THE EMPLOYMENT OF WOMEN MANAGERS AND PROFESSIONALS IN AN EMERGING ECONOMY - GENDER INEQUALITY AS AN ORGANIZATIONAL PRACTICE

The study reported here uses the recent rapid growth in labor demand i n an emerging economy to isolate the organizational forces determining the representation of women in high-skill jobs from labor supply fact ors. We test key predictions drawn from three theoretical perspectives : according to market incentive theories, firms are motivated to use h uman resources, including high-skill women, optimally; according to cu ltural theories, core national values can affect organizational gateke epers' practices, while social psychological studies suggest that empl oyees' preference for social homophily can make discriminatory behavio r efficient. Analysis of original survey data on 114 multinational fir ms headquartered in the U.S. and Japan and 40 domestic companies opera ting in Thailand shows ambiguous market incentives to firms and no imp act of national values on the employment of women. The results point t o male employees' preferences as the basis of gender inequality as an organizational practice.