Women at the top: Where now, what next? Reflections on the British Psychological Society's Division of Occupational Psychology 2012 conference

Abstract

Purpose

This paper reviews the recent “Women at the Top” Conference held in London by the British Psychological Society's Division of Occupational Psychology and offers some suggestions for future research on women at the top.

Design/methodology/approach

The report is generated from attendee observations, notes, other reviews and podcast recordings following the conference.

Findings

Conference proceedings highlighted key areas of interest and current work for psychologists tackling the dearth of women leaders. A majority of presentations examined the role of stereotyping and prejudice in understanding leadership and gender, while a few others discussed contextual factors shaping women's leadership journeys such as life experiences and external parties such as head‐hunters. The limited focus on other diversity dimensions such as racio‐ethnicity is noted.

Originality/value

In light of the conference proceedings, the authors discuss how psychological research could further contribute to addressing the lack of women at the top of organisations. The authors suggest that models of stereotyping and prejudice in leadership need further contextualization and call for more research on multiple stakeholders accountable for women's leadership experiences, particularly those in positions of power and privilege such as current male leaders and Chairmen. Also stressed is the need for an intersectional approach which takes into account the multiple identities of women at the top.

Citation

Atewologun, D. and Doldor, E. (2013), "Women at the top: Where now, what next? Reflections on the British Psychological Society's Division of Occupational Psychology 2012 conference", Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Vol. 32 No. 2, pp. 223-229. https://doi.org/10.1108/02610151311324442