Perception or reality: Glass ceiling in the administrative elite in Portugal
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1590/1806-9584-2022v30n276663Keywords:
Top public managers, Women, Vertical segregation, Public administration, PortugalAbstract
Portuguese top public managers are recruited, since 2011, in a new system aiming to reduce political appointment. From 297 recruitment processes the article asks whether, with formal rules and procedures, more women were appointed to top public management positions. Interviews were also conducted with eight female public managers to understand how female top public managers interpret their professional trajectories, the new system of recruitment and on equality in Public Administration. We were able to find clear evidence for increasing female top public managers after the new system was introduced, mainly in 2nd grade management positions. The female public managers interviewed
do not always trust the system in removing political nominations and they also related cultural barriers.
Downloads
References
ACKER, Joan. “Hierarchies, Jobs, Bodies: A Theory of Gendered Organizations”. Gender and Society, v. 4, n. 2, p. 139-158, 1990.
ALVESSON, Mats; BILLING, Yvonne. Understanding Gender and Organizations. London: SAGE Publications Ltd, 1997.
BEARFIELD, Domonic. “Equity at the Intersection: Public Administration and the Study of Gender”. Public Administration Review, v. 69, n. 3, p. 383-386, 2009.
BILHIM, João. “Política e administração: em que medida a atividade política conta para o exercício de um cargo administrativo”. Sociologia, v. 28, p. 11-31, 2014.
BRANDT, Tiina; LAIHO, Maarit. “Gender and personality in transformational leadership context”. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, v. 34, n. 1, p. 44-66, 2013.
BURKE, Ronald. “Organizational Culture, Work Investments, and the Careers of Men: Disadvantages to Women?”. In: KUMRA, Savita; SIMPSON, Ruth; BURKE, Ronald. The Oxford Handbook of Gender in Organizations. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014. p. 371-392.
BURKE, Sarah; COLLINS, Karen. “Gender differences in leadership styles and management skills”. Women in Management Review, v. 16, n. 5, p. 244-256, 2001.
CALHOUN, Sandy; STRASSER, Patricia. “Generations at Work”. Management File, v. 53, n. 11, p. 469-471, 2005.
CARDONA, Francisco. “Recruitment in Civil Service Systems of EU Members and in some Candidate States”. In: SEMINAR ON CIVIL SERVICE RECRUITEMENT PROCEDURES, 2006, Vilnius, Lithuania, Civil Service Department of Lithuania and Sigma-OECD. Anais… Vilnius: Civil Service Department of Lithuania and Sigma-OECD. p. 1-21.
CHRISTENSEN, Jørgen; KLEMMENSEN, Robert; OPSTRUP, Niels. “Politicization and the Replacement of Top Civil Servants in Denmark”. Governance: An International Journal of Policy, Administration, and Institutions, v. 27, n. 2, p. 215-241, 2014.
CHRISTENSEN, Tom; LAEGREID, Per; RØVIK, Kjell. Organization Theory and the Public Sector: Instrument, Culture and Myth. New York: Routledge, 2007.
CONNELL, Raewyn. Gender and Power: Society, the Person and Sexual Politics. Stanford, California: Polity Press, 1987.
COTTER, David A.; HERMSEN, Joan M.; OVADIA, Seth; VANNEMAN, Reeve. “The Glass Ceiling Effect”. Social Forces, v. 80, n. 2, p. 655-682, 2001.
CUADRADO, Isabel; NAVAS, Marisol; MOLERO, Fernando; FERRER, Emilio; MORALES, J. Francisco. “Gender Differences in Leadership Tyles as a Function of Leader and Subordinates’ Sex and Type of Organization”. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, v. 42, n. 12, p. 3083-3113, 2012.
D’AMATO, Alessia; HERZFELDT, Regina. “Learning orientation, organizational commitment and talent retention across generations: A study of European managers”. Journal of Managerial Psychology, v. 23, n. 8, p. 929-953, 2008.
DEHART-DAVIS, Leisha; MARLOWE, Justin; PANDEY, Sanjay. “Gender Dimensions of Public Service Motivation”. Public Administration Review, v. 66, n. 6, p. 873-887, 2006.
DENHARDT, Robert B.; DENHARDT, Janet V. Public Administration: An Action Orientation. Belmont: Thompson Wadsworth, 2009.
DUNAVÖLGYI, Mária. “Women and Men in Senior Management – Key Recurring Themes and Questions”. VEZETÉSTUDOMÁNY, v. XLVII, p. 64-80, 2016.
EAGLY, Alice; CARLI, Linda. Through The Labyrinth: The Truth About How Women Become Leaders. Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 2007.
