Competing or Supporting? A Survey Experiment Investigating Gender Discrimination in Management at Chinese Technology Firms

• In Event: 40820 - Section on Sociology of Sex and Gender Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 14: Gender, Tech, and Online Spaces

Abstract

Gender discrimination in leadership remains a persistent issue, particularly in male-dominated industries such as technology. While existing research has examined gender biases in leadership, the interplay between different discriminatory patterns, the combination of biases across gender, and the variation of these behaviors across decision-making domains remain underexplored. I investigate how male and female leaders in Chinese technology firms engage in gender-based discrimination across different workplace domains—information provision, evaluations, and promotions—and how these biases vary by decision stakes. Drawing on social identity theory, status competition theory, and gendered organizations theory, this research employs a list experiment methodology to reduce social desirability bias, surveying 1,270 middle and senior managers in Chinese technology firms. Findings show that in low to medium-stakes areas (information provision and evaluations), male leaders predominantly discriminate against other men, consistent with the status competition hypothesis, while female leaders show anti-male bias in information sharing, supporting social identity theory. However, in high-stakes promotion decisions, patterns shift since male and female leaders reduce bias against men, aligning with gendered organizations theory. The study contributes by providing empirical evidence from China’s technology sector, refining theoretical debates on gendered discrimination, and advancing methodological approaches using list experiments. It underscores the need for context-specific policies to address workplace inequality.

Author

• Ying Qu, Boston College