Position power and women’s career advancement
Abstract
An instrument for assessing job advancement potential in organizational contexts was developed and administered to a sample of professional females. The Power and Fast Track Job (PFTJ) scale included items measuring organizational power, employee recognition, mentorship, and job flexibility/autonomy. As expected, the PFTJ scale was found to be positively related to self‐reported career success, perceptions of leadership ability, and company support for equal opportunities in the workplace. In addition, follow‐up data indicated that scores on the PFTJ scale were useful in predicting subsequent job promotion or demotion in the current sample. These preliminary findings suggest that the PFTJ scale might have some potential utility as an assessment tool for female professionals seeking job advancement. However, women who rated their jobs as having greater power and fast track potential were also more likely to experience work/family role conflict, and reported less job satisfaction. The costs and benefits associated with jobs having advancement potential are discussed.
Keywords
Citation
Mae Kelly, R. and Dabul Marin, A.J. (1998), "Position power and women’s career advancement", Women in Management Review, Vol. 13 No. 2, pp. 53-66. https://doi.org/10.1108/09649429810208738
Publisher
:MCB UP Ltd
Copyright © 1998, MCB UP Limited