EAGLY, Alice; JOHANNESEN-SCHMIDT, Mary. “The leadership styles of women and men”. Journal of Social Issues, v. 57, n. 4, p. 781-797, 2001.
FAGENSON, Ellen. “Women’s work orientations: Something old, something new”. Group and Organization Studies, v. 11, n. 1-2, p. 75-100, 1986.
FAGENSON, Ellen. “At the heart of women in management research: Theoretical and methodological approaches and their biases”. Journal of Business Ethics, v. 9, n. 4-5, p. 267-274, 1990.
GARDINER, Maria; TIGGEMANN, Marika. “Gender differences in leadership style, job stress and mental health in male – and female – dominated industries”. Journal of Occupation and Organizational Psychology, v. 72, n. 3, p. 301-315, 1999.
GIBSON, Christina. “An investigation of gender differences in leadership across four countries”. Journal of International Business Studies, p. 255-279, 1995.
GONZÁLEZ-BUSTAMANTE, Bastián; OLIVARES L., Alejandro; ABARCA, Pedro; MOLINA, Esteban. “Servicio civil en Chile, análisis de los directivos de primer nivel jerárquico (2003-13)”. Revista de Administração Pública, v. 50, n. 1, p. 59-79, 2016.
GUY, Mary; NEWMAN, Meredith. “Women’s Jobs, Men’s Jobs: Sex Segregation and Emotional Labor”. Public Administration Review, v. 64, n. 3, p. 289-298, 2004.
HASLAM, S. Alexander; RYAN, Michelle. “The road to the glass cliff: Differences in the perceived suitability of men and women for leadership positions in succeeding and failing organizations”. The Leadership Quarterly, v. 19, n. 5, p. 530-546, 2008.
HUTCHINSON, Janet. “Feminist Theories and their Application to Public Administration”. In: D’AGOSTINO, Maria; LEVINE, Helisse. Women in Public Administration: Theory and Practice. Ontario: Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2011. p. 3-14.
JONSEN, Karsten; MAZNEVSKI, Martha; SCHNEIDER, Susan. “Gender differences in leadership – believing is seeing: implications for managing diversity”. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, v. 29, n. 6, p. 549-572, 2010.
KOSSEK, Ellen; SU, Rong; WU, Lusi. “‘Opting Out’ or ‘Pushed Out’? Integrating Perspectives on Women’s Career Equality for Gender Inclusion and Interventions”. Journal of Management, v. 43, n. 1, p. 228-254, 2017.
KUPERUS, Herma; RODE, Anita. Top Public Managers in Europe: Management and Employment in Central Public Administrations. The Hague, Netherlands, 2016.
LOJPUR, Anđelko; ALEKSIĆ, Ana; VLAHOVIĆ, Sanja; BACH, Mirjana Pejić; PEKOVIĆ, Sanja. “Examining Determinants of Leadership Style among Montenegrin Managers”. Naše Gospodarstvo our Economy, v. 61, n. 1, p. 13-24, 2015.
LONGARELA, Iñaki. “Explaining vertical gender segregation: a research agenda”. Work, Employment and Society, p. 1-11, 2016.
MACARIE, Felicia. “Women in the Management of Public Organizations”. Studia Universitatis, Babes-Bolyai, Studia Europaea, Cluj-Napoca, v. LI, n. 3, p. 121-130, 2006.
MACARIE, Felicia. “Gender Discrimination in Management: Theorectical and Empirical Perspectives”. Transylvanian Review of Administrative Sciences, v. 35, p. 153-172, 2012.
MACARIE, Felicia; MOLDOVAN, Octavian. “Overcoming the Glass Ceiling in Romanian Public Institutions: A Pilot Study Regarding Strategies Adopted by Female Managers”. In: MANAGERIAL CHALLENGES OF THE CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY. Cluj-Napoca: Risoprint, 2013. p. 126-134.
MADDOCK, Su. “Gender Still Matters and Impacts on Public Value and Innovation and the Public Reform Process”. Public Policy and Administration, v. 24, p. 141-152, 2009.
MASTRACCI, Sharon; BOWMAN, Lauren. “Public Agencies, Gendered Organizations: The future of gender studies in Public Management”. Public Management Review, v. 17, n. 6, p. 857-875, 2015.
MEDINA, José. “Public Administrations as Gendered Organizations. The Case of Spanish Municipalities”. Revista Española de Investigaciones Sociológicas, v. 149, p. 3-30, 2015.
MILLER, Karen. “Public Appointments: The Gendered Nature of Health Policy?”. Public Policy and Administration, v. 21, p. 50-65, 2006.
MORAN, Barbara. “Gender Differences in Leadership”. Library Trends, v. 40, n. 3, p. 475-491, 1992.
