Promoting gendered structural change in leadership in higher education

The interaction between formal and informal rules

Abstract

Introduction and objectives. In the higher education and research sector, efforts have been employed in diverse countries to bring about gendered structural change, and most strategies pursue such a goal through the implementation of formal changes in its structures and policies. Leaning on the feminist institutionalism theory, the aim of this article is to discuss the importance of understanding how the formal and the informal institutional norms interact between each other in initiatives seeking gender equality in leadership and decision-making in the specific context of higher education institutions. Methodology. A qualitative approach has been followed. Interviews with members of the Board of Directors of a higher education and research institution in northern Spain have been conducted and analysed, aiming at identifying the barriers to the access of women to leadership positions and possible measures to overcome them. Results. The analysis confirmed the impact caused by the gendered dynamics present at both individual and institutional levels to GE initiatives. While the importance of formal institutional commitments to gender equality has been recognised, the analysis recalls the attention to the fact that informal settings shape the applicability of formal policies, with continuous references to the traditionally unequal distribution of power and attribution of value to women and men. Discussion and added value. Although much theoretical knowledge has been produced in the field of gender and institutions, especially concerning the gendered bases of institutions, the field still lacks within-process studies on the aspects influencing the obtained outcomes of developed initiatives pursuing gender equality in institutional leadership. The study developed in this paper allows for replication in different contexts, hence contributing to the refinement of the existing knowledge on the dynamics of change in gender-oriented initiatives