An empirical study on relationship between power distance and glass ceiling as a cultural dimension

The discrimination towards women has been a phenomenon persisting for centuries and ever escalating with increasing role of women in business world. Nowadays, the discredited opinion of women in the masculine societies and in organizations composed of individuals of such societies has become a frequently raised issue. The obstacles that women confront are enhanced by the presence of male-dominated systems, which keeps women far from the executive boards.The aim of this work is to reveal the women perception of cultural dimension called power distance and explore its relation to the glass ceiling phenomenon.In this work we present a detailed literature survey on the subject and analyses of data acquired from the questionnaire. The questionnaire is held in a nanotechnology research center in Ankara with 111 persons. The data compiled from the questionnaire is analyzed using MATLAB and SPSS 20 software. As a result of these analyses it was found that, women are experiencing the effects of the power distance and the glass ceiling in a greater extend compared to men and that there is a medium level relationship between the perception of the power distance and the glass ceiling by women.Keywords: Career, Power Distance, Glass Ceiling, Manager