ArticleFrontiers in sociology2025
A view from the top: how South African women leaders shatter the glass ceiling.
Article in Frontiers in sociology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
This study investigates how South African women leaders navigated the glass ceiling to reach senior leadership positions. We explored the barriers these leaders encountered and examined the strategies they used to overcome workplace obstacles. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 15 women holding senior leadership positions across various South African industries. We selected participants through purposive and snowball sampling and analyzed data through Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to identify recurring patterns and themes. The analysis revealed four critical themes. First, participants faced persistent organizational barriers, including inadequate career support mechanisms and institutional bias in promotion decisions. Second, successful advancement required three core strategies: mentorship, strategic networking, and continuous skills development. Third, participants developed leadership presence through what they termed "positive influential femininity," with many women actively practicing female empowerment within their organizations. Fourth, work-life integration presented ongoing challenges, requiring robust support systems and flexible organizational policies. Despite reaching senior positions, participants encountered continuing barriers. Women reported hitting additional glass ceiling effects at C-suite level, whilst most faced persistent gender stereotypes that limited their progression to executive roles. However, many participants successfully mentored other women into leadership positions, creating advancement pathways for future female leaders. These findings provide evidence-based strategies for dismantling glass ceiling barriers and offer practical approaches for organizations seeking to accelerate women's leadership advancement in South Africa's evolving corporate landscape.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.