IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jadmsc/v10y2019i1p1-d303301.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Gender as a Dimension of Inequality in Accounting Organizations and Developmental HR Strategies

Author

Listed:
  • Faragalla Widad Atena

    (Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Accounting and Audit department, Babes-Bolyai University, 400591 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Adriana Tiron-Tudor

    (Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Accounting and Audit department, Babes-Bolyai University, 400591 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

Abstract

Considering the increasing number of women entering the accounting profession, it is timely to explore the inequalities that still exist and consider what policy processes continue to forge inequalities between men and women. Through a systematic literature review (SLR) of accounting and management journals during the period 1994–2017, we assessed the different dynamics that have shaped inequalities between men and women, presenting both the employee and employer perspectives of professional enhancement. The study was framed around conceptualizations of gendered organizations and highlighted how cultural and social practices impact men and women differently. Our study found there are still organization practices that have profound gendered effects. Our study shows that there are contemporary human resource (HR) practices of recruitment, selection, and advancement; perceptions of visibility and invisibility at work; motherhood and childcare responsibilities; and finally, discourses of the glass ceiling that constitute organization and societal barriers that limit women’s career progression. Most importantly we reveal that constraints nowadays are similar to those identified in the 90s. We explored these gendered constructions and suggest relevant HR strategies that can aid women’s advancement.

