Ninth International Conference on Sport & Society

Abstract

When women executives in sport management are examined, it can be seen that there are very few women in top managerial positions in sport organizations. According to the literature review this is called the Glass Ceiling Syndrome. Glass ceiling is an unofficial barrier to workplace advancement, usually in regard to women or minority groups. These unofficial barriers include; multiple roles of women, preferences and perceptions, organizational culture and policies, lack of mentoring, communication networks, stereotypes and discrimination against women. We can gather these barriers in three titles, such as; individual, organizational and socio-cultural glass ceiling barriers. In this study the aim is to find out which kinds of socio-cultural barriers women face in sport organizations in top managerial positions. To find out this, a sample of six women top sport managers were included in the study. They were all assumed to break the glass ceiling and have reached top managerial positions in Turkish sport. Interviews were made with 6 women, which took approximately 50 minutes each. Content analysis were made in qualitative data analyze programme Nvivo-8. As a result of the study it was found that gender based stereotypes was the most important barrier which effected women negatively in their sport administration careers. The other barriers faced as glass ceiling were found to be; gender based vocational distinction, the culture of the country, the country’s socio-economic conditions and finally the non women supportive education system of the country.