Employees’ social class backgrounds remain a critical but often overlooked source of inequality in white-collar workplaces: employees from working-class backgrounds are less likely to be hired, less likely to advance to leadership positions, and earn less on average than their counterparts from middle- and upper-class backgrounds, even with the same qualifications. Though documenting the existence of these social class disparities is an important first step, research has yet to systematically determine the individual and organizational antecedents that help to explain why these disparities persist. My dissertation offers a multilevel framework for understanding how people’s social class contexts growing up interact with the cultures of their current organizations to shape whether employees from different social class backgrounds will have the opportunity to thrive at work. Specifically, I examine: (1) how social class background shapes individuals’ subjective experiences of obstacles and strengths at work, and (2) how the cultures of organizations can shape whether employees from working-class backgrounds thrive or flounder. In addressing both of these topics, I also shed light on what organizations stand to lose when they fail to recruit and retain employees from working-class backgrounds. In Chapter 2, I document that people from working-class backgrounds understand their social class background not only as a source of challenge, but also as a source of strength for navigating white-collar workplaces. Then, in Chapter 3, I document that organizations that are perceived to promote interdependence—in particular, working together – in their cultures produce better experiences and outcomes in employees from working-class backgrounds, compared to organizations that promote independence—in particular working individually. Throughout, I consider implications of my research for reducing social class inequality in white-collar workplaces. Together, my dissertation studies suggest that, to realize the full potential of employees from working-class backgrounds, and harness the distinct skills and perspectives that they bring to workplaces, organizations might work to promote interdependence in their cultures.

Creator

• Dittmann, Andrea G

DOI

• https://doi.org/10.21985/n2-ch0f-cm05

Subject

• Social psychology
• Organizational behavior

Language

• en

Alternate Identifier

• etdadmin_upload_744046
• http://dissertations.umi.com/northwestern:15136

Keyword

• organizational culture
• inequality
• social class background

Date created

• 2020-01-01

Resource type

• Dissertation

Rights statement

• In Copyright