Women’s glass-ceiling beliefs and their perceived career progression: a tale of two countries

Abstract

This study investigated and compared the impact of women glass-ceiling beliefs (denial, resilience, acceptance, and resignation) on their perceived career progression with a moderating role of education in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. This is a time-lagged study. Multi-group analysis and permutations in Smart PLS is used for comparative data analysis. Results show significant differences in the impacts of glass-ceiling beliefs on women’s career progression in two different countries. Where education plays an important role in mitigating the negative effects of glass ceiling beliefs proving the same among the two samples of different countries. This study provides significant theoretical and practical implications for policymaking and organizational practices to give due consideration to women’s glass-ceiling beliefs and their career progression through education.