Abstract
The objective of this chapter is to explore the concept of the glass ceiling in the UAE’s rapidly growing economy amid the present regional political and social unrest. The glass ceiling is generally defined as an invisible barrier that prevents women from reaching senior positions in organizations. It consists of an infinite number of cultural and gender biases that are not always immediately identifiable or visible except to those who are affected by it. The glass ceiling is a particular phenomenon that has an impact on women, and it is not to be confused with a differential system of rewards in organizations that affects both genders (Cotter et al., 2001). It is a constructed plateau beyond which women are denied an opportunity to advance into senior levels of management, an unfair routine practice that denies appropriately qualified women the opportunity to reach top-level jobs merited by their performance. Recently, Smith (2012) tested the glass ceiling hypothesis and concluded that worldwide, relative inequality remains constant both at higher and lower levels of authority, where men hold an advantage over women and minorities. Today, corporate success for women means taking on male-type behaviors and competing on men’s terms.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
N. J. Adler (1993) “Competitive Frontiers: Women Managers in the Triad,” International Studies of Management and Organization, 23(2), 3–23.
A. Al Khoori (2014) “UAE Women Complain of Glass Ceiling in ‘Male-Dominant’ Culture,” The National, http://www.thenational.ae/uae, date accessed 22 December 2014.
F. Al Sayegh (2005) “Traditions of Oriental Women,” Gulf News, 15 February, p. 3.
M. Amin (2014). “Mapping the Legal and Gender Gap in Accessing Business,” http//wbl.worldbank.org/Methodology/accessing institutions, date accessed 10 January 2015.
E. R. Auster (1993) “Demystifying the Glass Ceiling: Organizational and Interpersonal Dynamics of Gender Bias,” Business in the Contemporary World, 5, 47–68.
H. Azzam (1997) “Preparing for a Global Future,” The Banker, 47, 726.
J. D. Campbell (1990) “Self-Esteem and Clarity of the Self-Concept,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 59, 538–549.
R. Derry (1997) “Feminism: How Does It Play in the Corporate Theatre?” In: Women’s Studies and Business Ethics: Toward a New Conversation (eds) A. Larson and R. E. Freeman. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 11–29.
K. De Vries (1995) Life and Death in the Executive Fast Lane: Essays on Irrational Organizations and Their Leaders. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
J. H. Dobrzynski (1996) “Women Pass Milestone in the Board Room,” New York Times, 12 December, p. 4.
M. Easterby-Smith, R. Thorpe and A. Lowe (1991) Management Research. London: Sage.
E. A. Fagenson and J. J. Jackson (1993) “The Status of Women Managers in the United States,” International Studies of Management and Organization, 23(3), 88–107.
P. R. M. Faizal (2013). “The Entrepreneurs Characteristics from al-Qurahand al-Hadis,” International Journal of Trade, Economics and Finance, 4(4), 191–196.
L. R. Gallese (1991) “Why Women Aren’t Making It to the Top,” Across the Board (April), 19–22.
C. Gilligan (1982) In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and Women’s Development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
B. Gorman (2009) The Green Glass Ceiling: Gender Inequality and Wahhabi Political Influence. http:/getd.libs.oga.edu, date accessed 22 December 2014.
J. Green and N. Thorogood (2014) Qualitative Methods for Health Research. London: Sage.
D. Hadid (2005) “Number of Jobless Nationals Could Exceed 40,000,” Gulf News, 9 June, p. 7.
W. Harry (2003) “Developing Host Country Nationals to Replace Expatriates,” Human Assets Middle East, 2(1), 24–27.
M. E. Heilman, C. J. Block, R. F. Martell and M. C. Simon (1989) “Has Anything Changed? Current Characterizations of Men, Women, and Managers,” Journal of Applied Psychology, 74 (6), 935–942.
ILO 2004. Breaking Through The Glass Ceiling: Women in Management. Geneva: International Labour Office Publications.
H. Itani (2011) “UAE Female Entrepreneurs: Motivations and Frustrations,” Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 30(5), 409–424.
K. H. Jamieson (1995) Beyond the Double Bind: Women and Leadership. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
R. M. Kanter (1978) Men and Women of the Corporation. New York: Basic Books.
M. H. Kernis (1993) “The Roles of Stability and Level of Self-Esteem in Psychological Functioning.” In: Self-esteem: The Puzzle of Low Self-Regard (ed) R. F. Baumeister. New York: Plenum, 87–116.
A. Larson and R. E. Freeman (1997) “Introduction.” In: Women’s Studies and Business Ethics: Toward a New Conversation (eds) A. Larson and R. E. Freeman. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 15–31.
J. Lipman-Blumen (1976) “Toward a Homosocial Theory of Sex Roles: An Explanation of the Sex Segregation of Social Institutions.” In: Women and the Workplace: The Implications of Occupational Segregation (ed) M. Blaxall. Chicago: Chicago University Press.
R. E. Looney (1992) “Factors Affecting Employment in the Arabian Gulf Region,” International Journal of Social Economics, 19, 72–86.
J. S. Lublin (1998) “Even Top Women Earn Less,” Wall Street Journal, 10 November, p. 2.
D. Michael (2008) Doubt Is Their Product: How Industry’s Assault on Science Threatens Your Health. New York, USA: Oxford University Press.
D. P. Moore and E. H. Buttner (1997) Women Entrepreneurs: Moving Beyond the Glass Ceiling. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
J. G. Oakley (2000) “Gender-based Barriers to Senior Management Positions: Understanding the Scarcity of Female CEOs,” Journal of Business Ethics, 27, 321–334.
R. Redwood (1996) The Glass Ceiling. http://www.inmotionmagazine.com/glass.html, date accessed 4 April 2004.
R. A. Rosenblatt (1995) “Glass Ceiling Still Too Hard to Crack,” Los Angeles Times, 16 March, p. 18.
J. B. Rosener (1990) “Ways Women Lead,” Harvard Business Review, 68, 119–125.
M. L. Ross (2008) “Oil, Islam, and Women,” American Political Science Review, 102(1), 107–123.
S. Salama (2003) “Panel Aims to Ensure 50pc Bank Job Emiratization within Five Years,” Gulf News, 8 October, p. 39.
J. Sampler and S. Eigner (2003) Sand to Silicon: Achieving Rapid Growth. Emirates Printing Press, London: Profile Books.
J. R. Schermerhorn, M. Uhl-Bien and R. N. Osborn (2012) Organizational Behavior, 12th ed. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.
M. Sleiman (2014) “Women in Gulf Begin to Crack Glass Ceiling,” Trade Arabia, http://www.tradearabia.com/newa, date accessed 22 December 2014.
D. Tannen (1994) Talking from 9 to 5: How Women’s and Men’s Conversational Styles Affects Who Gets Heard, Who Gets Credit, and What Gets Done. New York: William Morrow.
UN Report on Status of Women (2014), http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2014/3, date accessed 4 August, 2014.
M. Velasquez (1998) Shattering the Glass Ceiling: A Strategy for Survival, http://home.diversitydtg.com/article/gender-issues/shattering-the-glass-ceiling-a-strategy-for-survival, accessed 1 July 2015.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2015 Ivana Adamson
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Adamson, I. (2015). Breaking Through the Glass Ceiling? The United Arab Emirates Case. In: Syna, H.D., Costea, CE. (eds) Women’s Voices in Management. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137432155_10
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137432155_10
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-58111-5
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-43215-5
eBook Packages: Palgrave Business & Management CollectionBusiness and Management (R0)