Women continue to be marginalized at most levels of government, especially in political appointment positions. This research interviewed sixteen female political appointees. We found they were drawn from elites, such as legislators, professors, teachers, lawyers and journalists. Most female appointees showed profound political interests through active participation in political activities and social movements, which allows them from movement to government. Interviewees in this research expressed that the president or their mayor invited them to serve as such posts because of appreciation of their past working experiences and administrative experiences. We found some mothers opposed their daughters to step into politics. Furthermore, the very division between public/private and man/woman composes the different expectations on male and female political appointees, such as domestic chores, caring and even their abilities in dealing with politics. Gender makes a difference. Female interviewees tended to promote capable female in their divisions and redressed the past ¡§gender-neutral¡¨ policy to help women have a better life. Some female political appointees also expressed their unique sensitivity as women in decision-making process. In order to increase women to participate in politics, this research suggests raising gender awareness in policies and stress on school education and public education for engaging younger generations. Further, gender quota can increase women¡¦s opportunity to serve as political appointees.

<p><strong>Purpose:            </strong>The purpose of this study is to investigate the importance of having an employee structure with mixed genders in an accounting firm. </p><p>This study answers the following questions:</p><p>·        How important is an employee structure with mixed genders in an accounting firm?<strong></strong></p><p>·        What are the differences in the employee structure of a Gibraltarian and a Swedish accounting firm?<strong></strong></p><p><strong>                        </strong></p><p>                        The roles of the genders in an organisation are becoming more and more important in today’s society. This is why I have studied this subject for my Master thesis and I think it can be interesting for the companies today to become more aware of the importance of mixed gender’s.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>Method: </strong>To be able to complete my study I have collected data from questionnaires and interviews in the relevant companies and I have also looked for information in books and on the Internet. After gathering the information I analyzed it according to the theories, which are presented in the theory chapter. This study was presented to an opinion group from Högskolan i Gävle from abroad.<strong></strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>Result & </strong><strong>Conclusion:        </strong>The importance of mixed genders is to be able to run the company as successfully as possible with the means necessary looking from both a feminine and a masculine perspective in a highly competitive market.</p><p> </p><p>                        I believe that PwC has succeeded with having a good working environment because they have mixed genders in the company. All the theories prove that mixing genders is important and I believe it is the reason that Sweden has a law about it and also is the reason why PwC have a policy for quota of genders.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>Suggestions/</strong><strong>future studies: </strong>For future studies it would be interesting if more accounting companies from a greater selection of countries could be compared. This comparison would be interesting if it was between a country with similar culture or even with the extreme opposites. It would also be interesting to compare the different PwC branches within Sweden to see if the policy for quota of genders varies in different parts of Sweden. Another suggestion to further studies would be to see if there is a link between masculine cultured countries having less female managers than feminine cultured countries.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>The studies </strong><strong>contribution: </strong>My study and the suggested future studies can be used to improve the working environment and outcome for company’s which do not already have a quota policy for genders. </p>

Purpose:            The purpose of this study is to investigate the importance of having an employee structure with mixed genders in an accounting firm.  This study answers the following questions: ·        How important is an employee structure with mixed genders in an accounting firm? ·        What are the differences in the employee structure of a Gibraltarian and a Swedish accounting firm?                                                 The roles of the genders in an organisation are becoming more and more important in today’s society. This is why I have studied this subject for my Master thesis and I think it can be interesting for the companies today to become more aware of the importance of mixed gender’s.   Method: To be able to complete my study I have collected data from questionnaires and interviews in the relevant companies and I have also looked for information in books and on the Internet. After gathering the information I analyzed it according to the theories, which are presented in the theory chapter. This study was presented to an opinion group from Högskolan i Gävle from abroad.     Result &amp; Conclusion:        The importance of mixed genders is to be able to run the company as successfully as possible with the means necessary looking from both a feminine and a masculine perspective in a highly competitive market.                           I believe that PwC has succeeded with having a good working environment because they have mixed genders in the company. All the theories prove that mixing genders is important and I believe it is the reason that Sweden has a law about it and also is the reason why PwC have a policy for quota of genders.   Suggestions/future studies: For future studies it would be interesting if more accounting companies from a greater selection of countries could be compared. This comparison would be interesting if it was between a country with similar culture or even with the extreme opposites. It would also be interesting to compare the different PwC branches within Sweden to see if the policy for quota of genders varies in different parts of Sweden. Another suggestion to further studies would be to see if there is a link between masculine cultured countries having less female managers than feminine cultured countries.   The studies contribution: My study and the suggested future studies can be used to improve the working environment and outcome for company’s which do not already have a quota policy for genders.

