An exploration of stereotypical beliefs about leadership styles: Is transformational leadership a route to women's promotion?

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An exploration of stereotypical beliefs about leadership styles: Is transformational leadership a route to women's promotion?
The Leadership Quarterly

Two experimental studies examined whether gender stereotypes about the transformational transactional and laissez-faire leadership styles constitute an advantage or an impediment for women's access to leadership positions in organizations.

The first study investigated the accuracy of descriptive gender stereotypes about leadership styles showing that participants accurately believe that women display more transformational and contingent reward behaviors and fewer management-by-exception and laissez-faire behaviors than men. The second study investigated prescriptive stereotypes about the importance of leadership styles for the promotion of women and men to different levels in organizations.

Inspirational motivation was perceived as more important for men than women and especially important for promotion to CEO. In contrast individualized consideration was perceived as more important for women than men and especially important for promotion to senior management. Consistent with these stereotypical beliefs about leadership women interested in promotion may be well advised to blend individualized consideration and inspirational motivation behaviors.

Citation: 
The Leadership Quarterly 22 (2011) 10–21

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