NAFF, Katherine. “Through the Glass Ceiling: Prospects for the Advancement of Women in the Federal Civil Service”. Public Administration Review, v. 54, n. 6, p. 507-514, 1994.
NUNES, Filipe. “Autonomia e politização nas elites administrativas portuguesas, 1999-2009”. Análise Social, v. 214, n. 1, p. 104-127, 2015.
NUNES, Filipe. Os Directores-Gerais: O Recrutamento das Elites Administrativas no Portugal Democrático. 2013. Doutoramento (Ciências Sociais/Sociologia Política) – Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal.
PHILLIPS, Susan; LITTLE, Brian; GOODINE, Laura. “Reconsidering Gender and Public Administration: Five Steps Beyond Conventional Research”. Canadian Public Administration, v. 40, n. 4, p. 563-581, 1997.
PORTUGAL. Assembleia da República. Lei n.º 64/2011, de 22 de dezembro de 2011. Diário da República, 1.ª série – N.º 244 – 22 de dezembro de 2011, p. 5373. 2011. Disponível em https://dre.pt/application/conteudo/145045. Acesso em 03/08/2020.
PORTUGAL. Assembleia da República. Lei n.º 128/2015, de 3 de setembro de 2015. Diário da República, 1.ª série – N.º 172 – 3 de setembro de 2015, p. 6892. 2015b. Disponível em https://dre.pt/application/conteudo/70179157. Acesso em 03/08/2020.
PORTUGAL. Ministério das Finanças – Comissão de Recrutamento e Seleção para a Administração Pública. Despacho n.º 14678/2015, de 23 de novembro de 2015. Diário da República, 2.ª série – N.º 242 – 11 de dezembro de 2015, p. 35935. 2015a. Disponível em https://dre.pt/application/conteudo/72854831. Acesso em 03/08/2020.
PORTUGAL. Assembleia da República. Lei nº 62/2017, de 1 de agosto de 2017. Diário da República, 1.ª série – N.º 147 – 1 de agosto de 2017, p. 4414. 2017. Disponível em https://dre.pt/application/file/a/107791568. Acesso em 03/08/2020.
RAADSCHELDERS, Jos; VAN DER MEER, Frits. “Administrative elites in the Netherlands from 1980 to 2011: making the invisible visible”. International Review of Administrative Sciences, v. 80, n. 4, p. 726-745, 2014.
RANDO, Belén; GAGO DA SILVA, Matilde; ANJOS, Cláudia. Igualdade de Género nos Cargos de Direcção da Administração Pública Central – 14 Anos de Políticas para a Igualdade. Lisboa: INA – Direção-Geral da Qualificação dos Trabalhadores em Funções Públicas, 2011.
RAUHAUS, Beth. “Gendered Organizations, Care Ethics, and Active Representation”. Public Voices, v. XIII, n. 1, p. 43-63, 2014.
SABHARWAL, Meghna. “From Glass Ceiling to Glass Cliff: Women in Senior Executive Service”. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, v. 25, n. 2, p. 399-426, 2015.
SCHIAVO-CAMPO, Salvatore; SUNDARAM, Pachampet. To Serve and to Preserve: Improving Public Administration in a Competitive World. Philippines: Asian Development Bank, 2000.
SIEBERT, Sabina. “Gender balance in Scottish local authority councils”. Public Policy and Administration, v. 24, p. 175-193, 2009.
SMITH, Amy. “On the Edge of a Glass Cliff: Women in Leadership in Public Organizations”. Public Administration Quarterly, v. 39, n. 3, p. 484-517, 2015.
STAINBACK, Kevin; KLEINER, Sibyl; SKAGGS, Sheryl. “Women in power: Undoing or Redoing the Gendered Organization?”. Gender & Society, v. 30, n. 1, p. 109-135, 2016.
STAINBACK, Kevin; KWON, Soyoung. “Female Leaders, Organizational Power, and Sex Segregation”. The Annals of the American Academy, v. 639, p. 217-235, 2012.
STIVERS, Camilla. Gender Images in Public Administration: Legitimacy and the Administrative State. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications Inc., 2002.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Revista Estudos Feministas
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Revista Estudos Feministas is under the Creative Commons International 4.0 Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), that allows sharing the work with recognition of authorship and initial publication in this journal.
The license allows:
Sharing (copying and redistributing the material in any support or format) and/or adapting (remixing, transforming, and creating from the material) for any purpose, even if commercial.
The licensor cannot revoke these rights provided the terms of the license are respected. The terms are the following:
Attribution – you should give the appropriate credit, provide a link to the license and indicate if changes were made. This can be done in several ways without suggesting that the licensor has approved of the use.
Without additional restrictions – You cannot apply legal terms or technological measures that prevent others from doing something allowed by the license.
