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Is Feminism a Silver Bullet to Shatter African Glass Ceiling? An Examination of the Mediating Role of Financial Wellbeing

Author

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  • Hailemariam Kebede Gelgile
  • Amit Shukla

Abstract

The idea of feminism advocates social, political, economic, and intellectual equality for women and men. In the organizational context, particularly in Africa, there is a dearth of studies probing the implications of feminism toward shattering of the proverbial glass-ceiling that women face every day. The present article is aimed to address this gap. It investigates the role of feminism in promoting women’s career advancement through financial wellbeing. The study deploys a sample of 250 women working in the four breweries in the Addis Ababa area, Ethiopia. The findings confirmed our hypotheses that feminism was a strong predictor for women’s career success and that financial wellbeing acted as a mediator between the two. As a major implication, the study highlights the positive role of feminism for women’s career success, while underlining the importance of financial wellbeing for them. It assumes particular significance considering prevalent misgivings about these concepts in Ethiopian society. The study also provides certain recommendations for future researchers and policymakers.

Suggested Citation

  • Hailemariam Kebede Gelgile & Amit Shukla, 2025. "Is Feminism a Silver Bullet to Shatter African Glass Ceiling? An Examination of the Mediating Role of Financial Wellbeing," Business Perspectives and Research, , vol. 13(4), pages 561-574, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:busper:v:13:y:2025:i:4:p:561-574
    DOI: 10.1177/22785337221148279
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    3. Kabeer, Naila, 2020. "Women’s empowerment and economic development: a feminist critique of story telling practices in ‘Randomista' economics," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 103880, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Emily Brown Weida & Pam Phojanakong & Falguni Patel & Mariana Chilton, 2020. "Financial health as a measurable social determinant of health," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(5), pages 1-14, May.
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