Background Today's organizations are facing an increasing need of competent global managers. International experience is thus often a requirement in order to reach positions within top management. Expatriate assignments, whereby an employee relocates to work in another country for a longer period of time is a common way to gain international competence. However, the typical expatriate has traditionally been a man and still today, women are underrepresented in international management. Pressure from society on gender equality challenges organizations to increase their number of female expatriates. In order to explain the low share of female expatriates, prior research has foremost focused on the woman as an individual in the expatriation process rather than the organization's impact. Therefore we see a need of investigating how the organization and its underlying gendered substructures affect female expatriates. Purpose The purpose of the study is to investigate how gendered substructures in an organization influence the prospects of female expatriates. Methodology The study is based on a qualitative approach and builds upon interviews and focus groups conducted in two Swedish MNCs. A deductive approach has been used, whereby gendered organizational theory creates the framework of this study. Conclusion The result from our study shows that gendered substructures influence the prospects for women to take on expatriate assignments. This can be seen in the vertical segregation within organizations, the lack of role models and a higher pressure on women in managerial positions. Contribution This study is important since it stresses the organization's role on women's prospects for expatriate assignments. Furthermore it highlights the complexity of gender equality work in organizations and gives its contributions to further research within the field.

Profoundly impactful and enduring, Joan Acker’s framework of gendering processes is among the most influential and highly cited in feminist organization studies. Nonetheless, it has been rarely applied, only partially so in the majority of cases and never operationalised fully in a union. This thesis applies the framework, operating through all five dimensions, to one atypical Australian union, having women in three of the most senior elected positions. It seeks to understand the gendering assumptions and practices that construct, maintain and frame the underlying relations in its structures. Voice centred relational analysis was used to examine life history interviews with women and men and my own in-depth ethnographic account of organizational life. The analysis suggests that the union was infused with a particularly authoritarian hegemonic masculinity but that this was hidden from public view. In this context, having women in senior positions worked to disguise continuing inequalities. The major contribution of this study is the in-depth understanding of gender in the context of an Australian union, through what is a rare and insightful application of Joan Acker’s framework for analysing gendered organizations in its entirety.

Women are under-represented in both numbers and at the command level of police agencies after over 40 years of women in policing. The national average for women in policing, as reported by the 2012 Federal Bureau of Investigation Uniform Crime Report, was 11.9%. Women in state police and highway patrol agencies are well below the national average, particularly in the southern states where the percentage is below 6%. This study uses qualitative data to examine the role of gender and the gendered organizational structure and culture of police agencies through interview data from 24 women troopers and one academy cadet who are or were employed in seven southern state police and highway patrol agencies between 1972 and 2012. The data from their lived experiences indicate that women continue to encounter barriers and challenges to recruitment, employment, assignment, retention, and promotional opportunities. Understanding how women experience paramilitary policing institutions and the gendered nature of a male-dominated workforce can be used to argue for meaningful social and organizational changes in state police and highway patrol agencies and, by association, the profession of policing. Keywords: gendered roles, gendered institutions, gendered structure organizations, gendered culture, police, troopers, state police, highway patrol, women police, leadership, hegemonic masculinity, gender

This thesis confronts the ongoing issue of marginalization faced by women in sociologicalresearch, spotlighting the enduring influence of Joan Acker. It underscores Acker's crucial rolewithin sociological research, advocating for her work to be integral to sociology's undergraduatecurriculum. The study uses Brauns and Clarke's reflexive thematic analysis method to scrutinizesociological articles published in 2022 and 2023 that reference Acker's 1990 paper. The studyexplores the contemporary applications of Acker's research, the evolution of her "ideal worker"concept within feminist research, and the impact of the researcher's gender on their engagementwith Acker's research. The thesis is underpinned by a feminist sociological framework that rebutsandrocentric views, with an emphasis on contributions from scholars like Smith, Haraway, andHarding. It utilizes Rossiter's concept of the "Matilda effect" to depict the chronic undervaluationof female scientists' contributions. The study concludes that Acker's 1990 article continues to bea pivotal element in feminist organizational sociology between January 2022 to January 2023,specifically in interpreting and comprehending gendered structures in organizations.Additionally, Acker's "ideal worker" concept remains pertinent for highlighting norm systemsthat disadvantage women within organizations. Significantly, it is found that those who activelydelve into Acker's work are predominantly women. It underscores Acker's crucial role withinsociological research, advocating for her work to be integral to sociology's undergraduatecurriculum.

This study explores attitudes and constructions regarding the low number of female entre- preneurs within the Swedish grocery retailer company ICA. Through interviews and a focus group with women within ICA as well as a thematic analysis, this study confirms previous re- search; of women meeting hinders on the labor market, not due to inadequate leadership-skills but on gender-barriers impeding women to become leader, chiefs, and entrepreneurs. The study concludes that although ICA works to attain more female entrepreneurs the gendered structures within the organization have established a norm of male leadership and a reliance on the independent retailer to see your competence behind the gender.

