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5 November 2003
Analysing Competence:
Gender and Identity at Work
Bronwen Rees* and Elizabeth Garnsey
Introduction
Address for correspondence: *Bronwen Rees, 28 Cattell’s Lane, Waterbeach, Cambridge, CB5
9NH, 01223 571264, e-mail: brees@dial.pipex.com
© Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2003, 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK
and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA.
552 GENDER, WORK AND ORGANIZATION
shown how masculine identities are threatened by social and economic forces
such as new technology (Cockburn, 1983) and equal opportunity initiatives
(Cockburn, 1991). Typically, men’s gender identities are constructed, com-
pared and evaluated according to a whole variety of criteria indicating
personal success in the workplace. In the process of construction and main-
tenance of masculine identities, there is evidence that feminine identities
become a kind of residual.
What is problematic is the fact that, while organizational realities are struc-
tured around gender, among other issues, this is not made explicit and the
concept of gender neutrality prevails. Over the past few years a growing
body of critical feminist literature has developed alongside mainstream man-
agement studies that explores these realities (for example, Acker, 1998; Calas
and Smircich, 1992; Ely, 1995; Hearn and Parkin, 1992; Lamsa and Sintonen,
2001; Martin, 1990; Rubin, 1997). The break between the reality of gender
issues and the pretence of gender neutrality is, as Acker (1992) points out,
‘. . . maintained through the impersonal, objectifying practices of organizing,
managing, and controlling large organizations’ (p. 256).
In these circumstances, it seemed possible that competence frameworks
may in practice maintain or even reinforce current imbalances in manage-
ment, despite or because of their claims to gender neutrality. To investigate
this question we needed a robust theoretical framework that could capture
the complexity of gender relations, yet move beyond the polarization of an
exclusively feminist perspective. As feminist scholarship has pointed out,
when gender patterning leading to inequality ‘. . . is hidden, it is easier to
deny, harder to detect, more difficult to study, more difficult to address’.
(Martin, 1990).
Some of the ideas of critical theory may help us with this problem. Criti-
cal theory argues that, whenever knowledge is deemed to be purely objec-
tive, there are power relations at work, sanctioning certain ideas, methods
and findings as authoritative. It is only by making this process explicit that
it is possible to develop fuller and richer constructions of reality. This can
provide us with: ‘working hypotheses, ways of looking at the world which
we might find useful in explaining some, but not all of the things we want
to study’. (Craib, 1992). Thus, there may be broad gender patterns that
produce a spectrum of behaviours, but that are also open to change. Within
the framework of critical theory we can identify that a social identity is ‘knit
from a plurality of different descriptions arising from a plurality of different
signifying practices’ (Fraser, 1991, p. 99). Some practices, for example, moth-
ering, are more deeply embedded in the social fabric than others. These
ingrained practices are likely to produce a collective set of ascribed behav-
iours that we take for granted and that provide the assumptions underlying
gender as an issue.4 Socio-historical conditions give rise to ingrained dif-
ferences between behaviour deemed masculine and feminine, but there is
obvious evidence that this is open to change.
Among the forces at work that can be overlooked are the way language
and discourse relate to the production of knowledge and are implicated in
relations of power. Discourse refers to the language used for talking about a
topic and for producing a particular kind of knowledge about that topic (Du
Gay, 1996). Far from reflecting an already given social reality, language which
is taken for granted constitutes reality as it appears to us. Thus, for example,
what is termed work in one environment (the home) may not be termed work
in another; what is determined as a ‘skilled job’ in one organization may not
be termed so in another (Garnsey and Rees, 1996). Meaning is not constant
across discourses (for example, between feminist or management discourses)
and is subject to historical change.
Just as language defines and constructs the subjective outlook, so too do
the discursive practices that constitute institutions. Institutions comprise sets
of practices, everyday routines and procedures in which a pre-given set of
values exist, and in which people, as subjects, feel they are making sense
of the word and creating meanings. But the individual is subject to a range
of discourses, some of which conflict. Subjects are apparently free to define
themselves in their everyday life. The social construction of reality is not self-
evident and can leave people unaware of ways of representing reality, and
the forms of control this exerts are difficult to detect.
The subject’s world appears to be normal and unproblematic, but it has
been produced in its current form with differential benefits and costs as
consequences. To see how such processes take place in the world of man-
agement, we need to identify potential areas of conflict, even where these do
not eventuate. This can be done by highlighting discursive practices which
block discussion about values and close off avenues for exploring differences.
