The issue of gender gaps has hounded organizational studies for decades. Academic journals as well as scholarly articles are brimful of such examinations and analysis of gender as a factor contributing to elements of job satisfaction. (2005) For this paper, an analysis of the work of (2005) and (2003/2004) will be carried out. Specifically, an analysis of the contents of their work, including the theories used, its readability, the methodology and the respective findings and conclusions will be examined with reference to their contribution to the body of organisational research.
In the study of (2005) the aim is generally presented in two categories. First the study intends to provide a study that will analyse the circumstances surrounding the issue of gender segregation and job satisfaction using an alternative US data. As a corollary, the study also seeks to take on the element of flexibility of the job as the determining factor in their level of job satisfaction. The study of (2003/2004) on the other hand aims to discuss the conditions of women in the Information Technology sector. The said study seeks to look into the job satisfaction and turnover in relation to certain areas such as salary, work tasks, and employment seeking behaviours. This aim is fuelled by the claim of an earlier study indicating that women are under-represented in both academic and professional computer science world. Hence, the intention of (2003/2004) to examine such a condition is based on the assumption that the IT industry possesses a masculine culture making gender roles unequal.
(2005) have a large section on its analysis of secondary data. These are seen in the introductory part and the second part discussing gender and job satisfaction. The first part allows the reader to understand the rationale of the study. It establishes the presumed reasons why, despite the gap between male and female salaries, women have higher job satisfaction than men. The introduction also recognises the importance of flexibility and the other roles of women as a factor for this boost in their job satisfaction. This is expounded in the discussions in section two of the paper which served as the review of related literature for (2005). In this part, a closer look on the relationship of job satisfaction and gender is made. The discussions clearly stated what past studies point out as the triggers of job satisfaction. They mentioned elements like employee performance, age, job characteristics, and job mobility. This establishes that the element of job and family flexibility has yet been closely considered as a determining element in studying job satisfaction.
On the study of (2003/2004), their literature review is similarly well researched and structured. To illustrate, the discussion is divided into three parts dissecting the existing organisational literature on gender differences. The problem in this category is that the distinctions pertaining to the literature on gender differences and issues tend to be rather long winded. Moreover, some of the theories that the authors attempt to establish, with the attempt to closely provide a detailed explanation of their case, inevitably compounded the discussions that lead to these issues being the cause why female IT professionals are not common in the work setting or even in the academe.
The sample size used in (2005) is based on the National Study of the Changing Workforce (NSCW). Based on the said study, the number of respondents amounted to at least 1854. This basically means that study employed a set of data that has been processed by an actual organisation. (, 2005) This makes the process of analysis less complicated for the authors. The problem in this method is that the data is dated almost a decade ago. The accuracy of such findings may well be expected to encounter doubt from critics. ( 1998)
Unlike the study above, the work of (2003/2004) used primary research data to measure and test their hypotheses. They sent questionnaires to gather data. The use of questionnaires allow for an unbiased determination of the issue. ( 1999) The respondents graduated from a couple of commendable IT schools. Graduates from St. Louis University MS and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, were sent their individual copies of the questionnaire. Looking at the location of the survey, it appears that the authors intend to establish some form of generality in their findings as the number of respondents, though the response rate was low, comes from a good number of origins, totalling 168 with both male and female respondents.
The study of (2005) discovered that variable of flexibility add up to the overall job satisfaction between genders. Specifically, the female respondents are seen to respond more positively to questions pertaining to the variables of flexibility. The presentation of the findings was significantly understandable as the data are summarised on tables. In the same regard, these tables are adequately discussed and explained in the succeeding paragraphs. ( 1999) The succeeding conclusion affirms the hypothesis of the study stated in the earlier on.
Like the study of (2005), the presentation of the findings of (2003/2004) uses tables to summarise the processed data that they have acquired from their respondents. However, the presentation of tables and graphs in this study appears to be rather technical. A common reader would not be able to decipher it unless he/she reads the succeeding discussions below each table. To be fair to (2003/2004), the explanations provided for the findings of the study uses plain words to express the rather complex issues discussed in their study. In the same manner, the paper also shows that it works two-fold: it presents the circumstances surrounding women in the IT world; and with comparing it to the responses of the male respondents, the study not only expressed the status of men in the said industry but also the extent to which the gap separates the two genders.
The study of (2005) shows a well researched article with a lush source of information coming from books, journals and other scholarly articles. The discussions also show how well the authors made technical terms understandable for the common reader. However, the problem lies on whether the study will have an actual impact on organisational literature. Looking at the provided discussions as well as the source of data, it appears that the study is a mere analysis of the National Study of the Changing Workforce report a decade ago. Thus, the study is basically a presentation on the relationship of job satisfaction and gender in the late 90s. It is a good read, but as (2005) also pointed out, the fast paced environment involving business and trade tends to make the process more complex, hence requires data that is both current and acquired first hand. Another weakness of this study is its failure to present a systematic discussion on what they intend to address. They merely pointed out the general objective of the study and let the reader discover for himself/herself the crux of their article.
Such that the Bender study presents doubt on the source of their data, the study of (2003/2004) despite the limited number of respondents provide a measure of the actual circumstances that surround their main area of study. The study was successful in presenting that there is an actual gap, that there is an existing difference in the situation based on gender. Moreover, the study’s more detailed approach to dealing with the issue allowed for a similarly detailed account of the discussions that they seek to convey. Unlike the (2005) study, they expressly intimated what they want to find out and discussed it in a manner that a common folk would be able to understand. ( 2002)
All in all, the two studies are a great addition to the several works dedicated to the discussion on gender roles and differences in the organisational and professional setting. However, this author tends to incline more towards the study of (2003/2004) as it presents less shortcomings as compared to (2005) account. The relevance of the data used and the timeliness of its acquisition add up to explaining the actual situation involving the issue. In the case of (2005), despite the fact that they tried, the use of a dated set of second hand data may have triggered the reason why they unfortunately failed miserably.
References
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