Discussion paper
DP20139 How Tinted Are Your Glasses? Gender Views, Beliefs and Recommendations in Hiring
We study the gendered impact of recommendations at different stages of the hiring process, focusing on reference letters. First, we document that women receive fewer 'ability' and more 'grindstone' letters in the academic job market. Next, we conduct two experiments — with academic economists and a broader, college-educated, population — analyzing both recommendation and recruitment stages. These confirm that recommendations are gendered and impact recruitment outcomes. Gender views and strategic behavior based on erroneous beliefs explain referees’ choices. Importantly, we show that recruiters' failure to recognize the gendered nature of reference letters undermines efforts to improve diversity in hiring.
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