Women in accounting: a historical review of obstacles and drivers on a patriarchal and classist path

Abstract

This document, through a systematic review of academic papers, presents a comprehensive and synthetic proposal that compiles, on the one hand, the prevailing macho, misogynistic and phallocentric obstacles and stereotypes at the family, social and work level between the eighteenth and twentieth centuries and that had an impact on the accounting profession, hindering the access and evolution of women in it. In contrast, a series of factors are presented that drove the training and entry of women to bookkeeping and accounting tasks, which, in turn, served as a way to break stereotypes and traditional gender roles, achieve legislative improvements and the incursion of women into the paid labor market. Besides the above-mentioned elements, it is important to take into account the class perspectives that, under promises of well-being and economic status, idealized a model of a woman whose realization was exclusively at the domestic and family level. Este documento, a través de una revisión sistemática de trabajos académicos, presenta una propuesta integral y sintética que recopila, por un lado, los obstáculos y estereotipos machistas, misóginos y falocéntricos imperantes a nivel familiar, social y laboral entre los siglos XVIII y XX y que repercutieron en la profesión contable, dificultando el acceso y evolución de la mujer en la misma. En contraposición, se presentan una serie de factores que impulsaron la formación e incorporación de la mujer a las tareas de teneduría de libros y contabilidad, lo que, a su vez, sirvió para romper estereotipos y roles tradicionales de género, conseguir mejoras legislativas y la incursión de la mujer en el mercado laboral remunerado. Además de los elementos mencionados, es importante tener en cuenta las perspectivas de clase que, bajo promesas de bienestar y estatus económico, idealizaron un modelo de mujer cuya realización se daba exclusivamente en el ámbito doméstico y familiar.

The COVID-19, a crossroads for female directors

“…The literature dealing with gender diversity in organisations has highlighted a number of business benefits associated with the presence of women (Uribe-Bohorquez et al ., 2019; Amorelli and García-Sánchez, 2020, 2021, 2023; García-Sánchez et al ., 2023), at a general level and specifically in leadership positions. Amongst these, it is worth mentioning (1) a more qualified human talent, on the one hand, due to a greater number of candidates and greater internal competition (Smith, 2005) and, on the other hand, due to the female need to socially reaffirm its adequacy (Talmud and Izraeli, 1999; Uribe-Bohorquez and García-Sánchez, 2023b), which leads to a greater education of women (Singh et al ., 2008; Storvik and Teigen, 2010); (2) better decision-making, thanks to a wider range of perspectives, skills and abilities (Campbell and Mínguez Vera, 2008; Post and Byron, 2015; Terjesen et al ., 2009) that allow for greater creativity, learning and innovation (Erhardt et al ., 2003; Kawai et al ., 2023; Krishnan and Park, 2005) as well as a more independent and ethical criterion (Kirsch, 2018); (3) increased activity and reduced conflict (Huse and Solberg, 2006; Nielsen and Huse, 2010a, b); (4) a better reputation with different stakeholders (Rose, 2007); (5) a reduction in costs (due to lower turnover and absenteeism) and, ultimately, thanks to all of the above, an improvement in sustainable competitive advantage, leading to business growth, improved financial performance (Robinson and Dechant, 1997; Thomas and Ely, 1996) and better organisational performance (Cumming and Leung, 2021).…”