Old boys, new girls. Over de beperkte toegang van vrouwen tot maatschappelijke elites

Samenvatting

Old Boys, New Girls: On the Reasons behind Women's Limited Access to Social Elites. The ideals of women's emancipation and of an equal division of power between the sexes notwithstanding, women still rarely occupy top positions in the Netherlands. They are highly underrepresented in the decision-making positions of important social branches such as trade and industry, education, politics, government, and the medical world. This "glass ceiling" phenomenon may be explained in terms of the strong domestic tradition in Holland. Compounding the exclusion of women by men, women exclude themselves for different reasons: (1) It is hard to combine a job with family care, which is still mainly women's work. (2) Many women lack self-confidence and trust, and often feel ill at ease in male-dominated organizations; they are uncomfortable with their manner of work, their behavior, and the prevailing concepts of professionalism that not only demand total availability but also a specific mode of emotional control. 51 References. Adapted from the source document.