The Influence of Affirmative Action on Perceptions of a Beneficiary's Qualifications¹

Relative to females, males tended to discount the qualifications of a woman promoted into management. However, the male‐female difference was dependent upon the promoting organization's Affirmative Action environment. There were no differences between males and females when females thought that the organization promoting the woman had an Affirmative Action program in place. Under these circumstances females behaved as males in discounting the woman's qualifications. In contrast, females who thought that the organization promoting the woman was anti‐Affirmative Action augmented the woman's qualifications. The interpretation of this is that these women viewed the organization's anti‐Affirmative Action position as an inhibitory factor that could only have been overcome on the basis of the promoted woman possessing the necessary qualifications. Results are interpreted in relation to practical implications for Affirmative Action programs.