Human Resource Management

Assignment

Submitted By
Ravindra Rai Roll no:149 PGDIM 17 NITIE

PAPER 1

Gender variations in perceptions of performance appraisal

Patricia Hind and Yehuda Baruch, Women in Management ReviewVolume 12 Number 6 1997 pp. 276289

OBJECTIVE

OF THE

STUDY :

Much research has been directed towards women in management over the past 20 years. Results show that, despite progress being made towards gender equality as to career opportunities, there are still real differences between the sexes in career development and entry to top management levels. In line with this, the study reported in this paper (n= 846) was designed to examine and evaluate the potential and actual gender differences in the perception of appraisal systems and career development. Using a closed questionnaire measuring relevant demographic variables and ensuring control of others (educational background, salary, age, tenure, gender, hierarchy level) a number of motivational and attitudinal variables (needs for achievement, control, organizational, job and career satisfaction, organizational commitment) were identified as being relevant to self, peer and manager appraisal processes. It is generally acknowledged that performance appraisal systems form the bases of promotional decisions. The purpose of this paper is to highlight and empirically investigate possible gender differences in the perceptions of performance and its antecedents which may contribute to the glass ceiling effect.

HYPOTHESIS :
This study was designed to examine and evaluate gender differences in the perceptions of performance appraisal systems. It hypothesized: that significant gender-related differences in the reported evaluation of organizational appraisal systems may be detected; that particular demographic, motivational or attitudinal factors may be identified and associated with those perceptions.

DATA

COLLECTION

Data were collected by means of a closed questionnaire with variables being assessed by several items. Items were chosen to measure subjects motivational profile within the organization, their reported job satisfaction, and their perceptions of their future career progress. Additional items were developed to assess the individuals perceived control over their career progress, and their subjective evaluations of the appraisal

process used within the organization. The scales used were designed to be able to identify gender-related differences in the reported evaluations of the appraisal system. They were also intended to identify other job-related factors which may correlate with that perception. Specifically, the variables were: Demographic: age, gender, salary, educational level, hierarchical position. Attitudinal and motivational: organizational commitment, job satisfaction, need for control, need for power, perception of advancement as compared to peers, pro social behaviour and expected advancement level. Appraisal system evaluations: evaluations of the relevance and utility of appraisal scores given by managers, self, and self as compared to others. Questionnaires were distributed to 1,540 individuals from a total of 41 organizations. All participating organizations were defined as being high tech in respect of three criteria. The criteria were area of activity, internal research and development and a high proportion of academic and professional staff. Data on whether organizations met the criteria were obtained by means of company records, and interviews with executives. All organizations had been in existence for more than five years, and employed more than 100 staff. A total of 39 of the organizations operated in Israel and two in the UK.

DATA ANALYSIS :
Examination of the raw data showed close matching on the criteria used and no obvious differences between these samples. Therefore, no differentiation was made between the groups. There was a total response rate of 55 per cent with 846 questionnaires returned. Of the respondents, sixty-six per cent had an academic degree and almost 90 per cent had a professional or technical education. This level of education is higher than that usually reported in the literature. Nevertheless, this sample is considered representative of managers in high tech organizations. A total of 87 per cent were males, average tenure in the organizations was 11.1 years, (sd-7.4); average age was 41 (sd-7.5); (UK, n = 119; Israel, n = 777). There were 726 male respondents and 111 female respondents, with nine spoiled responses. The sample was a by-product of a broader study on organizational career planning and managing. Although the difference in size between the male and female groups may be regarded as a methodological weakness with the study, it reflects the reality of working life, especially for managerial positions in the high technology sector. Further, the significance of the differentially clustered correlated factors would suggest that even if a matched sample had been available, the results may have been replicated. However, it is suggested that further research should be conducted with matched samples, and a more culturally balanced sample, to address these issues. The characteristics of the non-participants were examined and compared with those of the participants, at the organizational and also the individual level. No special differences between the different populations were found at either the organizational or the individual levels.

RESULTS:
Simple comparisons showed that women were found (on average) at lower positions in organizations and had lower salaries than men. The perceived career future opportunities (perception of what is the highest position they may reach) were also lower than those of men. All the differences were statistically significant (5.36 for females compared to 4.24 for men, of hierarchy level, where lower numerical scores indicated higher positions in the organization). These differences were not found in the levels of education. Both populations had the same level of education. A check was carried out with hierarchy level controlled, to see if salary differences were due to lower hierarchy level, but the picture remained the same. Table I shows initial analyses

which computed the correlation coefficients for all variables, for all subjects. Table II shows means and standard deviations. As can be seen, there were statistically significant correlations found, for the whole subject group between: Managerial appraisal (PA scores attributed by direct manager) and self-appraisal (as perceived by the respondents) (r = 0.73 significant at 0.01). Level of hierarchy (present post) and expectations (future career perception) (r = 0.65 significant at 0.01). Salary and level of hierarchy (r = 0.54 significant at 0.01). Satisfaction with the organization and job satisfaction (r = 0.62 significant at 0.01). Satisfaction with the organization and career satisfaction (r = 0.47 significant at 0.01). Organizational commitment and pro-social behaviour (r = 0.42 significant at 0.01).

Correlation coefficients were then computed for the male group and the female group separately, to identify possible differences (see Tables III and IV). Different correlational clusters were found for the two groups. Overall, there were many more interrelated variables for males than for females. For the male group, five of the measured variables were consistently intercorrelated with other variables, these were: need for control, salary, education, relative performance, work centrality.

Managerial appraisal and need for achievement scores were also commonly found in the cluster of correlations for the male group. The female group scores rarely correlated with salary, education or relative performance. The female correlational cluster indicated consistent associations between need for achievement and most other variables. There was little emphasis on comparative data such as relative performance, managerial appraisal, salary or education level. There were clear areas of overlap in the correlational patterns. For both groups, factors such as job satisfaction, organizational satisfaction, future perceptions of career development and organizational commitment are all highly interrelated. One striking feature of the data was the breadth of interrelationships displayed by the male group and not shared by the female group. Very few correlations were detected in the female group that were not reflected in the male group. However, the latter group had many that were not shared by the females, possibly indicating a broader informational base being used by the male group.

When looking at the evaluation of the appraisal systems by males and females, through the ratings of the relevance and utility of managerial and self-appraisals, and their correlations with other variables, it appeared that males associate the managerial appraisal system with a far broader raft of variables. It is closely linked to other external factors such as relative performance, present level in hierarchy, expectations, salary and education. For females, these are not relevant, but attitudinal factors such as job and organizational satisfaction are included. The self-appraisal scores again reflect the incorporation of external, comparative data into the male domain, with females again relying on the attitudinal factors of satisfaction and commitment. For the female group, age is a related variable here. A striking feature of the data was the gender different pattern of correlations linking present and expected hierarchical levels with evaluations of the three measures of performance appraisal used. For the male subjects, both present and expected hierarchical levels were correlated with managerial and peer appraisals, but not with self appraisals. For female subjects, all performance appraisal evaluations were negatively correlated with both present and expected hierarchical levels. Three MANOVA procedures were conducted in order to confirm the existence of differences at a basic level of comparative analysis: the first concerned the attitudinal variables, the second referred to organizational demographic characteristics and the third to evaluations of performance appraisals. The analysis referring to the attitudinal variables revealed that only on the variables of organizational commitment (F = 7.5, significant at 0.01) and need for control (F = 29.20, significant at 0.00) were there significant differences between the male and female groups. The organizational demographic analysis revealed no difference in educational background between the two groups. However, significant differences were found on the variables of salary (f = 108.37, significant at 0.00), Hierarchy level (F = 36.31, significant at 0.00) and Tenure (F = 10.91, significant at 0.00). Evaluations of performance appraisal scores revealed no significant differences between the groups on the evaluation of direct manager PA or self-PA scores. There was a significant difference on the rating of self performance as compared to others in similar positions, the self-comparative PA score (F = 13.73, significant at 0.00). This difference may perhaps be explained by an underestimation of self-performance on the part of the female group. Alternatively, there may be an unwillingness to over favourably evaluate self performance a modesty factor.

CONCLUSIONS :
It has been hypothesized that expectations that are met will make a critical contribution to an individuals affective responses to their work situation. Much research indicates that womens expectations concerning various attributes of their jobs are disappointed. The result may be declining job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and they may begin to think of leaving. This suggestion is supported by the results of this study. Women may set lower self-expectations in relation to their peers and have lowered organizational commitment. There were no differences between the groups in educational background, need for achievement and most of the other attitudinal variables. However, there were significant differences on the variables of salary, hierarchy levels and tenure. Another explanation of the differences between the groups in terms of expectations is that the situation may be cognitively restructured. There may be less reliance placed on traditionally evaluative factors such as relative pay and position within the organization. Females may begin to include into the pattern of their affective responding other, less work focused factors, which may redress the balance of their expectational models. The results of this study are supportive of the view that when evaluating and predicting their own career development and evaluating the appraisal process which may enhance career opportunities, men and women rely on differing clusters of information. The role of comparisons made between self and other individuals within the organization seems to be different for men and women. The correlational results of this study indicate that males include consideration of the evaluation of their performance by managers and peers when assessing their present

career position and promotion prospects. This is demonstrated by the correlational cluster shown in Table III. Most theories of career attempt to relate objective career data to individuals subjective perceptions of their own careers. However, it has been shown that individuals perceptions of their careers often fail to correspond to the facts. This may be due to the inclusion of comparative data. This study indicates that this may be used by males to make their subjective judgments, yet comparative analyses may not be appropriate. The results of this study also indicated that, for male employees, there were many inter correlated factors involved in the evaluation of the appraisal process. This suggests that the males were perceiving the work situation as being composed of many quite tightly interrelating factors. Thus the workplace is seen as a whole and perceived as a coherent entity to be evaluated. The overriding relevance of Need for achievement was seen in almost all appraisal evaluations. This may be a result of the sensitization of general attitudes towards performance monitoring generated by the data collection. This paper suggests that gender variances may be found in the cognitive bases of employee work-oriented attitudes. This is in line with earlier findings and may be related to, and therefore investigated through, organizational promotional policy) and the appraisal system. Further research is required to clarify the clusters of and ordering of variables which may be identified as gender-defined patterns. Were such patterns to be found, it would be possible to incorporate into management education an awareness of gender differences in perceptions of organizational recruitment and promotional policy and to broaden these policies to acknowledge gender variations in subjective perceptions relevant to the workplace