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Balancing Professional Prototypes Increases the Valuation of Women in Male-Dominated Professions

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  • Felix Danbold

    (Leonard N. Stern School of Business, New York University, New York, New York 10003;)

  • Corinne Bendersky

    (Anderson School of Management, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095)

Abstract

We tackle the persistent problem of people from specific demographic groups (e.g., women) being undervalued in professional contexts in which traits associated with their group do not align with the traits perceived to be essential for success (the professional prototype). We introduce the concept of balancing professional prototypes such that group membership becomes irrelevant to determining an individual’s prototypicality. Using a novel technique called prototype inversion , we emphasize the importance of professional traits typically associated with an underrepresented group, without dismissing those associated with the currently prototypical group. By balancing the prototype in this way, it becomes easier to recognize the professional potential of members of underrepresented groups, without incurring backlash from the currently prototypical group. We conducted a full-cycle research project to demonstrate the effectiveness of this strategy in the extreme context of women in firefighting using qualitative and quantitative methods and participants from both the laboratory and the field.

Suggested Citation

  • Felix Danbold & Corinne Bendersky, 2020. "Balancing Professional Prototypes Increases the Valuation of Women in Male-Dominated Professions," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 31(1), pages 119-140, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:ororsc:v:31:y:2020:i:1:p:119-140
    DOI: 10.1287/orsc.2019.1288
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Eric Luis Uhlmann & Victoria Brescoll & Erica Dawson, 2010. "Hard-won and easily lost: The fragile status of leaders in gender-stereotype-incongruent occupations," Post-Print hal-00637056, HAL.
    2. Kray, Laura J. & Galinsky, Adam D. & Thompson, Leigh, 2002. "Reversing the Gender Gap in Negotiations: An Exploration of Stereotype Regeneration," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 386-410, March.
    3. Marianne Bertrand & Sendhil Mullainathan, 2004. "Are Emily and Greg More Employable Than Lakisha and Jamal? A Field Experiment on Labor Market Discrimination," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(4), pages 991-1013, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. McSweeney, Jordan J. & McSweeney, Kevin T. & Webb, Justin W. & Devers, Cynthia E., 2022. "The right touch of pitch assertiveness: Examining entrepreneurs' gender and project category fit in crowdfunding," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 37(4).
    2. Minson, Julia A. & Bendersky, Corinne & de Dreu, Carsten & Halperin, Eran & Schroeder, Juliana, 2023. "Experimental studies of conflict: Challenges, solutions, and advice to junior scholars," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).

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