Purpose The purpose of this project was to examine the extent to which early-career women faculty in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) experience working in a chilly interpersonal climate (as indicated by experiences of ostracism and incivility) and how those experiences relate to work and non-work well-being outcomes. Design/methodology/approach Data came from a sample of 96 early-career STEM faculty (Study 1) and a sample of 68 early-career women STEM faculty (Study 2). Both samples completed online surveys assessing their experiences of working in a chilly interpersonal climate and well-being. Findings In Study 1, early-career women STEM faculty reported greater experiences of ostracism and incivility and more negative occupational well-being outcomes associated with these experiences compared to early-career men STEM faculty. In Study 2, early-career women STEM faculty reported more ostracism and incivility from their male colleagues than from their female colleagues. Experiences of ostracism (and, to a lesser extent, incivility) from male colleagues also related to negative occupational and psychological well-being outcomes. Originality/value This paper documents that exposure to a chilly interpersonal climate in the form of ostracism and incivility is a potential explanation for the lack and withdrawal of junior women faculty in STEM academic fields.
those who identify outside of the man/woman gender binary. Participants (N = 249) were presented with a vignette which included a description of a fictitious co-worker's sex and gender identity, and asked to rate the co-worker's likeability and perceived job performance. Results revealed that the assigned sex and the gender of hypothetical employees interactively impacted interpersonal and workplace perceptions. For individuals assigned male at birth, identifying as a man led to the most positive ratings, followed by identifying as a transgender woman, followed by identifying as a nonbinary person. This work expands upon gender schema theory and highlights some of the unexplored challenges faced by nonbinary and transgender employees. We end with suggestions for future research, such as incorporating qualitative data to highlight the unique experiences of these gender minorities in organizations.
ObjectivesThe #MeToo social media campaign raised awareness about sexual harassment. The purpose of the current study was to address three unexplored research questions. First, what factors influenced whether a person posted #MeToo? Second, how did posting (or not) influence participants' wellbeing? Finally, what motivated participants' posting (or not) #MeToo?MethodThis mixed-methods study explores how #MeToo was experienced by full-time employees (N = 395) who could have posted #MeToo (i.e., experienced a sexual harassment event), whether or not they did so. Participants completed surveys in July of 2018 assessing social media use, sexual harassment history, relational variables such as relative power and social support, and job and life satisfaction. Participants also responded to open-ended survey questions about the context of and decisions about #MeToo posting.ResultsQuantitative results indicated that sexual harassment history was the most powerful predictor of #MeToo posting, while power and interpersonal contact also contributed. Qualitative analyses (N = 74) using a grounded theory approach indicated themes associated with decisions to disclose, including feeling a responsibility to post, need for support, and affective benefits. Decisions not to disclose were event-related negative affect, posting-related negative affect, timing of the event, fit with the #MeToo movement, privacy concerns, and fear of consequences.ConclusionThis study contributes to the literature on sexual harassment disclosure by focusing on informal means of disclosure and drawing on comparisons to formal reporting and implications for workplaces. Online sexual harassment disclosure, in many ways, reflects the impediments to formal reporting procedures. Given the increased use of social media for purposes of disclosure, these findings suggests that organizations should recognize the legitimacy of sexual harassment reports made online and consider the possible failings of their formal reporting systems as reasons for online disclosure.
Although the effects of confronting sexism have been examined in the past, no research to date has demonstrated the most common dimensions along which confrontations of workplace sexism differ. Furthermore, previous research has not fully examined how different forms of sexism confrontations differentially impact the workplace experiences of targets experiencing these sexist actions. Thus, these two studies examine how confrontations of workplace sexism commonly differ and the workplace implications of these differences. In Study 1, data were collected from individuals who had witnessed a sexist encounter in the workplace that was subsequently confronted. Using a content analysis approach, we found that the most common differences in confrontations of workplace sexism included the identity of the confronter, the tone of the confrontation, the location of the confrontation, the number of confronters, and the timing of the confrontation. In Studies 2 and 3, we examined how these differences impacted job stress, turnover intentions, perceived organizational support, job satisfaction, and workplace diversity climate of women targets. In Study 2, analysis of survey data from women employees determined that workplace confrontations of workplace sexism of any form are equally beneficial for women targets. Study 3, an experimental vignette study, provided support for the Study 2 findings. This study aids researchers in understanding the dimensionality of sexism confrontations as well as the relationships between these dimensions and important workplace outcomes. This study will also prove useful for practitioners intent on educating allies and targets on when and how they should confront sexism at work.
She also serves as Director of the Craig and Galen Brown Engineering Honors Program. She received her BS, MS, and PhD from the College of Engineering at Texas A&M. Kristi works to improve the undergraduate engineering experience through evaluating preparation in areas, such as mathematics and physics, evaluating engineering identity and its impact on retention, incorporating non-traditional teaching methods into the classroom, and engaging her students with interactive methods.
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