Beth K. Humberd

Marginal memberships Psychological effects of identity ambiguity on professionals who are demographically different from the majority

In workplace interactions, professionals who are demographically different from the majority of others in their profession (e.g., one of a few African Americans in a predominately White group of doctors) often experience “identity ambiguity”—the sense and feeling that one’s claims to a professional identity are questioned or not fully accepted in an interaction because of one’s atypical demographic background. We assert here that identity ambiguity can have meaningful psychological and behavioral effects on the demographically atypical professional. We offer a model which explores how such experiences of identity ambiguity evoke identity threats and negative emotions. In turn, we describe how these reactions can impact work role engagement and in-role and extra-role performance for demographically atypical professionals. We discuss the implications for organizations and for individuals who have trouble claiming and/or being granted an identity in work interactions.

In our own backyard: when a less inclusive community challenges organizational inclusion

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to build insight into how the local community impacts an organization’s ability to develop an inclusive culture. The paper introduces the concept of inclusion disconnects as incongruent experiences of inclusion between an organization and its community. Then, using the case of teaching hospitals, the paper empirically demonstrates how individuals and organizations experience and deal with inclusion disconnects across the boundaries of organization and community. Design/methodology/approach – A multi-method qualitative study was conducted in hospitals located in the same city. Focus groups were conducted with 11 medical trainees from underrepresented backgrounds and semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten leaders involved with diversity efforts at two hospitals. Data analysis followed an iterative approach built from Miles and Huberman (1994). Findings – The findings demonstrate how boundary conflicts arise from disconnected experiences of organizational an...

The Other Half: Views of Fatherhood in the Organization

This chapter addresses fatherhood in the context of the workplace and family. We begin with a review of the current literature on fatherhood to consider the primary theoretical perspectives that are relevant to understanding men’s transitions to fatherhood: gender, identity, and work-life integration. Then we discuss the transition to fatherhood in the context of various fathering views, organizational life, and family life. We also discuss methodological considerations in studying the transition to fatherhood both in relation to mothers and independent of mothers. We conclude with a summary of practical implications and recommendations for organizational action.

Seeing herself as a leader: An examination of gender-leadership frames in women's leader identity development

Building from existing theory and research on gender and work and leader identity development, this dissertation informs our understanding of professional women’s experiences with coming to see themselves as leaders as they move along the leadership path in organizations. Given limited work that considers variation among women at a similar point in their development, I introduce the construct of a gender-leadership frame to capture the various ways in which women construct their gender as relevant to their leadership. I consider how these constructions are both shaped by the organizational context and have implications for leader identity development. I conducted a qualitative, inductive field study of women developing as leaders (n=55) in a large, global bank to explore these ideas. I found that women hold different constructions of gender and leadership (gender-leadership frames) and that various elements of the organizational context prompt women to shift their frames, feel conflicted in their frames, or remain within one reinforcing frame. Further, I found that these different frame experiences orient women toward certain types of self-questioning and enactment of their leader identities. Together, these findings demonstrate that different ways of thinking about one’s gender in relation to one’s leadership may help explain women’s different choices, aspirations, and development on the leadership path. Coming to see oneself as a leader does not happen in a vacuum, but rather is a complex process in which non-work identities (here, gender) play a role in one’s understanding of who she is and can be as a leader. Not only does gender play a role in women’s self-views as leaders, but scholars and organizations must appreciate women’s different experiences and perspectives which have tangible implications for their motivations to pursue leadership opportunities and growth within their organizations. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER 2: THEORY & LITERATURE INFORMING THIS STUDY 15 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 32 CHAPTER 4: GENDER-LEADERSHIP FRAMES: CONTENT & DIMENSIONS 54 CHAPTER 5: LIVED EXPERIENCE OF GENDER-LEADERSHIP FRAMES WITHIN AN ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT 68 CHAPTER 6: SEEING MYSELF AS A LEADER: CONNECTING FRAME EXPERIENCES TO LEADER IDENTITY DEVELOPMENT 99 CHAPTER 7: DISCUSSION 131 TABLES & FIGURES 157 APPENDICES 173 REFERENCES 177