engleski

It is lonely at the top for men - gendered perspective on trust and value homophily in professional egocentric social networks of top managers

We add new insights into the problem of male and female disparity in accessing professional social network resources. Based on the expectation states theory and social role theory we argue that the underlying reasons for differences in the content of social network ties between genders are in different social expectations placed upon women and men in professional arenas. To test our argument, we examined how trust, and sharing values, beliefs and attitudes with network members relate to upward career mobility for female and male managers. Our results show that successful women – defined as women occupying high positions in organizational hierarchies – have more confidence in the competence of their network members, more relationships based on affect and social support, and they share more values and attitudes with their professional network members than successful men do. For men, the opposite is true: the higher up in the organizational hierarchy they are, the less they trust the competences of their network members and the lower their affective trust in the members of their social networks. Additionally, successful men feel more similar to their hierarchical seniors, than successful women do. In explaining differences between male and female professional social networks, we step away from the structural and inherent gender differences arguments, and suggest that female and male managers in high-level positions in organizational hierarchies interpret their professional social worlds in a distinctly different manner.

social network analysis; gender differences; management styles; promotion

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