Few women in academia occupy the leadership role of chief information officer (CIO), yet little is known about the underlying causes for gender disparity in this role. The purpose of this causal comparative study was to investigate whether gender stereotypes may impact perceptions about managerial characteristics of CIO candidates in academic settings. The theoretical foundation for this study was Schein's 'Think Manager, Think Male' paradigm and Acker's gendered organization theory. Data were acquired from 48 hiring officials from four-year public, private, and nonprofit colleges, universities, and research institutions in the Northeastern region of the United States who completed the Schein Descriptive Index. Data were analyzed using ANOVA to determine whether gender of the hiring authority was associated with the perceived managerial skills of male, female, and non-gender-specific CIO candidates. Data analysis revealed no significant difference in male and female hiring officials' ratings of male, female, and non-gender-specific CIO candidates. The findings demonstrated the theoretical construct of Schein's 'Think Manager, Think Male' paradigm are outdated and Acker's gendered organization theory persistently exists where males' dominant in organizations and roles deemed masculine. Implications for positive social change in the area of public policy are increasing awareness to hiring officials and women seeking the role of CIO in academia about other factors such as age, ethnicity, and experience that may affect candidate selection in the role of CIO.

Syfte: Syftet är att skapa en djupare förståelse för hur bakslagseffekten verkar inom en kvinnodominerad organisation när kvinnor avancerar i hierarkin. Metod: Vår studie antar en kvalitativ forskningsansats. Semistrukturerade intervjuer har genomförts med nio kvinnliga chefer inom en kvinnodominerad organisation. Vi har en abduktiv ansats där vi låtit teorin ligga till grund för de teman vi har tagit upp och som är återkommande genom vår studie. Respondenternas åsikter har sedan tolkats genom en innehållsanalys. Vår teoretiska referensram bygger på tidigare forskning inom bakslagseffekten, könspräglade organisationer, könsroller och ledarskap. Resultat & slutsats: Vår studie visar att de kvinnliga cheferna antar ett transformativt ledarskap men att de trots det i vissa avseenden antar manliga karaktärsdrag. De möter vidare en bakslagseffekt som kan karaktäriseras av att de missgynnas i rekryteringsprocesser. När kvinnor blir chefer över tidigare kvinnliga kolleger möts de av en bakslagseffekt där de ogillas, deras kompetens ifrågasätts och i vissa fall blir de även utfrysta. Förslag på fortsatt forskning: Framtida forskning bör rikta in sig på att studera om det finns informella hierarkier som påverkar kvinnor när de avancerar i hierarkin. Organisationskulturer och generationsfrågan bör studeras närmare för att se deras inverkan på bakslagseffekten. En sista punkt är att definitionerna av könsroller och de karaktärsdrag som förskrivs till kvinnor respektive män förändras över tid därför kan det vara ett intressant område för att se vad det har för effekt på bakslagseffekten. Uppsatsens bidrag: Vårt teoretiska bidrag är att vi har visat att kvinnor som avancerar i hierarkin inom en kvinnodominerad organisation möter en bakslagseffekt till följd av att de blivit chefer över tidigare kvinnliga kollegor. De praktiska bidragen är att organisationer måste arbeta med att motverka informella hierarkier och att sträva efter att skapa mindre löneskillnader mellan könen. / Aim: The purpose with our study is to create a deeper understanding of how the backlash against women works in a female-dominated organization when women advances in the hierarchy.  Method: The study applies a qualitive research perspective. We have conducted semi structured interviews with nine female managers in one female-dominated organization. We have an abductive approach. Respondents' views have been interpreted through a content analysis. Our theoretical frame of reference is based on previous research on backlash, gendered organizations, gender roles and leadership. Result & conclusions: Our study shows that the female managers assume a transformative leadership, although they assume male characteristics in some respects. They face a backlash that can be characterized as being in disadvantage in recruitment processes and also by facing disapproval from colleagues. When women become managers of former female colleagues, they face a backlash in which thet are disliked, their skills are being questioned and, in some cases, they are also being exploited.   Suggestions for future research: Organizational cultures, informal hierarchies and different generations should be studied more closely to see how they impact on the backlash. One last thing is that the definitions of gender roles and the characteristics attributed to women and men change over time, hence it would be an interesting area to study, in order to see what possible effect it may have on the backlash. Contribution of the thesis: Our theoretical contribution is that we have shown that women who advance in the hierarchy in a female-dominated organization face a backlash as a result of becoming managers of former female colleagues. The managerial contributions are that organizations must work to counter informal hierarchies and to strive to decrease the salary gap between the sexes.

