The UTC Graduate School is pleased to announce that Ciara Carl will present Master's research titled, Intersectionality and Employment Barriers: Analyzing Age and Gender Bias in Job Advertisements on 03/06/2024 at 2:30pm in 540 McCallie Room 394. Everyone is invited to attend. 

Psychology

Chair: Dr. Ruth Walker

Co-Chair: 

Abstract:

Previous researchers have highlighted different forms of discrimination that occur within phases of the employment process (attraction, selection, and retention; Frissen et al., 2022). It has been estimated that 20-40% of employers are influenced by bias in their hiring decisions (Bendick & Nunes, 2012). Although sexism and ageism are among the most prevalent forms of reported employment discrimination (EEOC, 2021), detecting hiring discrimination is complex and often goes unreported (Perron, 2018). Researchers have identified gendered age bias in the selection phase of hiring, when employers are reviewing applications (Neumark et al., 2019). The current study focused on the attraction phase when an employer is creating a job advertisement to attract employees to apply for an open position. This study addressed a current gap in the literature by examining how both age and gender intersect to create barriers and opportunities for employment. Using a mixed methods approach, I explored how stereotypical language in job advertisements may signal an age or gender bias in the employer's ideal candidate. Using systematic sampling methods, 800 job ads were collected from both white-collar and blue-collar industries as well as female-and-male-dominated occupations within each of the six geographic regions across the United States. Data were analyzed first through a latent content analysis to identify words and phrases that indicate an age or gender bias. The latent content analysis was used to construct a repository for a Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC). I found a significant interaction between industry type (white collar vs. blue collar) and gender dominance (male-dominated vs. female-dominated) in the gendered age language biases present in the job advertisements. Limitations, future directions, and practical implications for human resource professionals and employers are further discussed.