title: The role of proximal social contexts: Assessing stigma-by-association effects on leader appraisals.
abstract: Prior research suggests that segregation in the U.S. workplace is on the rise (Hellerstein, Neumark, & McInerney, 2008); as such, leaders are more likely to lead groups of followers composed primarily of their own race (Elliot & Smith, 2001; Smith & Elliott, 2002). Drawing from theory on stigma-by-association, the authors posit that such segregated proximal social contexts (i.e., the leader's group of followers) can have detrimental effects on leader appraisals. Specifically, they argue that leaders of mostly Black follower groups experience stigmatization based on race stereotypic beliefs, which affects how they are viewed in the eyes of observers. The results of a large field study show performance evaluations generally tend to be lower when the proportion of Black followers is higher. Moreover, 3 experiments demonstrate that the impact of proximal social contexts extends to other outcomes (i.e., perceptions of market value and competency) but appears limited to those who are less internally and externally motivated to control their prejudice. Taken together, these findings explain how workplace segregation systematically can create a particular disadvantage for Black leaders.
authors.affiliation: Darden School of Business, University of Virginia.
authors.forename: Morela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hernandez
authors.affiliation: Wake Forest School of Business, Wake Forest University.
authors.forename: Derek R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Avery
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Rice University.
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tonidandel
authors.affiliation: Spears School of Business, Oklahoma State University.
authors.forename: Mikki R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Hebl
authors.affiliation: School of Management and Labor Relations, Rutgers University.
authors.forename: Alexis N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Rice University.
authors.forename: Patrick F
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: McKay
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004651:Employment / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007857:Leadership; D063505:Racism / Q000523:psychology*; D013240:Stereotyping; D014481:United States; D017132:Workplace / Q000523:psychology*