Be an advocate for others, unless you are a man:
backlash against gender-atypical male job candidates
Bosak, JanineORCID: 0000-0001-5701-6538, Kulich, ClaraORCID: 0000-0002-9483-2128, Rudman, Laurie and Kinahan, Mary
(2018)
Be an advocate for others, unless you are a man:
backlash against gender-atypical male job candidates.
Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 19
(1).
pp. 156-165.
ISSN 1524-9220
Previous research shows that gender vanguards (individuals who demonstrate genderatypical skills and behavior) suffer backlash in the form of social and economic penalties
(Rudman & Phelan, 2008). This study examined backlash against female and male job applicants
who were either gender-atypical or typical. Professionals (N = 149) evaluated female or male
managerial applicants for internal promotion described in their performance review as showing
either self-advocacy or advocacy on behalf of their team. Atypical, other-advocating men were
judged to be low on agency and competence and penalized with job dismissal. Serial mediation
analysis demonstrated that, compared with other-advocating women, other-advocating men were
perceived to lack agency, which contributed to a perceived loss of competence that ultimately led
to greater penalties. The implications of these findings for contemporary leadership theories and
men’s and women’s professional success in the workplace are discussed.