Debiasing job ads by replacing masculine language increases gender diversity of applicant pools

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: He, Joyce C.; Kang, Sonia K.
• 署名单位: University of California System; University of California Los Angeles; University of Toronto; University Toronto Mississauga
• 刊物名称: PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0027-12479
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2409854122
• 发表日期: 2025-02-18
• 关键词: signaling theory; women opt; identification; stereotypes; implicit; context

摘要

Job advertisements for jobs in male- dominated fields tend to contain more masculine language, and a commonly proposed intervention to increase gender diversity in applicant pools is to remove this language. In our research, we offer predictions about the broader impact of such interventions on individuals who may not fit with traditional masculine identity. Across four multimethod studies (N = 37,920) spanning both field and lab settings, we demonstrate that a gender debiasing intervention that replaces masculine language in job postings with synonymous gender- neutral language increases application rates among women and men whose self- identities are less aligned with masculinity. Our research highlights that conceptualizing identity incongruence along a continuum can help explain when and why gender diversity initiatives foster the inclusion of a broader group of individuals than initially anticipated.