Denna uppsats presenterar en kvalitativ studie av fenomenet osynligt arbete bland svenska högstadielärare. Genom att genomföra 13 semistrukturerade intervjuer med manliga och kvinnliga högstadielärare är syftet att undersöka hur fenomenet osynligt arbete ser ut inom svensk högstadieskola. Studien intar ett genusperspektiv och det teoretiska ramverket är Joan Ackers teori om könade organisationer. Vidare använder studien även Trudy Bates relationella modell av Ackers fem könade processer. Genom att använda detta perspektiv kan studien identifiera eventuella könsmönster som kan uppstå i relation till upplevelsen av osynligt arbete. Utifrån två forskningsfrågor har resultaten kunnat visa att det finns många olika typer av osynligt arbete inom läraryrket på svenska högstadieskolor. Allt från att bygga starka relationer med elever, ansvara för anteckningar på möten, till olika former av hushålls- och underhållsarbete med mera, har identifierats som osynliga arbetsuppgifter. När det gäller könsskillnader kan resultaten vidare visa att det vanligtvis är kvinnor, som i större utsträckning, utför den här typen av uppgifter. När det kommer till hur lärare påverkas av osynligt arbete, i relation till deras arbetsmiljö, visar resultaten att det är kvinnor som drabbas mest negativt. Exempelvis beskrivs stress och utbrändhet som vanliga företeelser inom yrket. Även om manliga lärare också kan drabbas, tyder resultaten på att dessa företeelser är vanligare bland kvinnliga lärare. Resultaten visar vidare att kvinnliga lärare i större utsträckning tar till medvetna strategier för att hantera sin arbetsmiljösituation. Samtidigt beskrivs de kvinnliga lärarna ha svårare att sätta gränser. Trots att det svenska skolväsendet ofta betraktas som en könsneutral organisation går det av denna studie att dra slutsatsen att denna typ av arbetsplatser påverkas av samhälleliga könsnormer. Rekommendationer för framtida studier av osynligt arbete inom läraryrket diskuteras. / This paper presents a qualitative study of the phenomenon of invisible work among Swedish high school teachers. Through the conducting of 13 semi-structured interviews with male and female high school teachers, the aim is to investigate how the phenomenon of invisible work appears in Swedish upper secondary schools. The study adopts a gender perspective and the theoretical framework is Joan Acker’s theory about gendered organizations. Furthermore, the study also uses Trudy Bates relational model of Acker's Five Gendering Processes. By using this perspective, the study can identify any potential gender patterns that may occur in relation to the experience of invisible work. Based on two research questions, the results have been able to show that there are many different types of invisible work within the teaching profession at Swedish high schools. Everything from building strong relationships with students, being responsible for taking notes at meetings, to various forms of household and maintenance work and more, have been identified as invisible work tasks. Regarding gender differences, the results could further show that women usually carry out these types of tasks in greater occurrence. When it comes to how teachers are affected by invisible work, in relation to their work environment, the results also show that women are the ones who are most negatively affected. Stress and burnout are for example described as common phenomena in the profession. Although male teachers can also be affected, the results suggest that these phenomena are more common among female teachers. The results further show that female teachers to a greater extent use conscious strategies to manage their work environment situation. At the same time they are described as having more difficulty setting boundaries. Despite the fact that the Swedish school system is often considered as a gender-neutral organization, it is possible to conclude from this study that this type of workplace is influenced by societal gender norms. Recommendations for future studies of invisible work within the teaching profession are discussed.

This essay aims to investigate the meaning of masculinity norms within the forestry sector in Sweden, and how these norms affect the gender equality within the industry. A qualitative research method was applied to highlight and investigate the research aim and questions. Six semi-structured interviews were conducted and furthermore analyzed with a discursive analysis method and a gender theoretical perspective. This study is a continuation of and has its starting point, where the project Jämställdhet i skogsbranschen, implemented by Länsstyrelsen in Västernorrland and other actors, left off. The fourth aim of that project became an object of focus for us and this essay as a whole. The results of this study implied that there are several masculinity norms within the Swedish forestry sector and that the norms influence both men and women. A hegemonic masculinity within the industry became apparent that affected women as well as men. Finally, the gender equality work within the sector could be affected by masculinity norms, that could be considered to prohibit existing and ongoing gender equality work.

Gendered organizational conditions create the context for persisting differences between men and women in the workplace. Within, higher education, this manifests as a salary gap between male and female faculty members. The academic capitalistic policy environment creates the conditions for increasing competition for external funding, especially in the areas of research and science and engineering. The change in the academic climate may sustain or intensify the gendering of universities as organizations. Universities with the highest level of research activity were chosen for this study and formed the 130 public institution sample. This study used fixed effects panel regression analysis to explore the relationship between the faculty gender salary gap and institutional emphasis on research as well as science and engineering. In addition, the relationship between institutional emphasis and the faculty gender salary gap was explored over time with the inclusion of a time trend and temporal interaction terms. Results showed that the higher the percentage of female faculty members, the greater the faculty gender salary gap for assistant professors. In addition, science and engineering emphasis over time had a significant impact on the professor salary gap with a decreasing effect both at the mean and one standard deviation above the mean, but with an increasing effect on the salary gap for institutions one standard deviation below the mean. When taking action to increase gender equity, it is important for universities to recognize that the faculty gender salary gap occurs in an organizational context impacted by institutional-level conditions.