Do Workers Discriminate against Female Bosses?

A-Tier
Journal: Journal of Human Resources
Year: 2024
Volume: 59
Issue: 2

Score contribution per author:

4.022 = (α=2.01 / 1 authors) × 2.0x A-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

I hire 2,700 workers for a transcription job, randomly assigning the gender of their (fictitious) manager and provision of performance feedback. While praise has no effect, criticism negatively impacts workers’ job satisfaction and perception of the task’s importance. When female managers deliver this feedback, negative effects on these attitudes double in magnitude. Having a critical female manager does not affect effort provision, but it lowers workers’ interest in working for the firm in the future. Results are consistent with gendered expectations of feedback. I find no evidence for the role of attention discrimination or implicit gender bias.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:uwp:jhriss:v:59:y:2024:i:2:p:470-501
Journal Field
Labor
Author Count
1
Added to Database
2026-01-24