Breaking through the glass ceiling
Women’s career advancement into higher leadership positions amid work intensification
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 19224286 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Man Chung Low (0000-0002-7950-7423, University of Malaya), Rosmawani Che Hashim (Universiti Malaya Department of Management and Marketing, Faculty of Business and Economics), Rosmawanı Che Hashim (0000-0002-0656-6588, University of Malaya), Raida Abu Bakar (0000-0001-8735-1601, University of Malaya), Sharmila Jayasingam (0000-0003-3263-3008, University of Malaya) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 1-23 |
| Publication date | 2026-05-21 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Qualitative Research Journal (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1443-9883 • E-ISSN: 1448-0980 |
| Publisher | Emerald Publishing Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1108/qrj-10-2025-0391 |
| OpenAlex | W7161957415 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 57 |
Purpose Women are often marginalised in career advancement, and an intensifying work environment can worsen this disparity, continuing systemic inequalities and limiting development opportunities. Notably, the intersection of how deeply rooted societal norms and challenges in maintaining a healthy work–life balance impede women’s career progress remains underexplored. Drawing upon the conservation of resources theory and social role theory, this study explores the experiences and encounters faced by Malaysian women as they navigate their career progress amid increasing work intensification. Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative approach, we interviewed two groups of participants. The first group comprised 17 women lecturers from research universities. The second group was a leader informant group providing complementary perspectives and included eight women and men in high-level leadership positions, two participants from NGOs and one senior government official. Findings Findings revealed that work intensification stemmed from (1) KPIs that are becoming unrealistic, (2) bureaucracy, (3) work uncertainties and (4) blurred boundaries between different life domains. Women reported negative impacts from cultural expectations regarding household roles in their work and personal interactions, besides workplace stereotypes, and differential treatment from men. The leader informant group revealed ongoing barriers to career advancement, primarily related to gender role stereotypes and their impact on leadership dynamics. Originality/value Through interviews with a wide range of participants, this study not only contributes to understanding barriers to women’s career progress in the contemporary work environment within the context of Malaysia but also explores potential improvements, including institutional reforms and organisational initiatives
Career development · Context (archaeology) · Focus group · Government (linguistics) · Inequality · Qualitative property · Qualitative research · Work (physics) · Work–life balance · Gender Diversity and Inequality · Job Satisfaction and Organizational Behavior · Work-Family Balance Challenges
Sex Differences in Social Behavior
What Is Qualitative Research? An Overview and Guidelines
Work–family conflict among members of full-time dual-earner couples
Culture and Organizations
Theme development in qualitative content analysis and thematic analysis
Social Role Theory of Sex Differences
It’s Been A Hard Day’s Night
The Influence of Culture, Community, and the Nested‐Self in the Stress Process
Work Intensification and Its Effects on Mental Health
Harder, better, faster, stronger? Work intensity and ‘good work’ in the United Kingdom
Culture’s causes
Measuring shared cultural characteristics in Malaysia
The gender gap in work–life balance satisfaction across occupations
Women, Gender equality and Covid-19
Using Qualitative Methods to Inform Scale Development
The entrenchment of the ideal worker norm during the Covid‐19 pandemic
How to respond to inappropriate questions in job interviews
Using thematic analysis in psychology
Allyship in the university setting
Conservation of resources
Boundary-work between work and life in the high-speed university
Working Still Harder
Gender Discrimination at Work
Boundary-Spanning Work Demands and Their Consequences for Guilt and Psychological Distress
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |