Clients' Gendered Expectations and the Gender Pay Gap

• In Event: 035 - Section on Sex and Gender Roundtables (one-hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 19. Work and Inequality

Abstract

Women in the labor force earn less than men for doing the same work. Sociologists and economists have evaluated the behaviors of employers, colleagues, and workers, but there is limited theorization of clients' role in this labor problem. Thus, my research questions are as follows: Does the gender of a professional affect clients' assessments of the professional's experience and skills? More broadly, could clients' gender biases contribute to the gender pay gap between equally qualified professional men and women? I use status construction theory to explore whether clients possess gender status beliefs that favor male professionals, act on gender status beliefs when selecting professional service providers, and/or diffuse status beliefs to other potential clients. In this paper, I present preliminary survey and interview data from a mixed methods project. Research results show that clients possess gender status beliefs that may contribute to the gender wage gap. Clients expect professional women to demonstrate a feminized compassion and benevolence that justifies devaluation of their labor. Clients also suggest that professional women, unable to properly execute masculinized assertiveness, end up displaying an aggression that sours their working relationships.

Author

• Adilia E.E. James, University of Chicago