Female leadership. An analysis of how gender-related differences influence training and development in associations of African immigrants

Abstract

This study describes, analyses and compares manifestations of female leadership in associations of African immigrants, examining such factors as work objectives, themes and forms, organisation and institutionalisation. It was based on an in-depth analysis of ten life hi stories, starting from the hypothesis that there is a clearly gender-based difference between the objectives of African associations comprised of men and of women and that this difference stems from the basic inequality of the respective social statuses of men and women and, more specifically, from gender-related culture. The results obtained suggest the existence of “strong” (neither submissive nor ignorant) female immigrants with the capacity to lead associations, but whose character is not the result of any supposedly specifically “feminine” characteristics, but rather to a process of early (adolescent) learning, academic success and relatively high social origin, all of which help to forge a certain rebellious streak and to lead certain women to assume positions of authority. Whatever the case, it was not possible to observe any relevant differences between female and male leadership; both tend to be characterised by a certain “charisma” and the presence of personal qualities that were the result of interactions within specific social contexts.