Theorizing difference
As we have already shown, although we may understand that, to a certain
degree, gender is socially constructed, we cannot explore how this happens
unless we begin with a provisional notion of difference. There are evolu-
tionary reasons for gender differences but these are remote and unobserv-
able. They are overlaid by current and demonstrable social influences. It is
these social patterns of construction with which we are concerned here. The
sense of gender identity is constructed in each generation through the inter-
nalization of norms and assumptions about how people of each gender are
expected to behave. By exploring the relationship between manifest differ-
ences and the processes that reinforce or change these differences we seek to
achieve a better understanding of the construction of the sense of self in rela-
tion to gender.
For the purposes of our analysis, and drawing on evidence from outside
and inside the workplace, we would divide male and female behaviours
along a ‘nurturing’ and ‘directive’ continuum. This is not to say that posi-
tions on the continuum are predetermined solely by sex, as evidently,
they are subject to change. Gender is not simply imposed: at all points of
development, human beings are actively constructing for themselves what it
means to be male or female, just as they are actively constructing what it
means to be, for example, a manager or an administrator.5
At the observable level of behaviour, there is a substantial body of empir-
ical evidence both from childhood and workplace studies, showing that
nurturing behaviour is more common among girls and directive behaviour
more common among boys (for example, Eakins, 1976; Heatherington et al.,
1993; Holmes, 1989; James and Drakich, 1993; Leaper, 1991; Maccoby, 1990;
Tracy and Eisenberg, 1990/91. For a fuller summary, see Rees, 2003).
Tannen’s work on sociolinguistics (1994) cites conversational styles that char-
acterize feminine and masculine behaviour. She finds that women and girls
place emphasis on the equality of relationship, take into account the effect of
an exchange on the other person and tend to ask questions and seek infor-
mation. Talk among men, her studies report, is characterized by joking,
teasing, banter and playful put-down and men typically expend efforts
to avoid a disadvantageous position. Holmes (1989) shows how women
apologize more frequently than men and offer compliments more readily.
Relational factors affect women’s presentation of themselves. For example,
Nadler and Nadler (1987) demonstrate significant gender-related differences
between men and women in negotiating pay.
Numerous studies present empirical evidence for differences between the
genders in how they perceive and present themselves. The psychologist,
Gilligan, identifies differences in girls’ moral approach to the world
(Gilligan, 1982, Gilligan et al., 1990). Gilligan demonstrates how women view
autonomy rather than attachment as the illusory and dangerous quest: ‘. . .
women’s development points towards a different history of human attach-
ment, stressing continuity and change in configuration, rather than replace-
ment and separation, elucidating a different response to loss, and changing
the metaphor of growth’ (1982, p. 48). In her work, based on three studies
encompassing all age groups, she explores conceptions of self and morality
and experiences of conflict and choice. She discovers that:
The interviews were open-ended and aimed to elicit the managers’ percep-
tions of the competence implementation process and their hopes and expec-
tations; as well as to ascertain if there were any conscious resistance to
implementation. We analysed the sense they made of the competence frame-
works, drawing on our interview and participant material, from our obser-
vations about the practices associated with the implementation of the
frameworks and from detailed analyses of the particular language in which
competences were framed.
In particular, we wanted to ascertain to what extent the claims for objec-
tivity were met and how the competence frameworks or categories were
drawn up. Was there was any discussion or room for further discussion or
change in the future? Finally, we examined the competence frameworks and
associated practices in the light of ‘women’s voices’.
In all organizations studied, save the beauty and cosmetics retailer, senior
management respondents stressed the objectivity of the competence
approaches. However, the focus in all these organizations lay in the ‘techni-
cal’ issues of identification and application, rather than in questioning the
validity and strategy of the competence initiative itself. The competence
approach is said to unearth and discover the qualities underlying the suc-
2: Disciplinary practices
Dividing practices
Once the information from the appraisal process is filed in the human
resource department it can be used as an on-going source for the practices
of promotion, selection and recruitment. Such practices do, to a greater or
lesser extent, resemble the dividing practices that we discussed earlier. We
noted that Foucault’s notions of enclosure, partitioning and ranking have the
effect of positioning individuals in time and space. The individual can be
measured and codified within or outside the organization. The first form of
enclosure operating through competence methodologies is in the division
between paid and unpaid work. Here, part-time or peripheral workers are
often viewed as failing to meet the ‘commitment’ that was stressed in five
out of the six organizations and which was measured through the individ-
ual’s ability to cope with stress and sometimes is written into the com-
petencies. For example, ‘Late in the day, or late in the week, maintains
constantly high levels of activity’; ‘Shows willingness to take on extra
work/projects beyond scope of current job’. Further, since the part-time or
peripheral worker is not present for the ‘full’ number of hours, he or she may
Use as training
Use in and development,
recruitment, organizational
selection, restructuring,
Reason for appraisal and performance
Organization implementation pay management
Paradigmatic here
Characteristics Depth of
of current dividing History of
organizational practices and trades
culture, and disciplinary union
desired change Time scales techniques disputes
Narrative
those behaviours which women are more likely to possess on entering the
workforce.
