Women in Management
Introduction
Women in management: a Malaysian perspective
Cross-cultural work on attitudes towards women managers has been scant. However, studies of sex-role socialization and sexstereotyping have demonstrated the worldwide existence of negative attitudes towards women in non-traditional roles (Ariffin, 1995;
Guy, 1992). Multinational ethnographic research has reported the universal existence of certain roles and behaviours for women and men. Surveys of women in management positions in the USA have indicated a notion of masculine managerial model of “organizational man” (Dorbrzynski, 1996; Guy, 1992;
Rosener, 1995). Against this standard, women are perceived to be inadequate as managers. The existence of a male managerial model creates negative attitudes for women seeking positions or advancement in management careers in organizations. Prejudices about women restrict their recruitment and promotion to the positions of power in organizations. In male dominated fields, there exists a doubt if women can ever accomplish the job as well as a man. Employers also doubt if women can work successfully with men as their co-workers. Yousof (1995) and Kelly
(1991) indicate that women themselves believe that even in the future, female managers in the top management positions will be scarce. The primary reason offered for such a situation is the child-bearing and childrearing role of women. According to Kelly
(1991), the public sectors in many countries have employed women in top administrative positions mainly in female-dominated bureaucracies such as social services and education. Other studies (Ariffin, 1986; Guy,
1992; Kelly, 1991) also indicate that in many countries, systematic barriers have been created in specific professions such as financial services industry, medicine, and engineering, which perpetuate occupational sex segregation in the labour force. Even in femaledominated occupations, women remain clustered in lower ranks (Yousof
Women in management: a Malaysian perspective
Cross-cultural work on attitudes towards women managers has been scant. However, studies of sex-role socialization and sexstereotyping have demonstrated the worldwide existence of negative attitudes towards women in non-traditional roles (Ariffin, 1995;
Guy, 1992). Multinational ethnographic research has reported the universal existence of certain roles and behaviours for women and men. Surveys of women in management positions in the USA have indicated a notion of masculine managerial model of “organizational man” (Dorbrzynski, 1996; Guy, 1992;
Rosener, 1995). Against this standard, women are perceived to be inadequate as managers. The existence of a male managerial model creates negative attitudes for women seeking positions or advancement in management careers in organizations. Prejudices about women restrict their recruitment and promotion to the positions of power in organizations. In male dominated fields, there exists a doubt if women can ever accomplish the job as well as a man. Employers also doubt if women can work successfully with men as their co-workers. Yousof (1995) and Kelly
(1991) indicate that women themselves believe that even in the future, female managers in the top management positions will be scarce. The primary reason offered for such a situation is the child-bearing and childrearing role of women. According to Kelly
(1991), the public sectors in many countries have employed women in top administrative positions mainly in female-dominated bureaucracies such as social services and education. Other studies (Ariffin, 1986; Guy,
1992; Kelly, 1991) also indicate that in many countries, systematic barriers have been created in specific professions such as financial services industry, medicine, and engineering, which perpetuate occupational sex segregation in the labour force. Even in femaledominated occupations, women remain clustered in lower ranks (Yousof
References: Ariffin, J. (1995), Reviewing Malaysian Women’s Status: Country Report in Preparation for the Fourth UN Rosener, J.B. (1995), America’s Competitive Secret, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Ariffin, R. (1986), “The exploitation of women: an overview”, Sojourn: Social Issues in Southeast Asia, Tan, P.C. (1991), Female Participation at Higher Management Levels in the Public Sector, Report No. 1, Status and Role of Malaysian Women in Development and Swarup, H. and Sinha, N. (1991), “Women in public administration in India”, Women and Politics, Vol. 11 No. 4. Dorbrzynski, J. (1996), “Gaps and barriers, and women’s careers”, The New York Times, 28 February, p Yahya, S.R. (1991), “Patterns and trends of labor force participation of women”, paper submitted to Guy, M.E. (1992), “Three steps forward, two steps backward: the status of women’s integration into public management”, Paper presented at meeting of the Ying, L.C. and Sim, O.F. (1991), Single Women Executives in the Private Sector, Report No Hanninen-Salmein (1991), “Women in public administration in Finland”, Women and Politics, Vol. 11 No. 4. Hong, E. (1983), “Rural women in development”, in Hong, E Yousof, J.M. (1995), “Women in finance in Malaysia.” Working Paper Series, The Office for Women’s Jani, R. (1992), “Tanggapan Kakitangan Awam Terhadap Penglibatan Kaum Wanita dalam Sektor awam”, Yousof, J.M. and Siegel, G.B. (1994), “Factors that impede and facilitate management careers of women in Kelly, R.M. (1991), The Gendered Economy: Work Careers and Success, Sage, Newbury Park, CA.