A comparative study of managerial styles among female executives in Nicaragua and Costa Rica

Abstract

As more women attain high-level positions in both business and government, researchers and practitioners alike have pondered whether women managers have a distinctive style. Most of the research describing the managerial style of female executives has been carried out in the most industrialized countries. Gender-related management style has received scant attention in Central America where one finds little or no research on managers of either sex. The findings of the first empirical study, conducted in 1992-1993, of female managers in Nicaragua and Costa Rica, are reported. The principle finding was that national culture may affect preferred leadership style among women.