Gender differences in job challenge: a matter of task allocation

Citation

De Pater, I.E. (2011), "Gender differences in job challenge: a matter of task allocation", Strategic Direction, Vol. 27 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/sd.2011.05627aad.005

Gender differences in job challenge: a matter of task allocation

Article Type: Abstracts From: Strategic Direction, Volume 27, Issue 1

De PaterI. E., Van Vianen A.E.M. and Bechtoldt M.N.Gender, Work and Organization, July 2010, Vol. 17 No. 4, Start page: 433, No. of pages: 21

Challenging job experiences are considered important prerequisites for management development and career success. Several researchers have suggested that women are given fewer challenging assignments than their male colleagues. To test this idea we performed two studies. The first examined possible gender differences in challenging job experiences at middle job levels. The results indicated that female employees had fewer challenging experiences in their jobs than their male counterparts. The second explored the proposition that differential assignment of challenging tasks to male and female subordinates underlies gender differences in job challenge. The results indeed suggest that supervisors’ task allocation decisions are not gender-blind and may result in women having fewer challenging job experiences than menArticle type: Research paperISSN: 0968-6673Reference: 39AR539

Keywords: Delegation, Gender, Job challenge, Task allocation decisions