Trajetórias profissionais atípicas construídas por mulheres em contextos de trabalho tradicionalmente ocupados por homens

Abstract

Women represent about 40% of the ative population in the western world However, they remain a minority in Management and Politics related positions, being virtually invisible in the top positions. European Union’s (EU) data from 2012 supports the current imbalance of gender distribution in European organizations. On average, only 13.7% of administrative staff and 15% of non-executive members of the largest listed companies in the 27 Member States of the European Union (EU) are women. Despite finding balanced proportions of both genders on the basis of hierarchical pyramids, as we move upwards, the situation is reversed, showing a predominant male presence (Guerreiro, Abrantes, & Pereira, 2004).The present study aims to analyze and understand the career paths of women in high hierarchical positions, as well as the constraints, opportunities and strategies related to the construction of this socially recognized route. Thus, I performed eight interviews with women occupying leadership positions in organizations in which they operate in both the industry and services sectors. Content analysis was adopted as a methodology for the treatment of privileged data.The results of the present analysis show the importance of the organizational context, being one of the key drivers, in the development of these women’s careers, as well as their personal characteristics, supportive background structures and strategies developed to improve their work-family balance. Supportive family structures, more precisely the support from the partner, and the difficulty of managing work and family life, compete as the main factors accounting for the low number of women in positions of power.

Date of Award	2013
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Liliana Cunha (Supervisor)