The Influence of Social Dominance Orientation and Power Distance on Attitudes Toward Women Managers Aneika Simmons Sam Houston State University

Andrea Hawkins Alabama A&M University

Jo-Ann Duffy Sam Houston State University

Hamed Alfraih Kuwait University

Abstract We investigated how social dominance orientation (SDO) and power distance (PD) influence attitudes toward women managers. We collected data from women in both Kuwait and America. We discovered that the interaction between perceptions of high PD and SDO resulted in favorable attitudes toward women managers in America and unfavorable attitudes toward women managers in Kuwait. Contrary to our prediction, we also discovered that perceived low PD in American women who are high in SDO has a positive attitude toward other women managers. In agreement with our predictions, perceived low PD in Kuwaiti women who are high in SDO has a negative attitude toward other women managers.

Keywords: Women, Managers, Attitudes, Cross-Cultural

Introduction The employment rate of women around the world continues to grow. The rate is presently over 57% up from 54% in the previous decade (OECD Factbook, 2010). At the same time, the number of women in the work force is increasing. However, women across the world find themselves underrepresented in management positions according to the World Survey on the Role of Women in Development (United Nations, 2009). Further, the Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) indicates that only 1.8% of organizations are led by women (Toegel, 2011).

Women make up 47% of the current United States work force, and 44% of the S&P 500 work force (Warner, 2014; Warner & Corley, 2017). In 2017, women in the United States held 27% of the executive officer positions and 21% of the S&P 500 board seats (Catalyst, 2017). In 2018, there are 107 women out of the 535 members (20%) of the United States Congress, with 23 women (23%) serving in the United States Senate and 84 women (19.3%) serving in the

Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. 22 Unites States House of Representatives. Another five women serve as non-voting delegates in the Unites States House of Representatives for American Samoa, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands (Center for American Women and Politics, 2018). In Kuwait, women comprise 53% of the work force (International Monetary Fund, 2013), and 54% of the overall public sector work force (Alzuabi, 2016). The labor force participation of Kuwaiti women in management positions is 10% of the public sector, with 7% women in ministerial positions, and 5% women in parliament (Alzuabi, 2016). Although the numbers for women in the workforce and in leadership are increasing, there are still many barriers to the career advancement of women in organizations. In the United States, women are still facing issues related to discrimination (Inesi & Cable, 2015; Hekman, Johnson, Foo, & Yang, 2017), the glass ceiling (Fernandez & Campero, 2017), glass cliffs (Sabharwal, 2015), and the wage gap (Joshi, Son & Roh, 2015; Addison, Ozturk & Wang, 2018). Around the world, women are experiencing similar challenges and barriers to their career advancement. Women in Switzerland experience wage gaps (Janssen, Sartore & Backes-Gellner, 2016). Canadian women are challenged by the glass ceiling (Ng & Sears, 2017). Further, weak societal interest, discrimination, scarce benefits, and the lack of training programs for women are the issues impacting Kuwaiti women (Alzuabi, 2016). In certain areas of the world, could there be a relationship between women being more prevalent in the workplace and women not readily advancing to managerial positions? We will attempt to address this question through an analysis of the national cultural differences and the attitudes towards women in managerial positions in both the United States and Kuwait.

Literature Review It is commonly recognized that women’s acceptance as managers varies across countries (Humbert & Drew, 2010; Toegel, 2011). A misconception may be that the attitudes and behaviors of men are the only culprits that may potentially have negative attitudes towards women (e.g., good old boy networks), but this may not always be the case. In general, women tend to support the promotion of other women to management or leadership positions (e.g., Breinlinger & Kelly, 1994), but what happens when they do not? Women can intimidate other women in order to sustain or establish a power dynamic similar to the manner in which some men have historically maintained power in business settings (Chatel, 2011; Dentith, Wright, & Coryell, 2014; Wild & Brady, 2009). Indeed, according to a survey on bullying in the workplace, 31% of the perpetrators were women who targeted other women 68% of the time (Workplace Bullying Institute, 2014). Such attitudes by women as peers, subordinates, and managers could be hindrances to the advancement of women into management positions. We believe that the variables that reflect a person’s attitudes and beliefs about power and status are germane to investigating how women perceive other women as managers in different countries. This study will explore whether national cultural differences regarding position and power will interact to influence women’s attitudes toward women as managers. To better understand this idea, we will look to the United States and Kuwait. These countries provide a proper context for this study, because both countries are historically different in terms of perception of power, or power distance. Hofstede’s power distance reflects “the extent that a

Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. 23 person accepts that power in institutions and organizations is distributed unequally” (Kirkman, Chen, Farh, Chen, & Lowe, 2009, p.745). The United States has a national power distance ranking of 40, and Kuwait has a ranking of 80 (Hofstede, 2009). These rankings indicate that the United States’ cultural norm would be more toward accepting that power is distributed equally in organizations, and the Kuwaiti cultural norm would be more toward accepting the unequal distribution of power in organizations. Further, social dominance orientation will be a central construct in the study, because it influences the cultural perceptions of power, status, and societal hierarchies that exist in different countries (Sidanius & Pratto, 1999). This study will address the interaction between social dominance orientation (SDO) and power distance (PD) on the attitudes of women in culturally different countries toward women managers. It will provide further insight into what influences women’s attitudes toward women managers, and will address the gap in the literature with regard to the relationships among SDO, PD, and attitudes towards women managers in two distinct countries.

Theoretical Framework

Social Dominance Orientation Social dominance theory addresses the apparent hierarchal differences that can be observed around the world (Sidanius & Pratto, 1999). It purports that individual, group, and organizational discriminatory practices support these hierarchical disparities. Individuals who believe in these conceptual ideas are identified as those who are high in social dominance orientation (SDO). They are described “as expressing a generalized orientation towards and desire for unequal and dominant/subordinate relations among salient social groups, regardless of whether this implies ingroup domination or subordination” (Pratto, Sidanius, & Levin, 2006, p. 282). Those who are high in SDO tend to minimize low status groups like women, and can be characterized as xenophobic, sexist, and racist (Pena & Sidanius, 2002; Pratto, Stallworth, Sidanius, & Siers, 1997; Sidanius & Pratto, 1999). Further, traditionally considered low status group members (i.e., women) can also be high in SDO (Umphress, Smith-Crowe, Brief, Dietz, & Watkins, 2007). This suggests that high SDO women may be just as inclined to possess bias toward other women in authoritative positions, because men typically hold these high status positions. Having a low status group member (women) in a traditionally high status position (for men) could challenge the high SDO woman’s desire and expectations for an established hierarchy, thus resulting in a negative perception of and discrimination against women managers. Our study is limited to women, in part, so that we can determine how women respond to other women in managerial positions across countries. This investigation will be a more conservative test of the interaction between SDO and PD than if we investigated men, because women tend to have lower levels of SDO compared to men (Nicol, 2007; Sidanius, Levin, Liu, & Pratto, 2000).

Power Distance Power distance (PD) is a national cultural dimension that was developed by Hofstede (2001) to describe the beliefs about social groups, with regard to the perception of power dynamics and inequity (Ramaswami, Huang, & Dreher, 2014). This dimension is related to how much an individual is inclined to accept the unequal distribution of power and status within society (Kirkman et al., 2009). Literature has shown that together PD and gender play an

Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. 24 important role in issues related to women from an international perspective. For example, women who perceive high levels of PD in Taiwan gain much more in terms of career attainment (e.g., managerial positions) in a mentoring relationship than if they perceived low PD (Ramaswami, et al., 2014). Research also suggests that individual perceptions of PD vary depending on the country. For instance, Americans tend to be more egalitarian than individuals from the Middle East (Simmons, Duffy, & Alfraih, 2012). A country’s cultural perception of PD plays an important role with regard to gender in that it provides a framework to understand how much a country looks to diminish gender-related disparity (Ramaswami, et al., 2014). In the United States’ Constitution, the founding fathers proclaimed the belief, ‘that all men are created equal’ (Lucas, 1989). Although this principle was not being expressed in a perfect fashion, the objective to pursue this type of culture was still there. The United States is pursuing a more perfect union, and progress towards equality is the ultimate goal. Such progress can be observed by reviewing legislation that continues to be passed. The Equal Pay Act of 1963, Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1991, Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, and Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 are all prime examples. This provides a foundational basis that individuals from the United States are typically low in PD, because they have a greater inclination towards a desire for equal treatment and are uncomfortable with inequality in society. That does not mean that women are being treated equally in the United States, but that there is higher propensity for the equality of women given that the national culture is lower in PD. Individuals in high PD cultures are more inclined toward the acceptance of inequality that may lead to biased perceptions (Curtis, Conover, & Chui, 2012; Goodwin & Goodwin, 1999). This indicates that individuals who perceive a high PD culture will have a negative perception of women managers, because having members of a low status group in traditionally high status positions goes against their beliefs in the unequal distribution of power and status. Therefore, women who are high in SDO and perceive a high PD culture will most likely have negative attitudes toward women managers. However, we believe that individuals high in SDO who perceive high PD in a country low in PD and rooted in ideas about equality (i.e., United States), are likely to more positively respond to a traditionally considered low status group member (i.e., a woman). It would seem that beliefs about PD, especially if they are extreme, would override the inclination to be biased based on beliefs central to SDO. Individuals who perceive high PD in the United States would likely accept women as managers, if the women hold this high level position. Their level of SDO would allocate credence to the managerial position, and thus, override their traditional perceptions of women. Indeed, previous research provides evidence that some Americans do display positive attitudes toward women when high PD is perceived (Simmons, et al., 2012). In addition, individuals who are from countries that do not champion equality, like Kuwait, are more likely to have a negative attitude toward women managers whether they are high or low in SDO. The acceptance of, and perhaps preference for, inequality would lend itself to these individuals negatively responding to traditionally considered low status members in order to help maintain established hierarchies within society, particularly if they are high in SDO and perceive high PD. Thus, we hypothesize the following: Hypothesis 1: When high PD is perceived by women high or low in SDO, there will be a more positive attitude toward women managers in the United States and a more negative attitude toward women managers in Kuwait.

Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. 25 We also argue that when individuals perceive low PD, their natural inclinations may be freer to surface as pressures to sustain rankings within society are not as apparent. This means that, individuals with a positive disposition towards equality would approve of low status group members obtaining and holding high status positions. However, if individuals buy into the tenets of SDT, they would be opposed to the upward movement of traditionally considered low status group members. Thus, an individual who is high in SDO would be opposed to a woman holding a leadership position, and is likely to have a negative attitude toward them, especially when the individual perceives low PD and believes there is an opportunity to establish or maintain traditional hierarchies. Specifically, the attitude toward women managers by a person high in SDO in an egalitarian society would likely be negative, as they generally hold negative bias toward low status group members and have an inclination to maintain societal hierarchies. In a nonegalitarian society, where inequality is acceptable, the negative bias may even be stronger. We believe this, in general, because those perceiving high PD tend to be more accepting of bias than those who perceive low PD (Curtis, et al., 2012; Goodwin & Goodwin, 1999). Thus, we hypothesize the following: Hypothesis 2: American women who perceive low PD and are high in SDO will tend to have a negative attitude toward women managers. Similarly, Kuwaiti women who perceive low PD that are high in SDO will have an even stronger negative attitude toward women managers.

