Workplaces characterized by strong masculinity norms, or Masculinity Contest Cultures (MCC), privilege identities aligned with hegemonic masculinity—typically straight White men—while devaluing marginalized groups. This research examines how MCC shapes perceptions of social status across gender, race, and sexual orientation, and how these perceptions influence individuals’ organizational attraction, particularly for members of socially devalued groups.

Across four preregistered studies (N = 2,177), we found that MCC devalues marginalized identities, leading to a lower personal sense of status and reduced organizational attraction among women, men of color, and gay men, but not straight White men. Enhancing the perceived status of women mitigated the negative effects of MCC on women’s organizational interest, highlighting the role of status perceptions in shaping workplace engagement. These findings emphasize the exclusionary effects of MCC, which undermines diversity by reinforcing status hierarchies, and underscore the importance of inclusive norms to attract and retain talent from diverse backgrounds (Vial & Spielmann, in prep).

Image depicts a Black man and a woman wearing a hijab tugging on a rope; by Edmond Dantès

Globally, women are underrepresented in STEM relative to men. However, there is considerable cross-regional variability in these gaps, and the reasons for it are poorly understood. Notably, women are much better represented in STEM education in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) compared to other parts of the world, even when the region is believed to be characterized by gender inequality and conservative gender attitudes. Based on Western social psychological theories, women should be especially underrepresented in the MENA region—yet, the statistics defy such expectations. 

To illuminate this paradox, my collaborators and I conducted a preregistered systematic literature review and supplementary meta-analysis integrating 147 articles from the MENA region that examined gender differences in psychological variables relevant to STEM engagement. Our findings provide bottom-up empirical evidence of a stark departure from well-documented Western patterns of gender differences. In the MENA region, women (vs. men) report greater motivation, more positive expectancies and attitudes, and lower anxiety toward STEM. We propose new directions for theory and research to better understand global variability in gender gaps in STEM engagement (Vial*, Spielmann*, & Cimpian, in prep). 

Image depicts a circular restroom sign divided into two halves, with a male figure icon on the left and a female figure icon on the right; by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash