The effect of gender, level of education and age on socio-cultural perceptions of women in leadership: Case of Kadoma urban district secondary schools in Zimbabwe

Abstract

The study sought to find out whether gender, level of education and age have any effect on socio-cultural perceptions of women in leadership positions. Twelve school heads, 100 teachers and 100 school development association members from 15 Kadoma urban district secondary schools were used as research subjects. A five point Likert scale questionnaire with eight perception variable was administered. The study found out that male respondents had negative perceptions of women in leadership while female respondents had positive perceptions. On level of education, the study revealed that respondents with lower education had negative perceptions of women in leadership and that those with higher education had positive perceptions. The results also showed that younger people have positive perceptions of women in leadership positions. The study concluded that gender, level of education and age do have an effect on socio-cultural perceptions of women in leadership positions.

Keywords: Age, Gender, Leadership, Socio-cultural perceptions