Leadership Selection: Leadership Potential, Leadership Performance and Gender

Leadership potential is now one of the most desirable traits in candidates applying for a job or promotion (Church, 2014), and experimental evidence proposes that leadership potential is preferable to previous leadership performance in leadership candidates (Tormala, Jia, & Norton, 2012). Reports suggests that it is possible for men to progress on their future leadership potential whereas women progress on their past leadership performance (Catalyst, 2013; McKinsey, 2012). However, this has yet to be empirically tested and very little is known about the social and psychological processes behind the relationship between gender and leadership potential. This thesis presents a series of nine studies investigating leadership potential and gender in hiring situations. These studies indicate that male candidates who demonstrate leadership potential are the most likely to be selected ahead of other equally qualified candidates, whereas female candidates are selected on the basis of leadership performance. The robustness of the association between leadership potential and gender was further reinforced by examining its relationship in different management levels (junior vs. senior; Studies 5-7) and social contexts (masculine vs. feminine; Studies 8 & 9). Moreover, this thesis starts to explore the psychological constructs behind the preference for leadership potential in male candidates and the preference for leadership performance in female candidates (Study 9). The theoretical and practical implications are discussed, in addition to future directions for research.