Considering Glass Ceiling in Turkey: Ideas of Executives in Education Sector Regarding Women in the Workplace

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to determine, taking the “glass ceiling” into account, which factors contribute to the ideas of top education executives regarding women in the workplace and to identify whether these ideas vary depending on the executives’ demographic profile. This research included top state high school executives from Istanbul. An important conclusion was that the participants took into consideration only the “executive” qualities of the women in their workplace. In other words, they were already thinking about women in executive positions when participating. The participants had positive opinions regarding female executives and thoughts on the ability of female executives to create a balance between home and work. To a significant extent, these ideas varied depending on the participants’ gender. When considering the participants’ number of children, the ideas also generated differences. Age and marital status did not influence the participants’ ideas about female executives.