Suggested Citation

  • Faragalla Widad Atena & Adriana Tiron-Tudor, 2019. "Gender as a Dimension of Inequality in Accounting Organizations and Developmental HR Strategies," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-24, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jadmsc:v:10:y:2019:i:1:p:1-:d:303301
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3387/10/1/1/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3387/10/1/1/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Anderson-Gough, Fiona & Grey, Christopher & Robson, Keith, 2005. ""Helping them to forget..": the organizational embedding of gender relations in public audit firms," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 30(5), pages 469-490, July.
    2. Kathryn Haynes, 2013. "Sexuality and sexual symbolism as processes of gendered identity formation," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 26(3), pages 374-398, March.
    3. Lupu, Ioana, 2012. "Approved routes and alternative paths: The construction of women's careers in large accounting firms. Evidence from the French Big Four," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 23(4), pages 351-369.
    4. Loft, Anne, 1992. "Accountancy and the gendered division of labour: A review essay," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 17(3-4), pages 367-378.
    5. Haynes, Kathryn, 2008. "(Re)figuring accounting and maternal bodies: The gendered embodiment of accounting professionals," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 33(4-5), pages 328-348.
    6. Duff, Angus, 2011. "Big four accounting firms’ annual reviews: A photo analysis of gender and race portrayals," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 20-38.
    7. J. Scott Armstrong, 1996. "The Ombudsman: Management Folklore and Management Science—On Portfolio Planning, Escalation Bias, and Such," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 26(4), pages 25-55, August.
    8. Barker, Patricia C. & Monks, Kathy, 1998. "Irish women accountants and career progression: a research note," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 23(8), pages 813-823, November.
    9. Burrell, Gibson, 1987. "No accounting for sexuality," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 12(1), pages 89-101, January.
    10. Niamh Brennan & Patrick Nolan, 1998. "Employment and remuneration of Irish chartered accountants : evidence of gender differences," Open Access publications 10197/2910, Research Repository, University College Dublin.
    11. Jeacle, Ingrid, 2011. "A practice of her own: Female career success beyond the accounting firm," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 288-303.
    12. Carmona, Salvador & Ezzamel, Mahmoud, 2016. "Accounting and lived experience in the gendered workplace," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 1-8.
    13. Barbara Bird & Candida Brush, 2002. "A Gendered Perspective on Organizational Creation," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 26(3), pages 41-65, April.
    14. Lehman, Cheryl R., 1992. ""Herstory" in accounting: The first eighty years," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 17(3-4), pages 261-285.
    15. John Dumay & Cristiana Bernardi & James Guthrie & Paola Demartini, 2016. "Integrated reporting: A structured literature review," Accounting Forum, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(3), pages 166-185, September.
    16. Fiona Anderson-Gough & Christopher Grey & Keith Robson, 2002. "Accounting professionals and the accounting profession: linking conduct and context," Accounting and Business Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 32(1), pages 41-56.
    17. Johnson, Eric N. & Lowe, D. Jordan & Reckers, Philip M.J., 2008. "Alternative work arrangements and perceived career success: Current evidence from the big four firms in the US," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 48-72, January.
    18. Anderson, John C. & Johnson, Eric N. & Reckers, Philip M. J., 1994. "Perceived effects of gender, family structure, and physical appearance on career progression in public accounting: A research note," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 19(6), pages 483-491, August.
    19. Adriana Tiron-Tudor & Widad Atena Faragalla, 2018. "Women Career Paths in Accounting Organizations: Big4 Scenario," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-16, October.
    20. Kornberger, Martin & Carter, Chris & Ross-Smith, Anne, 2010. "Changing gender domination in a Big Four accounting firm: Flexibility, performance and client service in practice," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 35(8), pages 775-791, November.
    21. Tessa Wright, 2014. "Gender, sexuality and male-dominated work: the intersection of long-hours working and domestic life," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 28(6), pages 985-1002, December.
    22. Claire Dambrin & Caroline Lambert, 2012. "Who is she and who are we? A reflexive journey in research into the rarity of women in the highest ranks of accountancy," Post-Print hal-00687845, HAL.
    23. Kimberly Frank Charron & D. Jordan Lowe, 2005. "Factors that affect accountant's perceptions of alternative work arrangements," Accounting Forum, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(2), pages 191-206, June.
    24. Garry D. Carnegie & Stephen P. Walker, 2007. "Household accounting in Australia," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 20(1), pages 41-73, March.
    25. Claire Dambrin & Caroline Lambert, 2008. "Mothering or auditing? The case of two Big Four in France," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 21(4), pages 474-506, May.
    26. Dambrin, Claire & Lambert, Caroline, 2012. "Who is she and who are we? A reflexive journey in research into the rarity of women in the highest ranks of accountancy," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 1-16.
    27. Kirkham, Linda M., 1992. "Integrating herstory and history in accountancy," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 17(3-4), pages 287-297.
    28. Martin Kornberger & Chris Carter & Anne Ross-Smith, 2010. "Changing gender domination in a Big Four accounting firm : Flexibility, performance and client service in practice," Post-Print hal-02311996, HAL.
    29. Benschop, Yvonne & Meihuizen, Hanne E., 2002. "Keeping up gendered appearances: representations of gender in financial annual reports," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 27(7), pages 611-636, October.
    30. Czarniawska, Barbara, 2008. "Accounting and gender across times and places: An excursion into fiction," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 33-47, January.
    31. Suddaby, Roy & Gendron, Yves & Lam, Helen, 2009. "The organizational context of professionalism in accounting," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 34(3-4), pages 409-427, April.
    32. Martin Kornberger & Chris Carter & Anne Ross-Smith, 2010. "Changing gender domination in a Big Four accounting firm: Flexibility, performance and client service in practice," Post-Print hal-02276735, HAL.
    33. Niamh Brennan & Patrick Nolan, 1998. "Employment and remuneration of Irish chartered accountants: evidence of," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 7(2), pages 237-255.
    34. Grey, C., 1998. "On being a professional in a "Big Six" firm," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 23(5-6), pages 569-587.
    35. Maurizio Massaro & John Dumay & James Guthrie, 2016. "On the shoulders of giants: undertaking a structured literature review in accounting," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 29(5), pages 767-801, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. María‐Florencia Amorelli & Isabel‐María García‐Sánchez, 2021. "Trends in the dynamic evolution of board gender diversity and corporate social responsibility," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(2), pages 537-554, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Adriana Tiron-Tudor & Widad Atena Faragalla, 2018. "Women Career Paths in Accounting Organizations: Big4 Scenario," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-16, October.
    2. Haynes, Kathryn, 2017. "Accounting as gendering and gendered: A review of 25 years of critical accounting research on gender," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 110-124.
    3. Bitbol-Saba, Nathalie & Dambrin, Claire, 2019. "“It’s not often we get a visit from a beautiful woman!” The body in client-auditor interactions and the masculinity of accountancy," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    4. Gammie, Elizabeth & Whiting, Rosalind, 2013. "Women accountants: Is the grass greener outside the profession?," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(2), pages 83-98.
    5. Dambrin, Claire & Lambert, Caroline, 2012. "Who is she and who are we? A reflexive journey in research into the rarity of women in the highest ranks of accountancy," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 1-16.
    6. Lupu, Ioana, 2012. "Approved routes and alternative paths: The construction of women's careers in large accounting firms. Evidence from the French Big Four," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 23(4), pages 351-369.
    7. Mara Del Baldo & Adriana Tiron-Tudor & Widad Atena Faragalla, 2018. "Women’s Role in the Accounting Profession: A Comparative Study between Italy and Romania," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-23, December.
    8. Sian, S. & Agrizzi, D. & Wright, T. & Alsalloom, A., 2020. "Negotiating constraints in international audit firms in Saudi Arabia: Exploring the interaction of gender, politics and religion," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    9. Jeffrey R. Cohen & Derek W. Dalton & Lori L. Holder-Webb & Jeffrey J. McMillan, 2020. "An Analysis of Glass Ceiling Perceptions in the Accounting Profession," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 164(1), pages 17-38, June.
    10. Kokot-Blamey, Patrizia, 2021. "Mothering in accounting: Feminism, motherhood, and making partnership in accountancy in Germany and the UK," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    11. Baker, Darren T & Brewis, Deborah N, 2020. "The melancholic subject: A study of self-blame as a gendered and neoliberal psychic response to loss of the ‘perfect worker’," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    12. Ashley, Louise & Empson, Laura, 2016. "Convenient fictions and inconvenient truths: Dilemmas of diversity at three leading accountancy firms," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 76-87.
    13. Sian, S., 2023. "Off-ramps and on-ramps: Career continuity and discontinuity in professional accountancy," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    14. Agrizzi, Dila & Soobaroyen, Teerooven & Alsalloom, Abeer, 2021. "Spatiality and accounting: The case of female segregation in audit firms," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    15. Amondarain, Josune & Aldazabal, M. Edurne & Espinosa-Pike, Marcela, 2023. "Gender differences in the auditing stereotype and their influence on the intention to enter the profession," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    16. Lambert, Caroline & Dambrin, Claire, 2006. "La question du genre en comptabilité : analyses théoriques et méthodologiques," HEC Research Papers Series 843, HEC Paris.
    17. Egan, Matthew & Voss, Barbara de Lima, 2023. "Redressing the Big 4’s male, pale and stale image, through LGBTIQ+ ethical praxis," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    18. Sheerin, Corina & Garavan, Thomas, 2022. "Female leaders as ‘Superwomen’: Post-global financial crisis media framing of women and leadership in investment banking in UK print media 2014–2016," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    19. Durocher, Sylvain & Bujaki, Merridee & Brouard, François, 2016. "Attracting Millennials: Legitimacy management and bottom-up socialization processes within accounting firms," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 1-24.
    20. Claire Dambrin & Caroline Virginie Lambert, 2006. "Le Plafond De Verre Dans Les Cabinets D'Audit – Questions Theoriques Et Methodologiques," Post-Print halshs-00548047, HAL.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jadmsc:v:10:y:2019:i:1:p:1-:d:303301. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.