Preference for Men as Bosses and Professionals

On the assumption that prejudice affects women's entry to male-dominated professional and management occupations, this paper investigates preferences for men as bosses and professionals (BPs). Using a sample (N = 1,402) of university staff and academic employees, we found that highly educated women and men who are highly educated or married to women employed as academics or professionals are least likely to prefer men BPs. Preference for male BPs was also affected by the number of female BPs respondents had dealt with professionally and by exposure to reportedly good or poor ones. These findings imply that legislative policies which help women to enter professional and managerial occupations may be successful despite prejudice against women.