The personality of managers in Britain: gender and sector differences
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/EBHRM-05-2015-0015 |
| Date | 04 April 2016 |
| Published date | 04 April 2016 |
| Pages | 67-80 |
| Author | Yannis Georgellis,Nopdol Sankae |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour,Global HRM |
The personality of
managers in Britain:
gender and sector differences
Yannis Georgellis
University of Kent, Canterbury, UK, and
Nopdol Sankae
Faculty of Management,
Rambhai Barni Rajabhat University, Muang, Thailand
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between the big-five personality
traits and employees’chances to become managers, paying particular attention to gender and
sector differences.
Design/methodology/approach –Using longitudinal data from the British Household Panel
Survey, covering the period 1991-2008, the authors estimate multivariate logistic regression models for
the propensity of individuals to take up a managerial role.
Findings –The findings confi rm that Extraversion , Openness, and Consc ientiousness are gen erally
positivelyassociated with the propensity of individualsto become managers. In contrast,Agreeableness
and Neuroticism exert a negative influence. However, these associations are moderated by gender and
they are contingent upon the specific contextual settings of sectors across the economy.
Practical implications –The study has practical implications for the design and implementation of
well-targeted selection, recruitment, and career coaching strategies, which aim at matching individuals
with specific personality traits to specific leadership/managerial roles.
Originality/value –While the link between personality and leadership has been extensively
researched, this study provides some of the first contextual evidence on whether personality can
explain the gender gap in managerial roles across different sectors.
Keywords Leadership, Manager, Gender, Personality, Careers, Five-factor model
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Whether individuals with certain personality traits are more likely to take up
managerial or leadership roles is a question that has attracted considerable attention in
the extant literature. What emerges from this literature is that understanding
individuals’decisions to pursue managerial positions requires a systematic framing of
personality traits and an insight into the mechanisms underpinning the process of
personality development (Shriberg and Shriberg, 2011). Based on this premise, studies
confirm that personality traits such as Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Openness to
experience are strong predictors of leadership incidence and behavior (Bono and Judge,
2004). Nonetheless, other studies cast doubt on the robustness of such a relationship,
especially in dynamic and changing work environments (De Hoogh et al., 2005).
Empirical findings paint a similarly mixed picture for the remaining big-five
personality traits, with Agreeableness and Neuroticism exerting a negative impact
while Conscientiousness and Openness to experience exerting a positive influence on
the incidence of managerial/leadership roles (McCrae and Costa, 1991).
In this study, we use data from the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) to
investigate the personality traits of managers in Britain. Although leadership and
Evidence-based HRM: a Global
Forum for Empirical Scholarship
Vol. 4 No. 1, 2016
pp. 67-80
©Emerald Group Publis hing Limited
2049-3983
DOI 10.1108/EBHRM-05-2015-0015
Received8May2015
Revised 22 May 2015
Accepted 29 May 2015
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/2049-3983.htm
67
Personality of
managers in
Britain
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