Working Paper: NBER ID: w28649
Authors: Justus A. Baron; Bernhard Ganglmair; Nicola Persico; Timothy Simcoe; Emanuele Tarantino
Abstract: Representation of women and minorities in a “selectorate”—the group that chooses an organization's leaders—is a key mechanism for promoting diversity. We show that representation, on its own, is not sufficient for selecting gender diversity: a supportive organizational culture is also required. In the case of the Internet Engineering Task Force, a random increase in female representation in its selection committee caused an increase in female appointments only after cultural norms supporting diversity and inclusion became more salient.
Keywords: gender diversity; selectorates; organizational culture; IETF
JEL Codes: D02; J16; J17; M14; O32
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| female representation in nomcom (D79) | appointment of female leaders (J16) |
| cultural changes (Z19) | appointment of female leaders (J16) |