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The prupose of this paper is to present the development of the Verona Patient‐Centred Communication Evaluation (VR‐COPE) scale, together with its psychometric properties. The nine item rating scale assesses the content and relational aspects of patient‐centred communication during medical consultations on the basis of a multidimensional evaluation as suggested by the more recent literature in the field. Each item is defined by operational definitions.

A sample of 246 transcribed primary care consultations was rated with the VR‐COPE. Explorative factor analysis, Pearson correlation coefficients and internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha were calculated. Convergent validity with the Verona Medical Interview Classification System (VR‐MICS) was also tested. A sub sample of 32 consultations was used to assess inter‐rater reliability.

Interrater reliability and internal consistency were good (overall Cronbach alpha=0.75). Four factors (explaining 74 per cent of the variance) were extracted by exploratory factor analysis. Six items of the VR‐COPE correlated significantly with specific communication skills evidenced by the VR‐MICS and pertained to the physician's ability to explore medical or psychosocial issues. The VR‐COPE items on interview structure and shared decision, more related to process than to specific skills, had no equivalent in the VR‐MICS.

The new rating scale responds to the need in communication research for a multidimensional scale that combines the evaluation of specific skills and process aspects.

Because women ' s status in Latin American countries appears comparable to their status in organizations of more economically advanced nations, this paper probes the mystery of how and why these women fare relatively well in their careers, given that socioeconomic and cultural factors could limit their possibilities of achieving higher management positions. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Exploratory study of 162 Latin American women who demonstrated exceptional success by attaining first and second level positions in private organizations. They responded to a semi-structured interview of 49 closed-ended questions about career challenges and barriers, leadership style, ambition, personal goals and work-life balance, plus two open-ended questions about men and women ' s leadership differences and how they understand their success.

Interviewees disagreed on issues of discrimination, recognized few serious professional career barriers and regarded work-life balance as their main challenge. They understood their success in terms of individual factors such as personality characteristics, performance and results, and their own leadership traits. Most admitted that machismo limits women ' s access to upper level positions. They recognized their ambition to attain power positions mainly for personal satisfaction, and their main goal was personal development and fulfilment.

Given the sample size per country, future research could include a more representative and large sample or concentrate on one country per region to establish relationships between women ' s personal characteristics and organizations ' sector, or challenges faced and leadership style. Also family-owned companies as well as women entrepreneurs could contribute knowledge about women ' s leadership in these countries. Studying only national companies, a more neatly description of local culture and gender awareness in its organizational practices that hinder or promote women ' s leadership and participation in decision-making positions may be obtained. Transcultural studies that compare women ' s rise and upper management performance in countries where support from domestic help and extended family as well as cultural values are very different, could permit to understand more fully what it takes to reach top management positions and the weight that these particular cultural conditions have.

This study is unique in shedding light on a multinational sample of Latin American female executives and their perceptions of their success, leadership style and barriers and challenges faced.