Passion penalizes women and advantages (unexceptional) men in high-potential designations
File(s)
Accepted version
Author(s)
Moore, Celia
He, Joyce
Jachimowicz, Jon
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
High potential programs offer a swift path up the corporate ladder for those who secure a place on them. However, the evaluation of “potential” occurs under considerable uncertainty, creating fertile ground for gender bias. We document that men are more likely than women to be designated as high potential, and unpack how gendered responses to employees’ expressions of passion—one of the most commonly used criteria used in evaluating potential—both penalize women and advantage men in high-potential selection processes. First, and based on prior research on gender display rules, we suggest that expressions of passion are viewed as a less appropriate emotional display for women than men, giving rise to a female penalty. Second, and drawing on shifting standards theorizing, we posit that expressions of passion shift evaluators’ predictions of candidates’ future diligence more meaningfully for men than women, creating a male advantage—particularly for men who are reasonably-high but not exceptional performers. We provide supporting evidence across two studies examining placement into high-potential programs in a real talent review setting (N=796) and a pre-registered experiment that uses videos featuring trained actors (N=1,366), supported by two supplementary studies (N=1,590). Taken together, this work sheds light on the ways the increasing emphasis on passion in contemporary workplaces may exacerbate gender inequalities. Progressing our understanding of gender bias beyond gendered reactions to criteria that penalize women (i.e., backlash), our work also unveils a novel and particularly pernicious form of gender bias driven by gendered inferences about passion that advantage men.
Date Issued
2025-07-01
Date Acceptance
2024-10-28
Citation
Organization Science, 2025, 36 (4), pp.1438-1465
ISSN
1047-7039
Publisher
Institute for Operations Research and Management Sciences
Start Page
1438
End Page
1465
Journal / Book Title
Organization Science
Volume
36
Issue
4
Copyright Statement
Copyright © 2024, INFORMS. This is the author’s accepted manuscript made available under a CC-BY licence in accordance with Imperial’s Research Publications Open Access policy (www.imperial.ac.uk/oa-policy)
License URL
Sponsor
Citibank N.A
Grant Number
MSMG_P84440
Subjects
Social Sciences
Management
Business & Economics
gender bias
shifting standards
passion
diligence
talent management
high potential
GENDER STEREOTYPES
ENTREPRENEURIAL PASSION
EMOTION
FEMALE
UNCERTAINTY
PERFORMANCE
STANDARDS
EMPLOYEES
LIFE
RECOMMENDATION
1503 Business and Management
1505 Marketing
Business & Management
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2024-12-23