The Gender-Career Estimation Gap

Arbeitspapier

The paper discusses gender differences with regard to the self- and reciprocal estimation of career expectations. Firstly, the theoretical background and the literature are identified. Within this frame, the instance of self-under-estimated career prospects of female workers and statistical discrimination in the labor market are described. Both aspects are jointly assessed as a self-fulfilling prophecy-phenomenon redounded to women's disadvantage on the labor market. Secondly, the empirical part analysis the respective self- and reciprocal estimation of female and male career prospects for public sector workers in Germany. The results display obvious discrepancies between self- and reciprocally estimated career expectations that constitute a gender-career estimation gap. As the German public sector contains specific devices to equalising career chances of male and female employees, the findings even underpin the insistency of under-estimated career prospects of female workers despite the existing public sector regime of equality. Finally, approaches of how to equalize male and female career chances are critically reviewed.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: IZA Discussion Papers ; No. 8185

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination ; Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity ; Labor Discrimination ; Labor Discrimination: Public Policy
• Subject: self- and reciprocal estimation of career opportunities ; self-fulfilling prophecy ; gender-career estimation gap ; statistical discrimination ; public sector

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Kaiser, Lutz C.
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)
• (where): Bonn
• (when): 2014

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/99009
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET