Successful women of the Americas: the same or different?
Abstract
Purpose
The intent of this cross‐national research is to study the personal and cultural characteristics of successful professional women. High‐achieving women may share certain personal characteristics, beliefs, and experiences, regardless of the countries in which they live. However, every individual is socialized within a particular national culture, and may be expected to share certain values and expectations with other members of that culture.
Design/methodology/approach
Over 1,100 professionally “successful women” (including high‐level managers, entrepreneurs, academics, government personnel, and professionals) and 531 undergraduate business students in nine countries – Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Mexico, the USA and the West Indies (Barbados, Jamaica, St. Vincent, and the Grenadines) completed surveys containing two sets of variables: national/cultural (collectivism/individualism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance) and personal (self‐efficacy, locus of control, need for achievement).
Findings
There were significant differences in the personal characteristics between successful women and the student comparison samples, with successful women consistently higher on self‐efficacy and need for achievement, and more internal on locus of control. There were some significant but smaller than expected differences in cultural characteristics between national samples.
Originality/value
This contrast of successful women living in the Americas provides new insights for managers of international companies seeking to be gender inclusive.
Keywords
Citation
Duffy, J.A., Fox, S., Punnett, B.J., Gregory, A., Lituchy, T., Inés Monserrat, S., Olivas‐Luján, M.R., Bastos F. Santos, N.M. and Miller, J. (2006), "Successful women of the Americas: the same or different?", Management Research News, Vol. 29 No. 9, pp. 552-572. https://doi.org/10.1108/01409170610708998
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2006, Emerald Group Publishing Limited