Responding to Gendered Dynamics: Experiences of Women Working over 25 Years

at One University

Maddie McDonald

Summary- This case study looked at twenty eight different women and their
experience at Bowling Green State University. They looked at these cases for 25-40
years to see if there were differences or changes in the way women were treated.
Participants in the study either honestly enjoyed the institution and thrived, or they
were unable to find other work so they had to stay and survive in a workplace they
didnt enjoy. This journal took into account three different theories dealing with
gender inequalities that shaped the study; Ackers theory of gendered
organizations, theories of contemporary sexism, and gender schema theory. Their
gendered organization findings included many women getting left out of networking
opportunities, and men reflecting dominance in the workplace by expressing
physical contact. The findings also included gendered expectations about who was
in charge of the relational duties of the office and women not being compensated or
rewarded for additional work they completed. Some of the women noted some
uncertainty because of their expectations, and they felt they had to act a certain
way in order to gain respect. A lot of the women were actually hesitant in situations,
because they couldnt decide if it was their gender or something else that defined
how they were treated. Some of the women in the study even stood up to men that
had made advances on them. These were only a number of the findings, but the
article concluded by saying there have been many advances for gender equality,
but modern and benevolent sexism continue to exist in the workplace.

Summary #2- The case study focused on womens experiences at Bowling Green
State University. This journal took into account three different theories dealing with
gender inequalities that shaped the study; Ackers theory of gendered
organizations, theories of contemporary sexism, and gender schema theory. The
report went over many different situations the women discussed where they felt
uncomfortable. These situations included women feeling left out at networking
events, women having expectations to do the relational work, some men making
unwelcome advancements to show dominance, and many more anecdotes. This
study concluded by saying that there have been many positive advancements
towards gender equality in the workplace, but modern and benevolent sexism
continue to exist in the professional setting.

Rhetorical Analysis- This study was conducted and written up by four authors: Dr.
Ellen M. Broido, Dr. Kirsten R. Brown, Katherine N. Stygles, and Dr. Ryan H.
Bronkema. The authors for this study are credible considering most of them have
their Ph. D., and many of them have studied or even wrote about gender inequality
before. Its helpful to have a male in their author line-up to give another point of
view on the situation at Bowling Green State University. The intended audience for
this study may be people that work at Bowling Green State University. Another
possible audience may be those interested in gender inequality, and finding a way
to solve it. Women in general may also be an intended audience since this article
may ring true to other women. The purpose of this article was to educate readers of
advancements towards gender equality, but to also highlight the inequalities that
are still present. This article also highlighted a part of gender inequality we typically
dont see on college campuses: the fact that it happens even among the staff. This
was very important to the purpose, because it shows how ingrained this sexism is to
our society and culture. I found this scholarly report on the ERIC Database, and this
definitely isnt a casual read. Most people would probably specifically search for this
study and read it on their computers. This study would fit into the genre of scholarly
text, because it is a very thorough report. There are references to support the
findings, and the findings are represented textually and visually to fit into the
scholarly genre.