| This study was undertaken to investigate the differences and similarities in leadership between women and men managers in the hospitality industry. No research was discovered which addressed leaders in the lodging or hospitality industry specifically. As a result, this interdisciplinary study sought to discover if there really were differences if the way men and women lead, and whether or not these differences, if any, might assist the hospitality industry and educators in recruiting, hiring, training and education.;This was a causal comparative study design composed of summary descriptive, inferential/analytic and correlation research due to the fact that it was concerned with investigating both differences and relationships. Only correlations/relationships or differences at the statistically significant level of.01 were reported. This study replicated the self-reporting survey designed in 1989 by Rosener, McAllister, and Stephens for a study commissioned by the International Women's Forum (IWF). Many additional research questions emerged for suggested future study (Rosener, McAllister & Stephens, 1990). Consequently, this study administered the Leadership Characteristics Questionnaire (LCQ) which was distributed to 235 managers/leaders in six large hotels in Tucson, Arizona, in January 1998 in a multi-stage sampling process. An overall response rate of 32% was collected.;The survey was divided into four sections: leadership, personal, organizational, and work/family characteristics. The methodology included statistical analyses of the responses from three levels of managers (executive, mid, supervisory) in hotels providing either mid-level or luxury service. While suggestions of slight differences did occur in various areas, this study reported that there were no statistically significant differences in the way women and men lead in the hospitality industry. This contradicted the findings of the IWF study that discovered that men and women do lead differently. Additionally, there were no statistically significant differences or relationships between women and men in the way they perceive they lead and their personal, organizational, or career/family characteristics. The implications of this study present a positive picture of leaders in this growing industry. |