Method

Sample and Procedure We utilized a survey method for this cross-cultural investigation following the precedent set by previous work conducted across countries, including India, Korea and the United States (Christie, Kwon, Stoeberl, & Baumhart, 2003), and Taiwan and the United States (Ramaswami, et al., 2014). Our surveys were distributed to women attending college in the United States and in Kuwait. This sample follows other studies that survey college students, particularly females and their focus on organizational behavior (Sallop & Kirby, 2007). Further, investigating women is important, as it appears that people are treated differently based on their gender, and this seems to be a common occurrence in Kuwait, in the United States, and in other countries around the world. After completing a consent form, the participants were asked to respond to items related to PD, SDO, and attitudes toward women as managers as well as the control variables, classification and age. A native Kuwaiti professor assisted in ensuring that the items on the survey were adapted for the different setting in Kuwait. Essentially, the same survey given in the United States was given in Kuwait. To this end, our Kuwaiti colleague clarified and addressed the contextual and background information, and administered the stimulus material.

Our sample was comprised of 123 women, and we calculated an 85% response rate. Seventy-five women were from the United States and 48 were from Kuwait. As discussed above, investigating women is important as statistics demonstrate that women are often treated differently, based on their gender, in both of these countries. Approximately 83% of the women living and work in Kuwait stated that they were Kuwaiti, 6.3% Arab, 4.2% South Asian, 4.2% Iranian, and 2.1% identified themselves as Other. We were not shocked by these statistics as all

Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. 26 Kuwaitis are classified as Arab, but not all Arabs are Kuwaiti. Arabs who are not Kuwaiti are potentially from as many as 24 distinct Arab countries. Seventy-two percent of the women living in the United States were White, 12% Black, 12% Latino, 1.3% Native American and 1.3% Asian. The majority of the Kuwaiti women (95.9%) were between the ages of 18 and 24, while 57% of the American women were between the ages of 19 and 25. In regard to the Kuwaiti women, approximately 6.3% percent were employed full-time, 8.3% were employed part-time, and 83.3% were not employed. Of the United States women, 52% were employed full-time, 28% were employed part-time, and 20% were not employed. Each of the women who participated in this investigation were students, and their academic classifications were as follows: for the Kuwaiti women 25% were Graduate students, 50% were Seniors, 12.5% were Juniors, 4.2% were Sophomores, and 4.2% were Freshman. For the American women 8% were Graduate students, 44% were Seniors, and 46.7% were Juniors. Although the majority of the Kuwaiti women were in graduate school or classified as seniors (75%), most were unemployed, possibly due to the Kuwaiti culture.

Measures – Independent Variables A hierarchical regression was conducted to examine the hypotheses. In addition, the interaction terms were centered as suggested by Aiken and West (1991). The correlations and covariances for this data are displayed in Table 1. Social Dominance Orientation. SDO was measured using a scale developed by Sidanius, Pratto, Sinclair, and van Laar (1996). This 7-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree) has 16-items. A sample item states, “Inferior groups should stay in their place.” The calculated Cronbach’s alpha indicating strong reliability was α = .83. Power Distance. The 7-point Likert scale developed by Dorfman and Howell (1988) for PD has six items. A sample item states, “Managers should make most decisions without consulting subordinates.” The calculated Cronbach’s alpha was α = .57 indicating a relatively lower level of reliability, but still acceptable based on the frequency of this scale being utilized in the literature (Farh, Hackett, & Liang, 2007; Madlock, 2012; Simmons, et al., 2012).

Control Variables. Following previous SDO researchers (e.g., Sidanius, Pratto, & Bobo, 1994; Duriez, Vansteenkiste, Soenens, & DeWitte, 2007), participant’s education classification (e.g., freshman) and age were introduced as control variables.

Measure – Dependent Variable Women as Manager Scale. This dependent variable was measured using a 7-point Likert scale with 21-items developed by Terborg, Peters, Ilgen, and Smith (1977). A sample item is, “It is acceptable for women to compete with men for top executive positions”. Reliability measured by Cronbach’s alpha of α =.92 was acceptable.

