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    The rich get richer, the poor get even: Perceived socioeconomic position influences micro-social distributions of wealth
    Bratanova, B ; Loughnan, S ; Klein, O ; Wood, R (WILEY, 2016-06)
    Economic inequality has a robust negative effect on a range of important societal outcomes, including health, wellbeing, and education. Yet, it remains insufficiently understood why, how, and by whom unequal systems tend to be perpetuated. In two studies we examine whether psychological mindsets adopted by the wealthy and the poor in their micro-social transactions act to perpetuate or challenge inequality. We hypothesized that occupying a wealthier socioeconomic position promotes the pursuit of self-interest and contributes to inequality maintenance; poorer socioeconomic position, on the other hand, should promote the pursuit of fairness and equality restoration. In Study 1, participants completed an ultimatum game as proposers after being primed to believe they are wealthier or poorer, offering money to either poor or wealthy responders. As expected, the wealthy pursued their self-interest and the net effect of this behavior contributes to the maintenance of inequality. Conversely, the poor pursued fairness and the net effect of this behavior challenges inequality. In Study 2, participants were responders deciding whether to accept or reject unfair distributions. Compared to the wealthier, the poorer challenged inequality by rejecting unequal offers. The links between micro-social processes and macro-societal inequality are discussed.
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    Bayesian Analysis of Individual Level Personality Dynamics
    Cripps, E ; Wood, RE ; Beckmann, N ; Lau, J ; Beckmann, JF ; Cripps, SA (FRONTIERS MEDIA SA, 2016-07-19)
    A Bayesian technique with analyses of within-person processes at the level of the individual is presented. The approach is used to examine whether the patterns of within-person responses on a 12-trial simulation task are consistent with the predictions of ITA theory (Dweck, 1999). ITA theory states that the performance of an individual with an entity theory of ability is more likely to spiral down following a failure experience than the performance of an individual with an incremental theory of ability. This is because entity theorists interpret failure experiences as evidence of a lack of ability which they believe is largely innate and therefore relatively fixed; whilst incremental theorists believe in the malleability of abilities and interpret failure experiences as evidence of more controllable factors such as poor strategy or lack of effort. The results of our analyses support ITA theory at both the within- and between-person levels of analyses and demonstrate the benefits of Bayesian techniques for the analysis of within-person processes. These include more formal specification of the theory and the ability to draw inferences about each individual, which allows for more nuanced interpretations of individuals within a personality category, such as differences in the individual probabilities of spiraling. While Bayesian techniques have many potential advantages for the analyses of processes at the level of the individual, ease of use is not one of them for psychologists trained in traditional frequentist statistical techniques.
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    Reporting requirements, targets, and quotas for women in leadership
    Sojo, VE ; Wood, RE ; Wood, SA ; Wheeler, MA (Elsevier, 2016-01-01)
    Reporting requirements, targets, and quotas have been implemented in several countries to increase female representation in leadership. In three studies, we analyze the effectiveness of these strategies from a goal-setting perspective. Study 1 evaluates the relationship between reporting requirements and female representation on boards of directors with data from Fortune 500 companies from 1996 to 2015. Study 2 analyzes the association of reporting requirements, targets, and quotas with the representation of women on boards of directors of public companies across 91 countries. Study 3 evaluates the impact of targets and quotas for women in parliaments across 190 nations. The board diversity reporting directive introduced in the US was followed by an acceleration in the increase of female representation on boards of directors of Fortune 500 companies. Higher goals for women on boards of directors were related to higher female representation. Similarly, higher gender goals and strong enforcement mechanisms in parliaments were related to higher female representation.
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    Harmful Workplace Experiences and Women's Occupational Well-Being: A Meta-Analysis
    Sojo, VE ; Wood, RE ; Genat, AE (SAGE PUBLICATIONS LTD, 2016-03-01)
    We report a meta-analytic review of studies examining the relations among harmful workplace experiences and women’s occupational well-being. Based on previous research, a classification of harmful workplace experiences affecting women is proposed and then used in the analysis of 88 studies with 93 independent samples, containing 73,877 working women. We compare the associations of different harmful workplace experiences and job stressors with women’s work attitudes and health. Random-effects meta-analysis and path analysis showed that more intense yet less frequent harmful experiences (e.g., sexual coercion and unwanted sexual attention) and less intense but more frequent harmful experiences (e.g., sexist organizational climate and gender harassment) had similar negative effects on women’s well-being. Harmful workplace experiences were independent from and as negative as job stressors in their impact on women’s occupational well-being. The power imbalance between the target and the perpetrator appeared as a potential factor to explain the type and impact of harmful workplace experiences affecting women’s occupational well-being. In the discussion, we identify several gaps in the literature, suggest directions for future research, and suggest organizational policy changes and interventions that could be effective at reducing the incidence of harmful workplace experiences. Additional online materials for this article are available to PWQ subscribers on PWQ's website at http://pwq.sagepub.com/supplemental.