(UN)REPRESENTATIVE BUREAUCRACY - WOMEN IN THE ISRAELI SENIOR CIVIL-SERVICE

Women are severely underrepresented in the Israeli senior civil servic e. This article explores the barriers that impede women's advancement to top administrative positions by comparing those who achieved senior ranks to a sample of two control groups: male senior officials and mi ddle-rank female officials. Four explanations are offered: (a) human c apital, (b) attitudes and views, (c) organizational characteristics an d values, and (d) functional attributes. Data show that senior women a re different from senior men in their higher status, in their lower se nse of equity, and in their domestic chores. Senior women are distinct from middle-rank women in their social, women's, and occupational net working and in their internal domestic chores. A discriminate analysis has shown the importance of domestic chores in the male-female variat ion and the importance of status, social, occupational and women netwo rking within the intrafemale variation.