This paper has examined which medium-term effects the Norwegian gender quota law has had on corporate boards listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange from 2009 to 2015. Wehave studied the gender quota law’s impact on different corporate board factors, such as board composition, the number of directorships held, basic remuneration, board size, andthe age of directors. Further, we also compared the gender quota law’s effects on these factors with similar studies made in earlier periods. The reason for that is to recognise whether there is a tendency of convergence over time. The study have been conducted using a quantitative approach by gathering information from mostly annual reports. Since, this is a comparative study, we will be using the same methods as previous researchers. These methods are arithmetic averages and standard deviations. We have also included some other methods to strengthen the results, such as geometric average, median, correlations, and significance test. The results of our research show that the number of directorships held by female directors decreased in both absolute numbers as well as in averages and dispersion. Remuneration for female directors increased. However, it diverged with male directors. The average board size did not remain significantly constant over time. We also found that the average age of board directors both increase and converges between the genders. We also believed that the proportion of female directors was depended on the firm’s board size, which the results showed was an incorrect assumption. This paper has applied an overarching theory called contingency theory. Further, other complementary theories within the area of corporate governance have also been used such as stakeholder theory, agency theory, and resource dependency theory. When analysing the results from this paper, there were too many plausible and contrasting theoretical explanations for why the various outcomes occurred. Therefore, we do not believe that the existing theoretical frameworks available are appropriate to explain how the gender quota law will impact corporate boards. The main contribution of this study is the results that show how both female and maledirectors’ average age and directorships held are converging over the observed period. Also, that the gender quota law has enabled female directors to gain more experience, which has led to a higher proportion of female directors.

This study shows the effects of the ‘soft’ board gender quota in Sweden enacted in 2006. Using a sample of 2,181 firm-year observations, Swedish listed firms do increase the percentage of females after the enactment of the quota, but this effect is not coming due to the quota. Neither more firms comply to the quota of 40 per cent caused by the quota enactment. Firms with state involvement are more likely to comply to the quota and increase the percentage of females. Internationalized firms have elusive results on the percentage of female directors and quota compliance. On average, more female directors in board positions have a positive effect on firm performance as measured in Tobin’s Q and ROA. The increase in the percentage of females and the positive effect on firm performance is more pronounced in the later time period (2012-2017) than the period short after the quota (2006-2011).

Background:           This thesis was written in context of the debate concerning gender equality and female representation on company boards. Gender quota legislation have been implemented by various countries on a national level, and a similar regulation was proposed by the European Commission. Legislation regarding board gender diversity have given rise to the discussion on the actual effects of female director’s on board effectiveness and firm financial performance.   Purpose:                  The aim of the study is to evaluate the relationship between gender diversity on boards and firm financial results. A sample of 100 Swedish companies listed on Nasdaq Stockholm for the time period 2013-2016 is analysed.    Method:                    The study had a quantitative approach and used a panel data methodology. The data analysis was conducted using Ordinary Least Square Regression. Board gender diversity was measured by four variables including the diversity measurements Blau and Shannon indices, and Tobin’s Q was deployed as the market-based measurement of financial performance.   Conclusion: The results of the data analysis indicate that the presence of one or more women has a positive effect on financial performance, which contradicts previous findings. Also, it is found that higher gender diversity on boards influenced firm performance positively, which conformed to the majority of the previous findings.

This study investigates resistance against female local government politicians in Sri Lanka during their first year and a half as members of local government councils, as a result of the 25 % gender quota introduced in 2018. Further, the study investigates these newly elected female politicians’ perceived ability to influence local government politics; experienced substantive representation. Through a minor field study, in-depth interviews were conducted to examine forms of resistance and perceived political influence of these newly appointed women. Several types of resistance were found and divided into three categories; Patronizing Behavior from Male Politicians; the Dispute Between Elected and Appointed Women; Public Distrust. Some evidence of the mandate effect and the label effect were detected, further hampering substantive representation. The study concludes that despite a significant increase in descriptive representation, substantive representation was not necessarily experienced by the interview subjects. Further studies are encouraged to deepen the understanding of the resistance towards appointed female politicians in Sri Lanka, and moreover the problematic effects of the implementation of gender quotas in highly unequal states.

