when a person consciously rejects gender stereotypes but still unconsciously makes evaluations based on those stereotypes. The aim of this study was achieved using a qualitative approach to compare and contrast women’s experiences in two banks in Accra, Ghana. A thematic analysis using Evetts’ (2000) three-dimensional framework consisting of cultural, structural and action dimensions, was used to analyze in-depth interviews with 12 female employees from the two banks. The results reveal the existence of implicit gender biases in the banks. However, the women did not perceive it as injurious to their career progression as they would have viewed explicit gender biases. This study concludes that if the effects of implicit gender biases on career women are undermined, it is likely to create an environment that tolerates the bias. A tolerant environment for implicit biases will eventually have a detrimental impact on their career progression.
Key words: Gender-bias, Career Progression, Women, Banking
DEFINITION OF TERMS
- Executive role: This describes corporate officers and directors in top-tier positions, like Chief Operating Officer and Chief Finance Officer.
- Career progression/advancement: This is the upward development within one’s career, primarily through promotions. An individual can progress by moving from entry-level to a management role in the same field, or across fields (Mckay, 2018).
- Gendered bureaucracy: An organizational culture embedded in the masculine style and organization of public and private administrations (Adusah-Karikari & Ohemeng, 2014).
- Glass-ceiling: A metaphor used to describe the subtle barriers women face after they get to mid -management positions. They progress to the top of middle management but are not able to progress any further (Schwanke, 2013).
- Think manager-think male: The perception that the role of a manger or top executive is best played by a male; thus, the position of “manager” is easily associated with being a man (Schein & Davidson, 1993).
- Gendering: Incorporating the gender perspective into the understanding and construction of persons, experiences, reflections, relationships, sectors of action, societal subsystems and institutions (Šribar, 2015).
- Organizational culture: This “consists of the ideals and practices which serve as ‘glue’ to integrate the people in an organization.” (Watkins, 2013).
TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT……………………………………………………………………………. iii
ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………………………………………. iv
DEFINITION OF TERMS…………………………………………………………………………….. v
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………… 1
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW………………………………………………. 11
- Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………. 11
2.8.1.2 Cultural dimension………………………………………………………………………. 26
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY……………………………………………………… 31
3.1 Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………. 31
3.3 Research Questions………………………………………………………………………………. 31
3.4. Research Design………………………………………………………………………………….. 31
3.6.2. Sample Population………………………………………………………………………… 33
CHAPTER FOUR: DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS……………………………. 38
- Findings………………………………………………………………………………………………. 38
4.9.1 Comparison of Experiences with Implicit Biases in the Two Banks…….. 61
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS…………………… 63
REFERENCES……………………………………………………………………………………………. 68
APPENDICES…………………………………………………………………………………………….. 80
Appendix A: Consent Form………………………………………………………………………… 80
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
Background of Study
The conversation on women acting in their capacity as leaders in Ghana has been ongoing for centuries. These discussions date as far back as pre-colonial Ghana. During the pre-colonial era, the traditional roles men played within the community allowed them to benefit from formal training (Allah-Mensah, 2005). In addition to this, the legal and cultural systems then, largely drenched in patriarchy, did not allow women to access the same opportunities in the leadership sphere as men did. The systems of the European colonial administration suppressed women, and this meant that being a man was associated with the art of governance and statesmanship (Allah- Mensah, 2005). As a result, women and girls did not have access to the leadership steppingstone of formal education, and this made them subordinated in political and economic matters, diminishing their traditional basis of power (O’ Barr & FirminSellers, 1995).
Nevertheless, female monarchs known as queen mothers have existed in Ghana and Africa at large since the pre-colonial era, operating within a system of a central authority that is characterized by gender parallelism and lineage (Stoeltje, 1997). Queen mothers’ function in parallel roles to chiefs, meaning that leadership is dual, using the Asantes within the Akan ethnic group in Ghana as an example (Stoeltje, 2003). The Asante queen mother holds her office and holds power based on her qualifications, as she has her stool unlike some others in Africa who obtain their authority from their relationship to a chief (Stoeltje, 1997). This system of gender parallelism involves a political organization that encompasses gender disparities by vesting equal lines of authority – female and male (Stoeltje, 1997). However, the responsibilities of the queen mother and chief differ as the queen mother is primarily
responsible for women, domestic matters and giving counsel to the chief (Stoeltje, 1997). Colonialism and missionary activities, nevertheless, eroded women’s authority in traditional governance as they introduced Eurocentric ideologies of gender interactions which emphasized women’s responsibilities in domestic affairs and curtailed their role in the decision-making public sphere (Steegstra, 2009). Although queen mothers were ignored by the British and have been bypassed by contemporary Ghanaian leaders, they remain relevant in modern Ghana and perform their responsibilities (Stoeltje, 2003). Nonetheless, they struggle because they are pre- colonial female authorities striving to stay relevant in a post-colonial society.
