1. GENDER & EMOTION IN
THE WORKPLACE
(CHAPTER 13)
Dr. Lora Helvie-Mason, COMS 404
2. Before you read…
Consider why there is a chapter on gender
and emotion
Explore what you EXPECT this chapter will
cover
Reflect on your own experiences in various
organizations
3. Slow changes in the workplace
Women earned 62%
of men’s wages
47% of mothers with
children under 18
worked outside the
home
Men earned the
majority of degrees
Women earning 80% of
men’s wages
Equity increases at
younger age
71% of mothers with
children under 18
worked outside the
home
Women earn over 55%
of all bachelor’s degrees
and 60% of master’s
1970s 2008
4. Know the history
Equal Pay Act of 1963
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Pregnancy Discrimination Act
Civil Rights Act of 1991
Family Medical Leave Act
Millennial women are just as likely as men to want
jobs with great responsibility. The education gap
between women and men has significantly
decreased. The family structure has changed for
both men and women.
5. Slow changes in the family
structure
The workplace isn’t the only aspect of our
society that has changed—so, too, has the
family structure
Is this relevant?
Absolutely!
Work-family and gender policies are tied together.
As our family structures have shifted, our expectations
and needs from our workplace change
6. Changing for employees’ needs
Organizations are creating programs to meet
the needs of the diverse employees in their
care.
On-site daycare
Flextime
Various hours
Dependent care
Flexible spending accounts
Employee Assistance Programs
7. Discrimination & Unequal
Treatment
Only about 15% of senior management positions in the U.S.
are held by women.
The numbers decrease even more when you consider
minority women with only 5.2% of them holding professional
management positions.
Daily and Dalton (1999) wrote about the glass ceiling, a
metaphorical boundary, based on misconceptions,
stereotypes, and beliefs that keep certain groups of
individuals from advancing into management positions.
The metaphor of the concrete ceiling was later developed to
describe the plight of minorities who try to advance through
seemingly impenetrable barriers.
Women tend to occupy caring professions or even caring
positions in professional fields.
8. Discrimination
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
(EEOC)
Sexual Harassment
Quid Pro Quo
Hostile work environment
Sometimes, discrimination is less visible than we
may expect
Consider the fact that women are often not included in
mentoring and networking opportunities (this impacts
promotion/raises, etc.)
What is the difference between ―glass‖ and
―concrete‖ ceilings?
10. Sexuality and Gender Identity
Issues around sexuality and gender identity have become
more open in society, challenging workplaces to craft policies
that prevent workplace discrimination.
2 million transgender professionals LEAVE work due to
discriminatory practices
Sex – biolgoical classification
Gender – culturally defined set of behavioral, cultural, psychological,
and social traits associated with one’s sex
Transgender – umbrella term for individuals with non-traditional
gender identities
Policies are shaping and changing as gender identity and
sexuality are more common topics in the workplace. Diversity
awareness/training, among other suggestions, is essential to
foster an inclusive work environment.
11. Emotions and employees
According to Rafaeli and Sutton (1989) it is
important to know the rules for emotional
management in order to understand
organizational culture.
Appropriate emotional management will help an individual
develop relationships and it can increase an individual’s chances
of achieving career success.
Socialization research on a variety of service industries suggests
that organizations choose employees who seem able to conform
to certain emotional display rules.
12. Emotions and employees
Manage Emotions
Deep acting – emotional display that stems from more of a
conditioned internal state
Surface acting – external state of emotion, it is a public display of
emotions
Amplification
Initiate or enhance public displays of emotions
Suppression
Reducing or eliminating public displays of
emotion
13. Socialization and Expectations
We typically have a set of thoughts about how
an organizational will be. Slowly, as we interact
with its members, we learn what is expected
Professional/Unprofessional
Consider how socialization occurs within the
organizations you have been personally
involved in.
14. Emotional Regulation
Emotional dissonance
Strain
Emotional labor
Frequency of appropriate emotional display
Attentiveness to required display rules
Variety of emotion required to be expressed
Burnout
Socialization
15. Work-Family Balance
Conflict
Health outcomes
―Second Shift‖
Domestic labor
Career advancement implications
Depends on occupations
Stress
Some positives may exist (Greenhous &
Powell)
Consequently, although the policies do
exist in many organizations, working
parents are still conflicted in how to
balance their work and family lives in
such a way that meets the needs of
both their employee and their own
families.
16. Telecommuting and Telework
Nilles defined as:
Telework is ―ANY form of substitution of
information technologies (such as
telecommunications and computers) for work-
related travel‖ (p. 1).
