We study how diversity evolves at a firm with entry-level and upper-level employees who vary in ability and "type" (gender or ethnicity). The ability of entry-level employees is increased by mentoring. An employ receives more mentoring when more upper-level employees have the same type. Optimal promotions are biased by type, and this bias may favor either the minority or the majority. We characterize possible steady states, including a "glass ceiling," where the upper level remains less diverse than the entry level. A firm may have multiple steady states, whereby temporary affirmative-action policies have a long-run impact.
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Volume (Year): 90 (2000) Issue (Month): 4 (September) Pages: 765-786 Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML
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Paper
Susan Athey & Christopher Avery & Peter Zemsky, 1998.
"Mentoring and Diversity,"
NBER Working Papers
6496, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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