The exclusion of some women in governance and the educational system did not last for the entire colonial period. Nonetheless, the gender gap in education and thus, leadership was too colossal to be redeemed by a few years of girl-child education (Konde, 1992). As of 1994, women in the public sector were concentrated in the lower ranks (Tsikata, 2009). In the 1984 census, out of the 79 occupational categories recorded, only 18 represented women, of which 16 were semi-skilled or unskilled occupations in the informal sector (Tsikata, 2009). For decades, the colonial structures put in place in Ghana marginalized women who had the potential to be leaders. Post-colonial Ghana in the 21st century is not devoid of colonial Ghana’s ripple effects of leadership-gender disparity, and this makes the gender equality discussion still relevant.
Moreover, the scope of the dialogue has progressively shifted because women are increasingly joining the workforce around the globe (Catalyst, 2018). Women are attaining leadership roles in organizations and government offices around the world. However, it is necessary to examine how effective the rate is to bridge the leadership- gender gap.
Many women around the world have access to the corporate world, as long as they are qualified (The Businesswoman Media, 2016). However, the pace of women progressing in their careers and attaining executive-level roles is languid. It is crucial to query the systems, factors, and traits that may be causing this snail’s pace.
Although more than half of entry-level workers at 60 Fortune 500 companies are women, only 19 percent progress to executive level (Barsh, Devillard, & Wang, 2012). The banking sector is no different as a recent study by Catalyst (2019) found that globally, women are likely to be promoted into executive roles such as Chief Finance Officer in the finance industry at a low rate. However, they constitute almost half of the industry. In Ghana, the percentage of women in the workforce is at an unparalleled high rate of 96.1 percent (Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs, 2018) and this is evidence that women are well-represented in the workforce. If the rate at which men and women gain employment as entry-level employees is similar, it is important to question why the number of women who make it to the executive level is low and probe into the factors that are responsible (Mckinsey, 2012).
Conversely, gendered bureaucracy in corporations may cause women’s low representation at the top. Gendered bureaucracy is primarily an organizational culture embedded in the masculine style and organization of public and private administrations (Adusah-Karikari & Ohemeng, 2014). This organizational culture creates gender biases in the workplace. Gender bias is institutionalized within social norms, religion, and education (Grover, 2015). The gender bias phenomenon has received attention since the origin of civilized society and world advancement, as women have joined the workforce and are represented in almost all positions (Grover, 2015). First-generation gender biases are the deliberate and apparent acts of
discrimination against women in the society or workplace, but second-generation gender bias or implicit bias is more obscure, concealed, planned, and structured (Grover, 2015). An example of first-generation gender bias is uneven pay for men and women in the same job roles as well as the prevalence of sexual harassment within workplaces, with more claims filed by women (Reiners, 2019). An example of implicit gender bias is when someone assumes that a male medical personnel is a doctor when he could be a nurse, and a female medical personnel is a nurse when she could be a doctor within the hospital setting. Either sex can play these roles as long as they are qualified. Although one may explicitly believe in men and women’s equal ability to qualify as medical personnel, there is an unconscious assumption about which sex fits a particular role. These biases result from the environments we live in and are related to one’s attitudes (Santry & Wren, 2012).
Second-generation gender bias has presented several challenges as well as limitations to career women who are striving to attain top leadership positions.
Climbing the leadership ladder is tough because of existing negative bias towards women in work environments which are tacitly regarded as a “man’s world” and the banking sector is not exempt (Ely et al., 2011). A contributing factor to the bias in Ghana is the traditional role women have been limited to in Ghana. Although this perception is changing, it confines women to the kitchen, expecting them to exhibit a nurturing nature while men should be the opposite in character (Arkorful, Doe, & Agyemang, 2014). Besides gender stereotyping and discrimination against women, there also exists a glass-ceiling that has equally hindered women from assuming management roles (Rinehart, & Kols 1988).
Problem Statement
Gender describes the cultural, social, and psychological qualities of people as masculine or feminine, usually grounded on each sex but attributed to qualities of either biological sex (Claes, 1999). Gender stereotypes are the beliefs and expectations concerning the behavioural characteristics ascribed to individuals based on their gender (Ely et al., 2011). Beliefs about women in executive positions possessing male characteristics reinforce the “think manager-think male” idea (Cortis & Cassar, 2005) because possessing these characteristics are seen as better indicators of success. This stereotype of male characteristics in leadership indicating success breeds biases that are gender-based in the workplace, and thus skewing judgments and decisions in favour of men, intentionally or unintentionally. First-generation gender biases or explicit gender biases have comprised deliberate and evident acts of discrimination against women (Grover, 2015). However, second-generation gender biases, also known as implicit biases, have a neutral façade, but its fundamental practices are primarily male-oriented (Grover, 2015).