Results We examined the key constructs high PD and SDO among women from Kuwait and the United States as stated in hypothesis 1. First, we entered the control variables, age and classification. This step was statistically significant (R2 = .36). Second, we entered the

Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. 27 independent variables SDO and PD. This step was statistically significant (R2 = .61; ΔR2 = .25). Third, we entered the two-way interaction terms which included PD, SDO, and country (PD * SDO), (PD * Country), and (SDO * Country). This step was statistically significant (R2 = .64; ΔR2 = .03). Fourth, we entered the three-way interaction term (PD * SDO * Country). This step was statistically significant (R2 = .66; ΔR2 = .02). As detailed in Table 2 and illustrated in Figure 1, the data provided support for hypothesis 1 and partial support for hypothesis 2. For hypothesis 2, participants who perceive low PD that are high in SDO and Kuwaiti did indeed display a negative attitude toward women managers, but this was not the case for American participants.

Discussion The intent of this study was to investigate the influence of PD and SDO on women’s attitudes toward women managers in countries that differ culturally. The interaction between PD and SDO resulted in a positive attitude toward women managers in the United States and a negative attitude toward women managers in Kuwait when high PD is perceived, thus supporting the first hypothesis. However, the findings did not entirely support the second hypothesis that American women high in SDO perceiving low PD would have a negative attitude toward women managers and that Kuwaiti women high in SDO and perceiving low PD would have an even stronger negative attitude toward women managers. Contrary to our hypothesis, when American women perceive low PD and are high in SDO, they tend to have a positive attitude toward women managers. In agreement with our hypothesis, Kuwaiti women who perceive low PD and are high in SDO tend to have a negative attitude toward other women. We asserted that beliefs about SDO would be stronger than perceptions of low PD, but this was not the case for the American women. Perhaps women who are high in SDO who perceive low PD can shift their standard for judging women managers to reflect the dominant culture. This suggests that high SDO women are able to positively respond to low status group members by changing their standards. This means that high SDO women in a low PD country, like the United States, may shift their standard of judgment to the average woman manager in order to positively respond to low status group members (Biernat, Manis and Nelson, 1991). In a society that advocates for gender equality, this shift could be attributed to a desire to be politically correct (Simmons, et al., 2012). Thus, American women who are high in SDO and believe that men should be managers appear to shift their standard of judgment for managers from men to the average woman manager. Therefore, the attitude toward women managers would be more positive when compared to other women managers. When in Kuwait, the high SDO women are freer to assess women managers with their original standard of judgment for managers (i.e., men), as there is limited social pressure regarding women’s rights and equality. For Kuwaiti women who are high in SDO, this results in a more negative attitude toward women managers when compared to men. Political correctness may not be the only explanation for this behavior. It may be that women who are high in SDO are bias towards other women, but may experience cognitive dissonance about the situation, as they are women themselves (e.g., Richards & Tittle, 1981; Amoura, Berjoy, Gillet, Caruana, & Finez, 2015). They may manage their partiality against other low status group members (e.g., women) differently in some circumstances, as they are also women. This is an area that would be ripe for further investigation. As detailed by SDT, the standard for managers is innately male (i.e., high status group members). This standard persists internationally. Schein (1994, as cited in Schein, 2001) listed

Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. 28 the common characteristics of successful managers for both men and women as “leadership ability, desires responsibility, skilled in business matters, competent, and analytical ability” (p. 682). Managers and management students of both genders rated women as similar or lower than men on all of these characteristics. This indicates that the characteristics of successful managers “are still perceived to be held primarily by males” (Schein, 2001, p. 683). Even if women possess the same characteristics that are considered to be innately male, they are still often not considered competent or seen as significantly contributing to the organization’s success. Heilman (2001) identifies the descriptive- and prescriptive-based gender biases that are used to perpetuate the perceived lack of fit stereotypes of women managers. Regardless of their successes, women managers’ contributions are devalued, and they are denied the credit for their successful accomplishments, which are wrongly attributed to special circumstances. Women managers are even penalized for being undeniably competent. The author addresses the ambiguity in the evaluation process, and notes that vague evaluation criteria allow for the continuous process of distorting perceptions and confirming stereotypes. Further, Paustian-Underdalh, Walker, and Woehr (2014) reveal that, although men rate themselves as having significantly more effective leadership qualities than women, others rate women as being significantly more effective leaders overall, in middle and upper level positions, and in business and educational organizations. Despite this, women are still not being financially rewarded for their performance in the same ways as men, and thus, are experiencing earning gaps. High SDO women might devalue, deny, and penalize other women’s accomplishments in a high PD country like Kuwait. However, they may be more hesitant to express these beliefs in a low PD country like the United States, perhaps by shifting in their perceptions to reflect a more egalitarian position. Altogether, American women who are high in SDO respond more positively to women managers, as it appears their standard for judging managers may shift from men to women. The women who are high and low in SDO are able to maintain their belief in the inequality of the low status group by changing their standard to the average low status group member (i.e., women). They will judge a woman manager against the average woman manager, but not against their standard for the average manager, which is a man. In a high PD country, like Kuwait, the attitudes of the high and low SDO women will be more negative toward women managers in support of the social hierarchy. Additional analysis (t-test) was executed to examine the relationship between Kuwaiti and American women on PD, and we discovered the following, t (117) = -3.23, p ≤ .05. The comparison of Kuwaiti and American women on PD showed that they do significantly differ in that Kuwaiti women tend to perceive a higher level of PD than American women. Further, in comparison of Kuwaiti and American women on attitudes toward women as managers, the data showed that they also significantly differ. Another t-test was executed to examine the relationship between Kuwaiti and American women on attitudes toward women managers and we discovered the following, t (111) = 12.35, p ≤ .05. It was confirmed, that overall, women in the United States (an average of 6.17) have a more positive attitude toward women managers than women in Kuwait (an average of 4.52).

In addition, we controlled for age and educational classification. Table 1 displayed that these variables are important inclusions as classification and age are significantly related to key constructs in the investigation. In fact, classification was positively related to country while age was positively and significantly related to attitudes toward women, and negatively and

Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. 29 significantly related to SDO, PD, and country (i.e., United States and Kuwait). Thus, providing further evidence that it was important to include these controls in our analysis.

Practical Implications Researchers have often encouraged organizations to assess employees’ tendencies toward bias in efforts to ward off discriminatory behavior (e.g., Umphress, Simmons, Boswell, & Triana, 2008). However, findings suggest that in some situations, beliefs about PD impact employee responses in ways that trump inherent bias. Thus, organizations should promote the notion of equality and the advancement of women to managerial positions, even if it is in opposition to cultural norms, as this seems to help mitigate some biased tendencies. Measures to promote and support equality in organizations would challenge the perpetuation of the male manager standard and the subsequent negative attitude toward women managers. If women and women management students in the United States and around the world perceive men as the standard for managers (Schein, 2001), then it will be important for organizations to address these perceptions and attitudes in systematic, consistent ways and at all levels within organizations, regardless of organizational size. The result could be beneficial in the long run, as good relationships between managers and their subordinates could lead to enhanced productivity and increased profitability.

Limitations and Future Studies This investigation is limited by the comparative slight variation in age, that is, most of the women participants were between 18-25. Further studies with individuals from varying age groups are needed to determine if this investigation’s findings can be replicated. This study is also limited in that the assessments were completed in one setting. It is possible that the independent variables may have provided some insight into the intentions of the investigation, and this may result in an inflation of the correlations between variables (Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Lee, & Podsakoff, 2003). The results of this survey would be strengthened if the independent variables were collected separately from the dependent variables. However, we have confidence our findings follow previous efforts related to cross cultural studies (e.g., Christie, et al., 2003; Ramaswami, et al., 2014). There is also a concern with the low reliability of the PD scale with this sample. However, we, like many other researchers (e.g., Jackson & Deeg, 2008; Rapp, Bernardi, & Bosco, 2011) who have used Hofstede’s dimensions, believe that the strengths and contributions of the typology offer insights about the general behaviors of individuals in diverse countries that surpass the possible limitations. Further, the significance of the findings related to this construct (e.g., correlations) provides evidence that the construct is still sound and appropriate for this research (e.g., Kerlinger & Lee, 2000). This study is also limited as the data was collected from college students. Some may suggest that they lack the full time work experience, and thus, making these results not as convincing. This issue is common to laboratory experiments as opposed to those completed in the field. While this may not provide the best external validity for this effort, we believe that the internal validity more than compensates for the purposes of this study (Kerlinger & Lee, 2000). We argue that because these participants are less savvy, this may make a more conservative study of these variables. However, we acknowledge that it would be beneficial to this area of study if future researchers investigated these constructs in multiple organizational settings.

Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. 30 This study has produced two divergent results that require additional research. First, when American women perceive low PD and are high in SDO, they should have a negative attitude toward women managers, but our findings reveal a positive attitude toward women managers. We believe this is due to the shifting of the SDO women’s standards for managers from men to the average woman manager, and thus, allowing for a more positive attitude toward women managers when compared to the average woman manager. Additional research is needed to examine and confirm our reasoning related to the shifting standards. Second, we believe that low SDO women in a low PD country should have a more positive attitude toward women managers than high SDO women. This means that in the United States, a low PD country that is less tolerant of inequality, American women low in SDO are less inclined to accept inequality and should be more positive toward low status group members. However, Figure 1 displays American women low in SDO as having a more negative attitude towards women managers than those high in SDO. Future research is needed to investigate this contradiction, which is beyond the scope of this study. Future studies should also include the size of the organization. Larger organizations may be inclined to establish more power distance within the organization; thus, impacting interpersonal behaviors. Therefore, those that build on these findings may determine this approach to be a fertile area of study.

Conclusion It appears that the perception of culture does influence the likelihood that women will be accepted as managers. Women from a more egalitarian country tend to have a far greater acceptance of women managers when compared to those in a nonegalitarian country. Further, the acceptance of women as managers is indeed influenced by the interaction of how individuals perceive PD and how much they adhere to the tenants of SDT. These findings suggest, that together, individual difference factors like SDO and PD play a key role in attitudes toward women managers in a business setting that should be further investigated. It appears that organizations are in a good position to help address the traditional standard for managers (i.e., men are most suitable for managerial positions) and work to challenge the negative attitudes toward women managers regardless of whether they originate at an individual or cultural level, or in varying countries.

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Table 1 – Correlation Table

Mean Standard Age Classification SDO PD Country Attitudes Toward Deviation Women Managers

Age 6.66 2.41 -

Classification 3.76 .84 .01 -

SDO 3.06 1.01 -.28** .16 -

PD 3.26 .97 -.21* -.08 .26** -

Country .39 .49 -.64** .23* .48** .29** -

Attitudes 5.58 1.04 .58** -.14 -.47** -.24* -.76** - Toward Women Managers Note. N = 113 - 123. **p ≤ 0.01. *p ≤ 0.05.

37 Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. Table 2 – Social dominance orientation, country, and power distance and the influence on attitude toward women managers.

Step Variable Β p-value R2 ∆R2

1 Age .58* .00* .36* Classification .15† .07†

2 Age .16* 05* .61* .25* Classification .02 .81 SDO -.14† .06† PD .01 .93 Country -.60* .00*

3 Age .20* .02* .64* .03* Classification .05 .45 SDO -.05 .56 PD .12 .22 Country -.55* .00* SDO * PD .01 .86 Country * SDO -.19* .03* Country * PD -.12 .21

4 Age .20* .02* .66* .02* Classification .05 .45 SDO -.08 .37 PD .10 .33 Country -.55* .00* SDO * PD -.05 .50 Country * SDO -.24* .01*

* p ≤ .05; † p ≤ .10

39 Copyright @ Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. All Rights Reserved. Figure 1 Interaction of social dominance orientation, power distance, and country on attitudes toward women managers for women

7.0

6.5 High PD, American

Attitudes Toward High PD, Kuwait 6.0 Women Managers Low PD, American 5.5 Low PD, Kuwait

5.0

4.5

4.0

3.5

3.0

Low SDO High SDO

SDO