In an attempt to understand inequalities in the workplace, Kanter (1977) proposed that the experience of role uncertainty resulted in a tendency for managers to surround themselves with similar others. This dissertation extended Kanter's idea to a more macro level by investigating the possibility that objective levels of environmental uncertainty surrounding an organization could result in homogeneity within upper echelon groups. Specifically, I predicted that objective measures of environmental uncertainty would be associated with less race, gender and age diversity in Top Management Teams (TMTs) and Boards of Directors (BODs). Contrary to expectations, environmental uncertainty was not related to either race or age diversity. However, as hypothesized, environmental uncertainty was positively and significantly related to gender diversity in both TMTs and BODs. Possible explanations for the lack of significant effects for race and age gender are offered. Theoretical and practical implications of the detected relationship between environmental uncertainty and upper echelon gender diversity are discussed / acase@tulane.edu
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:TULANE/oai:http://digitallibrary.tulane.edu/:tulane_23711 |
| Date | January 2004 |
| Contributors | Butz, Rebecca Marie (Author), Brief, Arthur P (Thesis advisor) |
| Publisher | Tulane University |
| Source Sets | Tulane University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | Access requires a license to the Dissertations and Theses (ProQuest) database., Copyright is in accordance with U.S. Copyright law |
Page generated in 0.0013 seconds