ABSTRACT
In the mid 1980s two Wall Street Journal reporters coined a very powerful metaphor representing the barrier women encountered when ascending into elite leadership positions: the glass ceiling (”e Corporate Woman, 1986). Although challenges still exist for women in leadership positions, women are now climbing leadership ranks in record numbers. In 1972 the number of women in managerial positions was a mere 18% and by 2001 women and men were equally represented in managerial positions (Eagly & Carli, 2007). Indeed, women now represent 25% of the chief executive o¬cers (CEOs) in American organizations (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2009) and a handful of women, including PepsiCo’s Indra Nooyi and Yahoo’s Carol Bartz, are now at the helm of Fortune 500 companies. ”ere are also numerous women serving in political leadership positions. Recently, two of the highest positions in the U.S. government were occupied by women: Hillary Clinton as U.S. secretary of state and Nancy Pelosi as speaker of the House. Favorable attitudes toward women in leadership positions have also increased as women have increased their presence in leadership roles. In 1937, only 33% of respondents to a Gallup poll indicated that they would vote for a quali›ed woman for president, whereas in 2006 89% indicated that they would. Likewise, Gallup data showed a signi›cant decrease in the preference for male over female bosses from 1953 to 2006 (Eagly & Carli).
