Text-mining obituaries between 1953 and 2019 revealed that women leaders are described increasingly like men leaders, but yet evaluated differently

Abstract

Replicating and extending previous research on changes in gender stereotypes in the context of leadership (Zehnter et al, 2018), we text-mined 2,283 obituaries of leaders published between 1953 and 2019 in (Western) Germany. Using a rigorously developed dictionary with substantial internal reliability, coverage, convergent, and predictive validity, we counted descriptive words signifying agency, competence, and communality alongside evaluative words signifying likability and respectability. Over time, women leaders were described more like men leaders in terms of agency and competence, but continued to be described as more communal. Moreover, women leaders were evaluated as increasingly likable, but continued to be evaluated as less respectable than men leaders. Penalizations of agency with reduced likability initially disappeared, but re-emerged after the millennial shift. Ultimately, these results highlight that despite some changes towards greater equality, disparaging views of women and men leaders persist.