How does identification—with an organisation, with one's gender, and as a feminist—shapes bystanders’ interpretations and responses to incivility towards women at work?
By: Michelle Ryan, Tyler Okimoto and Jamie Gloor
Posted on 12 July 2023
Key findings
Our research finds that bystanders with stronger organisational identification are less likely to perceive incivility toward female colleagues as discrimination and intervene, but female bystanders with stronger gender identification are more likely to do so.
These findings raise doubts that female bystanders are more sensitive to recognising other women's mistreatment as discrimination, but more strongly identified feminists (male or female) were more likely to intervene. Although strongly organisationally identified bystanders were more likely to overlook women's mistreatment, they were also more likely to intervene once discrimination was apparent.
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