Management Styles, Gender Theories

The gendering of management styles is related to the association between masculinities and femininities as fundamental traits that define management styles and determine their effectiveness based on how successful they are in the struggle for power and resources. The discussion of gender in management is a shift from what initially was focused on women in management, and the distinctions between the management styles of women and men.

The discussion progressed toward how the construction of femininity and masculinity defined managerial [Page 890]traits and styles. This discussion can be theoretically placed within a “gender-centered” approach to explain the disadvantaged position of women in management.

Gender influences the way behaviors, characteristics, individuality, and attitudes of women and men are seen and understood. As a result, based on assumptions ...