Perceived Impact of Culture on the Progress of Women as School Leaders in South Africa

Musa Grace Zitha, Rudzani Israel Lumadi and Emmanuel Ndhlovu
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Musa Grace Zitha: Department of Educational Management, University of South Africa
Rudzani Israel Lumadi: Professor, Department of Educational Management, University of South Africa
Emmanuel Ndhlovu: Research Fellow, School of Business and Economics, University of Johannesburg

Social Sciences and Education Research Review, 2024, vol. 11, issue 2, 135-145

Abstract: The advancement of women as leaders in socio-economic and political sectors remains a challenge worldwide. In the South African education sector, although the low participation of women in leadership positions is well acknowledged, there lacks a clear and detailed explanation of the challenges of this reality. Drawing from in-depth interviews conducted with 52 participants across the Gauteng Province Department of Education, an exploratory research design was adopted in this article to explore how culture serves as one of the basic challenges faced by aspiring women leaders. The study found that cultural norms and beliefs made women's leadership difficult and served as a gatekeeper to their ascendency to leadership positions. Culture sustains patriarchal tendencies and stereotypes that continue to be barriers to women leaders and aspiring women leaders. The study proposes the roll-out of transformational leadership at the departmental level to mobilise the promotion of female leaders within schools.

Keywords: Culture; education; patriarchy; schools; stereotypes; women leadership (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J16 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:edt:jsserr:v:11:y:2024:i:2:p:135-145

DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.15258286

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