DP16002 Representation is Not Sufficient for Selecting Gender Diversity

• Justus Baron Bernhard Ganglmair Nicola Persico Timothy S. Simcoe Emanuele Tarantino
3 Apr 2021

Representation of women and minorities in a “selectorate” – the group that chooses an organization’s leaders – is a key mechanism for promoting diversity. We show that representation, on its own, is not sufficient for selecting gender diversity: a supportive organizational culture is also required. In the case of the Internet Engineering Task Force, a random increase in female representation in its selection committee caused an increase in female appointments only after cultural norms supporting diversity and inclusion became more salient.