Factors that influence woman–leader identity conflict among Indonesian women leaders

Men are sometimes treated as higher than women, and men’s qualities are also sometimes promoted as being superior to those of women. This stereotype can be assumed to affect how women view themselves when they assume a leadership role. This study aims to investigate the role of gender identity, importance of identity and patriarchal belief on identity conflict on women leaders. An online survey was conducted in two stages to reduce common method bias, with the final stage involving 163 women leaders. The reliability of the instruments ranged from 0.81 to 0.89, indicating high consistency in their measurement of constructs. It was found that (1) positive gender identity is negatively related to identity conflict for women leaders and (2) patriarchal belief is positively related to identity conflict among women leaders. No relationship was identified between the importance of gender identity and woman–leader identity conflict. This paper contributes to current debates on women leaders by demonstrating that women who identify positively with their gender will not experience identity conflict in their role as leader; instead, identity conflict for women leaders arises through externally induced patriarchal belief.