Date of Award
2025
Degree Type
Restricted to Claremont Colleges Dissertation
Degree Name
Psychology, PhD
Program
School of Social Science, Politics, and Evaluation
Advisor/Supervisor/Committee Chair
Rebecca J. Reichard
Dissertation or Thesis Committee Member
Michelle C. Bligh
Dissertation or Thesis Committee Member
Stephen W. Gilliland
Dissertation or Thesis Committee Member
Susan E. Murphy
Terms of Use & License Information
Rights Information
© 2025 Leslie L Trainor
Keywords
Organizational structure, Structural systems, Women in leadership
Abstract
Problem Organizational structure may create and reinforce barriers for women’s leadership journeys. Ambiguity about organizational structure shrouds how those barriers manifest. For organizations seeking to be equitable, that ambiguity presents a hurdle in understanding systemic barriers. Solution This paper offers new insights by providing a user-friendly, evidence-based definition of organizational structure and classification of its systems. Drawing from existing research, organizational structure is defined as the relatively stable characteristics and manifestations of an organization’s systems, constructed by members and their interactions. Structure is classified into seven systems: (1) positions, tasks, and status; (2) selection, promotion, and turnover; (3) authority and decision making; (4) rules and procedures; (5) development and training; (6) performance monitoring and evaluation; (7) reward systems. Women’s leadership-related barriers are then mapped on, creating a framework for assessing systems-level impacts. Stakeholders This user-friendly framework is meant to benefit organizations and their members and human resources practitioners, and scholars.
ISBN
9798291549407
Recommended Citation
Trainor, Leslie L.. (2025). The Role of Organizational Structure in Women’s Leadership. CGU Theses & Dissertations, 1026. https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_etd/1026.
