Gendered interactions in corporate annual report photographs

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the gendered nature of interactions in mixed sex Canadian corporate annual report (CAR) photographs.

Design/methodology/approach

Quantitative content analysis of 106 CAR photographs is performed to evaluate, at the level of the photograph, how women and men interact in mixed sex photographs to reveal their relative prominence, power and status.

Findings

Women in CAR photographs overall are under‐represented. In mixed sex photographs, however, the relative proportions of women and men approximate those of women in the Canadian workforce, but men are more prominent in most photographs. Mixed sex photographs are relatively similar in composition (depicting largely passive, smiling subjects, few of whom are talking or in positions of authority). Where there are differences in mixed sex photographs, however, women are portrayed as less powerful than the men in the photographs. Supplemental testing suggests that the findings are persisting over time.

Originality/value

This paper looks at gendered interactions in CAR photos in a Canadian context. It takes the photograph, rather than individual subjects in the photo, as the level of analysis. This research clearly situates the inclusion of photographs in CARs in the voluntary disclosure literature and explores the implications for management and readers of CARs.

Citation

Bujaki, M.L. and McConomy, B.J. (2010), "Gendered interactions in corporate annual report photographs", Gender in Management, Vol. 25 No. 2, pp. 119-136. https://doi.org/10.1108/17542411011026294