Meritocracy a myth? A multilevel perspective of how social equality accumulates through work

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Van Dijk, H., Kooij, D., Karanika-Murray, M. ORCID: 0000-0002-4141-3747, De Vos, A. and Meyer, B., 2020. Meritocracy a myth? A multilevel perspective of how social equality accumulates through work. Organizational Psychology Review. ISSN 2041-3866

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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1177/2041386620930063

Abstract

Work plays a crucial role in rising social inequalities, which refer to unequal opportunities and rewards for different social groups. Whereas the conventional view of workplaces as meritocracies suggests that work is a conduit for social equality, we unveil the ways in which workplaces contribute to the accumulation of social inequality. In our Cumulative Social Inequality in Workplaces (CSI-W) model, we outline how initial differences in opportunities and rewards shape performance and/or subsequent opportunities and rewards, such that those who receive more initial opportunities and rewards tend to receive even more over time. These cumulative social inequality dynamics take place via nine different mechanisms spanning four different levels (individual, dyadic, network, organizational). The CSI-W indicates that the mechanisms interact, such that the social inequality dynamics in workplaces tend to (a) exacerbate social inequalities over time, (b) legitimate social inequalities over time, and (c) manifest themselves through everyday occurrences and behaviors.

Item Type:

Journal article

Publication Title:

Organizational Psychology Review

Creators:

Van Dijk, H., Kooij, D., Karanika-Murray, M., De Vos, A. and Meyer, B.

Publisher:

Sage

Date:

15 June 2020

ISSN:

2041-3866