Syftet med kandidatuppsatsen är att förstå och analysera ledamöternas syn på kvinnor i politiken i Mauritius. Denna avhandling fokuserar på politikernas erfarenheter efter implementering av könskvotering i den lokala politiken som resulterade i en ökad kvinnorepresentation och dess konsekvenser. Det empiriska materialet för avhandlingen har samlats in genom kvalitativa intervjuer med manliga och kvinnliga ledamöter från tre kommuner i Mauritius. Det teoretiska ramverket är uppdelad i tre delar som används för att analysera olika punkter från det empiriska materialet. I det teoretiska ramverket har vi inkluderat teorier om de tillvägagångssätt att öka kvinnors representation, varför kvinnor bör vara aktiva i politiken, och om könskvotering. För att analysera empirin från en teoretisk synvinkel har resultaten delats upp i tre underkategorier vilket är respondenternas inställning till könskvotering och kvinnors representation i politiken, teorin om kritisk massa och förändringar i den politiska agenda, samt kommunpolitikernas attityder gentemot kvinnliga politiker. Resultaten från vår avhandling visar att föreställningen att politiken enbart är en mans domän har börjat förändras. Den ökade kvinnorepresentationen har visat att kvinnor är lika kompetenta som män att verka i den politiska världen. Dock visar inte resultaten någon märkbar förändring i den politiska agendan. Kvinnor i Mauritius är numera accepterade att delta i politiken, men det är fortfarande en lång väg att gå för dem att betraktas som likvärdiga medlemmar som män i den politiska världen. / The purpose of the thesis is to understand and analyse councillors’ view on women in Mauritian politics. This thesis focuses on their experiences after the implementation of gender quota in local government which led to an increased women’s representation in local politics as well as the consequences derived from it. The empirical material for this thesis has been gathered through qualitative interviews with male and female councillors from three municipalities in Mauritius. The theoretical framework is divided into three parts which are used to analyse different points from the empirical material. In the theoretical framework we have included theories about the ways to increase women’s representation, why women should be active in politics, and about gender quota. To analyse the empirics from a theoretical point of view, we have divided the results into three sub-categories which are the respondents’ stance to gender quota and women’s representation in politics, the theory of critical mass and the change in political agenda, as well as the councillors’ attitudes towards female politicians. The results from this thesis show that the notion that politics is solely a male domain has begun to change. The increased women’s representation has shown that women are as competent as men in the political field. However, the results do not show a notable change in the political agenda, because not enough time has passed to see any differences. Women in Mauritius are today more accepted to partake in politics but there is still a long way to go for them to be considered equal members as men in the political world.

This thesis examines a gender quota in Algeria to determine if signs can be found that it was adopted to improve the regime’s image, rather than to empower women. Such symbolic gender reforms are also known as autocratic gender-washing and are problematic as they are generally viewed as democratisation efforts but have no such effect. In the case of autocratic gender-washing neither democracy nor women benefit as it only serves to legitimate an authoritarian regime. This thesis has a feminist institutionalist analytical perspective which serves to understand the gendered nature of institutions, the relationship between formal and informal institutions, and how they undergo change. There is also an assumption that descriptive representation should lead to substantive representation for gender quotas to be successful. The case of Algeria is chosen as it is considered an authoritarian regime but implemented a relatively drastic gender quota at 30% reserved seats, which they abolished after only ten years, in 2021. Women’s issues in Algeria are examined to better understand what benefits women as a group prioritised. This contextualisation reveals what topics to analyse to reveal genuine gender reform or autocratic gender-washing. A critical discourse analysis is conducted to find signs of whether the quota benefitted women as well as if the regime was given credit for it. The thesis finds that there are signs of autocratic gender-washing but also cautious suggestions of women benefitting from reform through adjusted policy design.

The results in previous studies indicate that the electoral system plays an important role in women's political representation. Some researchers believe that the proportional electoral system contributes to more representation of women than the majority electoral system. The proportional electoral system is considered to be the most important factor explaining the cross-border differences in women's political representation.  The aim of my research is to test whether similar results to those shown in previous studies will occur when using another method. To fulfill this purpose, I answer the following questions:Can electoral factors explain the variation in women's political representation in the democratic countries of Africa? Is there any indication that other factors are important, if so, which ones?  In this research, different factors are used as the theoretical framework and starting point. After a theoretical review, the previous studies used to explain the underrepresentation of women in politics are introduced. The results from the previous studies are then compared to the results shown in this research to see if they can explain the variation in women's representation within the democratic countries in Africa.  This study is a comparative and employs most similar system design (MSSD). The table analysis is used as a method to analyse the collected data. Consequently, the results from the previous studies are used to analyse whether the same results on the electoral system also occur in democratic countries in Africa.  The findings show that countries with proportional electoral systems have a higher proportion of women in parliament compared to countries with a majority or mixed electoral system. However, the results also show that when compared with Catholic and Anglican countries, Protestant countries have a higher percentage of women in the national parliament. The explanation for this may be since the Catholic church is more associated with a hierarchical and authoritarian culture. The results in this study also indicate that the use of gender quotas is one of the factors that affect the women's political representation, which is consistent with the results shown in previous studies.