Occupational stereotypes: professionals´ warmth and competence perceptions of occupations

PurposeThe purpose of the current study is to investigate occupational stereotypes among a professional sample of recruiters and other employees on the two fundamental dimensions of warmth and competence.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted a survey to collect professionals´ (mostly recruiters´) ratings of preselected occupations. Participants were asked to rate warmth and competence attributes. Factor and cluster analysis were employed to investigate the two-dimensional structure of the warmth/competence space and how and whether occupations cluster as predicted by the stereotype content model (SCM).FindingsAlmost all occupations showed a clear two-factorial structure, corresponding to the warmth/competence dimensions. A five-cluster solution was deemed appropriate as depicting how occupations disperse on these dimensions. Implications for stereotyping research, the design of hiring discrimination experiments, and HRM are discussed.Originality/valueIn contrast to previous related research, in which participants select the included occupations themselves, the authors included prespecified common occupations, which should be important for representativeness. In addition, previous research has been conducted in the United States, while the authors conduct this study in a European context (Sweden). Finally, instead of studying students or participants with unspecified work experience, the authors focus on professionals (mostly recruiters).

“This Is What a Mechanic Sounds Like”: Children’s Vocal Control Reveals Implicit Occupational Stereotypes

In this study, we explored the use of variation in sex-related cues of the voice to investigate implicit occupational stereotyping in children. Eighty-two children between the ages of 5 and 10 years took part in an imitation task in which they were provided with descriptions of nine occupations (three traditionally male, three traditionally female, and three gender-neutral professions) and asked to give voices to them (e.g., “How would a mechanic say . . . ?”). Overall, children adapted their voices to conform to gender-stereotyped expectations by masculinizing (lowering voice pitch and resonance) and feminizing (raising voice pitch and resonance) their voices for the traditionally male and female occupations, respectively. The magnitude of these shifts increased with age, particularly in boys, and was not mediated by children’s explicit stereotyping of the same occupations. We conclude by proposing a simple tool based on voice pitch for assessing levels of implicit occupational-gender stereotyping in children.

Female Attitudes Towards Self-employment and Breaking Occupational Stereotypes in Jharkhand

Although in recent times a growing number of women are entering into occupations that were traditionally dominated by men, these gains have not been equally realized. In the state of Jharkhand, a group of women have broken the occupational stereotypes and have become auto drivers, of vehicles that have suitably been named Pink Autos. An empirical study was undertaken to explore the intrinsic as well as extrinsic factors that have affected their occupational choice to break the stereotype. The results provide insights into the driving factors for the success for women micro-entrepreneurs.

The impact of occupational stereotypes in human-centered service systems

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the impact that occupational stereotypes held by customers have on value co-creation processes in human-centered service systems (HCSSs) like hospitals. Specifically, by exploring if and how customers’ (i.e. patients’) stereotypes toward frontline employees (e.g. nurses) affect their satisfaction as co-creators of value, this study responds to current service research priorities attempting to understand value co-creation in collaborative contexts like healthcare, and addresses calls to investigate the changing role of health care customers therein.Design/methodology/approachA field study was conducted in the context of German hospitals, which provides unique empirical evidence into the relationship between patients’ stereotypes toward healthcare professionals and their satisfaction with health services as well as the mediating mechanisms through which such stereotypes affect patient satisfaction.FindingsNegative (positive) stereotypes patients hold toward healthcare occupations decrease (increase) their satisfaction and are associated with perceptions of reduced (improved) patient orientation and patient participation in co-creation. However, only perceived patient orientation partially mediates the link between occupational stereotypes and patient satisfaction.Originality/valueThis study develops and tests new hypotheses related to occupational stereotyping in complex HCSSs, and extends previous research on stereotypes in service by exploring the previously unknown mediating mechanisms through which these impact value co-creation processes overall. It furthermore provides important guidance for future research about stereotyping in general, and its impact on value co-creation and HCSS, in particular.