Date of Graduation

12-2011

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Management

Advisor/Mentor

Morimoto, Shauna

Committee Member/Reader

Newman, Joanna

Abstract

Previous research has indicated that the characteristics associated with successful business managers are more often attributed to men in general than to women in general. This paper seeks to examine the current state of perceived gender-typing of the characteristics associated with successful business managers. Using the Schein Descriptive Index (Schein, 1973), undergraduate business students (N=177) were asked to rate women in general, men in general, or successful business managers on a set of 92 descriptive terms. Intraclass correlation coefficients were computed to estimate the ANOVA between groups. Respondents were also asked to describe in their own words what they believe constitutes a successful business manager. Results from the quantitative analysis of the descriptive terms indicate that men students, management majors, accounting majors, and respondents with differing levels of work experience found a large and significant resemblance between the ratings of men in general and the ratings of successful business managers. However, results from the qualitative analysis indicate that certain characteristics attributed to successful business managers were also often attributed to women in general. The findings are compared to previous research and implications for women in management are discussed.

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