Not only do the competences reflect and reinforce the ‘directive’ behav-
iours, but they can embed expectations that those with domestic responsi-
bilities are unable to meet. Expectations about the desirability of long
working hours affect how employees with family commitments are valued.6
Disparate emphasis on home and work as an index of commitment reflects
the practice of ‘enclosure’ which, by denying the claims of life outside the
workplace, strictly separates paid work from the rest of life. The bulk of
workers with one foot in each world are women working part-time (Rees
and Brewster, 1995). A whole set of assumptions is based around the divide
between work and home. The discourse of competence can confirm and rein-
force the failure to value skills and abilities gained outside paid employment.
But the many skills developed through running a home and bringing up chil-
dren do not come into the reckoning in competence analysis of this kind.
With few exceptions (for example, ‘externally aware’, ‘delivery of customer
care’ and so on), the language of the competence discourse would not be
applied to skills developed in the household. It was only in the beauty and
cosmetics retailer that attention was paid to the structural and linguistic
assumptions that can be embedded in competence categories. Let us compare
some of the competences from the semi-privatized industry and the retailer.
Semi-privatized industry — a selection of positive indicators:
Stress tolerance
Thrives on pressure and significance of work
In a debate maintains logic and persuasiveness of argument despite heavy oppo-
sition from others
Employs stress reduction techniques (Relaxation, Humour, Exercise, Leisure
Activities).
A contra-indicator is:
Reports problems in home relationships
In the unusual case of the cosmetics retailer:
Employee motivation
Open door policy — will take time to make themselves approachable to others to
deal with their requests and queries and anxieties
Takes an interest in employees’ lives outside e.g. has some knowledge of family life
and circumstances
Has concern for well-being of individuals, is aware of factors which will affect
well-being — stress/ill-health/occupational health issues
In the first organization the competence categories could serve to reinforce
manager’s behaviours that reflect the social world experienced by boys and
men. In the second organization, there is an unusual recognition of the
divide staff to the same extent as in other organizations. The extensive dis-
cussions, the debate about the purpose of appraisal and the flexibility with
which the appraisal documentation was treated meant that there was less
scope for examination and confession of the disciplinary type to take place. If
influences from other organizations brought in by new employees should
come to predominate, these conditions may, however, change.
Conclusions
iour. The competence approach has the potential to be used more creatively
under these conditions. A more open approach to competence could enhance
creativity and foster ethical values, but also improve productivity by tapping
into a richer understanding of management skills.
Acknowledgements
The financial support of the ESRC (Grant no. R000234869) is gratefully
acknowledged for part of the empirical work in this paper.
Notes
1. We are not focusing here on generic concepts of competence such as those spon-
sored by UK-government lead initiatives for vocational training. Nor are we
concerned with wider issues of strategy associated with developing ‘core
competences of the corporation’ (see, for example, Prahalad and Hamel, 1996).
2. ‘Competency’ is generally US usage. In UK usage, ‘competence’ is often taken to
be the noun equivalent of ‘competent’.
3. These can be categorized into six: liberal feminism; radical feminism; psychoan-
alytic feminism; socialist feminism; poststructuralist feminism and Third
World/(post)colonial feminism (Calas and Smirchich, 1996).
4. As Fraser (1991) points out: ‘To have a social identity, to be a woman or a man,
for example, just is to live and to act under a set of descriptions. These descrip-
tions, of course, are not simply secreted by people’s bodies, still less are they
exuded by people’s psyches. Rather they are drawn from the fund of interpretive
possibilities available to agents in specific societies. It follows that in order to
understand anyone’s feminine or masculine gender identity, it does not suffice to
study biology or psychology. Instead, one must study the historically specific
social practices through which cultural-descriptions of gender are produced and
circulated’ (p. 99).
5. Neither are we necessarily positing the ‘real’ existence of a psychoanalytic subject.
However, we are using the insights from psychoanalysis as a framework for
describing a process by which gender may be constructed, and as a tool for under-
standing how some signifying practices may have more longer-term impact than
others.
6. It is interesting that in the beauty and cosmetics retailer, although one or two
managers had cited the ability to work long hours as a point of effective perfor-
mance, this has been hotly contested, and ‘written out’ of the company’s scheme
at a very early stage.
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