Managerial perceptions of diversity and gender diversity in public organizations

Despite the increased emphasis placed upon diversity and inclusion in government and evidence that women are underrepresented in political leadership, there is relatively little research that focuses on diversity values in... [ view full abstract ]

Despite the increased emphasis placed upon diversity and inclusion in government and evidence that women are underrepresented in political leadership, there is relatively little research that focuses on diversity values in local governments and even less research on how managers perceive gender equity in public organizations. This research uses data from a 2016 nationally representative survey, the US Census, and independent sources to investigate managerial perceptions of organizational values related to diversity and efforts to recruit and advance women in local government. We investigate variation in municipal government managers’ perceptions of organizational diversity and gender diversity values. We find that women report significantly lower perceptions of organizational values related to diversity and these differences vary across department type. We conclude with a discussion of what these findings mean for diversity and inclusion in practice.