Gender and work: representations of femininities and masculinities in the view of women brazilian executives

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to identify and analyze social representations of femininity and masculinity, as reported by women business executives in Brazil. For that, the research resorted to semi-structured interviews of sixty-four executives from seven Brazilian cities. As a technique for data analysis, this research utilized the theoretical and conceptual basis of French discourse analysis. When gender issues become related to the specific qualities of being a woman and a business executive -or to the interfaces that gender may establish with an individual's work -contradictions may emerge from the construction of a particular thematic. Also, positive and negative aspects of being a female executive exist, namely: (a) representations of an executive; (b) feminine competency and incompetency; (c) dilemmas regarding sensitivity; (d) conflicts involving seduction power; (e) omissions, prejudice and violence suffered by women at work; and (f) motherhood.

Gender Differences and Professional Identities in Health and Engineering

“…Studies such as the ones carried out by Melo and Lopes (2013) and Carrieri et al (2013) and Capelle and Melo (2010) have confirmed that when women enter occupational spaces traditionally occupied by men, they end up reproducing male behavior patterns, due to implicit rules of the social environment into which they have been integrated. Added to that, they are often discriminated against their male counterparts.…”

“…However, the dedication dimension is the most revealing of the differences between genders that mark these two professional areas (3.83 points in health; 2.83 points in engineering), once, the attributes (friend, partner, dedicated and humane) are strongly linked with the female role in society and enclose a strong emotional aspect, as the studies by M. Alves et al (2008) Capelle and Melo (2010), Melo and Lopes (2013), and Carrieri et al (2013) have confirmed.…”

“…However, as for the occupation of positions, studies by Carrieri, Diniz, Souza and Menezes (2013), Capelle and Melo (2010) and Bruschini (2007) have shown that women in Brazilian organizations continue to play subordinate roles compared to their male counterparts, which reflects the maintenance of power relations.…”

Gênero E Enfermagem: Um Ensaio Sobre a Inserção Do Homem No Exercício Da Enfermagem

“…A discussão sobre gênero e sexualidade nas organizações tem sido cada vez debatida, exemplo disto é o artigo Gender and work: representations of femininities and maculinities in the view of woman brazilian executives, que aborda a questão das desigualdades no mercado de trabalho e como as mulheres, no contexto organizacional, ainda são excluídas em números, em salários, em cargos decisórios e dentre outros aspectos, corroborando o fato de as mulheres pertencem ao grupo mais discriminado do mundo (CARRIERI et al,2013). No âmbito organizacional, a divisão técnica do trabalho evidencia a divisão entre os sexos, o que ajuda a explicar o fato de cargos de maior prestígio, como chefias e gerências, serem, geralmente, ocupados por homens, enquanto trabalhos mais periféricos e de menor responsabilidade são legados às mulheres (CAPPELLE et al, 2004).…”

“…No mesmo artigo, Carrieri et al (2013) citam o estudo de Merrick (2002), que ao fazer uma revisão teórica envolvendo homens e mulheres nos cargos de gestão, observou que a inserção das mulheres em um mercado tido como masculino, pode fazer com que elas tenham de adotar características e comportamentos masculinos, gerentes do sexo masculino e feminino, tendem a contratar e promover trabalhadores do mesmo sexo, mulheres executivas podem ameaçar esposas dos executivos do sexo masculino e há uma percepção geral do masculino sendo o dominante, influente e eficaz, enquanto as mulheres são consideradas submissas, resignadas e influenciáveis. Aparentemente, as mulheres são diferenciadas no mercado de trabalho devido aos estereótipos de gênero.…”