The Changing Nature of Research on Women at Work

Abstract

A thematic review of the recent literature on women at work indicates that women continue to fair more poorly than men in organizational reward decisions. Otherwise, gender related differences are more prevalent than actual sex differences in many research contexts. These differences are, however, inconsistent across studies. Our evaluation of the most recent research on women at work suggests that more emphasis on information processing models for explaining gender relevant attitudes and behavior might not only resolve some of the inconsistencies, but also provide valuable new insights into the variability that exists among women. Each of these advances could significantly improve our understanding of the role of women in modern organizational life.