Male Pre-School Principals’ Experiences on Glass Escalator

Abstract

The glass escalator is a metaphor used to describe how men in feminized workplaces move up career ladders, and this study aims to determine the experiences of male pre-school principals and the possible effects of cultural values on the results of the glass escalator through the ranks because of gender norms and job expectations. In this context, meetings are held with four school principals, working in Kocaeli and in pre-school education institutions. As an interpretive approach, phenomenology is used in the study. The criterion sampling method and the snowball sampling method, which are among the purposeful sampling methods, are used together in forming the working group. Research findings are discussed in terms of individual and cultural factors. The former is mainly related to the preferences of male principals, who tend to see working in pre-school institutions as an opportunity for promotion. This perspective is discussed from the standpoint of ‘visibility’, which emerges as an advantageous feature for men but not for women. Cultural factors, on the other hand, are related to culturally-influenced beliefs regarding male and female roles. Because management is seen as a male occupation, female teachers also prefer and support male principals.