What’s in a name? : the impact of gendered venture name on job seekers’ perceived fit and perceived organizational attractiveness

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1 WHAT’S IN A NAME? THE IMPACT OF GENDERED VENTURE NAME ON JOB SEEKERS’ PERCEIVED FIT AND PERCEIVED ORGANIZATIONAL

ATTRACTIVENESS

Full Name: Benjamin Frederic van Assum Student Number: 10670726

Submission: 19 August 2016 – Final Version Qualification: Msc in Business Administration Track: Entrepreneurship and Innovation Name of Institution: University of Amsterdam

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2 Statement of originality

This document is written by Student Benjamin Frederic van Assum who declares to take full responsibility for the contents of this document. I declare that the text and the work presented in this document is original and that no sources other than those mentioned in the text and its references have been used in creating it. The Faculty of Economics and

Business is responsible solely for the supervision of completion of the work, not for the contents.

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3 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract ... 5

Introduction ... 5

Theoretical Background & Hypothesis Development ... 8

Venture Name as a Gendered Recruitment Signal ... 8

Organizational Attraction Using Symbolism ... 9

Signaling Gender through Language... 9

Gendered Venture Name ... 12

Gendered Venture Name as a Cue for Perceived Person-Organization Fit ... 13

Person-Organization Fit Improving Organizational Attraction ... 14

Method ... 17 Sample ... 17 Procedure... 18 Measures ... 18 Results ... 21 Preliminary Analysis ... 21

Moderated Regression Analysis (H1) ... 25

Moderated Mediation Analysis (H2)... 25

Discussion ... 26

Contributions to Theory ... 27

Implications for Practice ... 28

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4

Conclusion... 30

References ... 30

Appendix ... 35

Appendix A: Masculine Named Job Advertisement ... 35

Appendix B: Feminine Named Job Advertisement... 37

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Table 1 Means, Standard Deviations, and Correlations ... 22

Table 2 Results Process Model 1 ... 25

Table 3 Results Process Model 8 ... 26

Figure 1 Conceptual Model ... 17

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5 ABSTRACT

This study investigates the concept of signaling gender in venture names by employing sound symbolism and its subsequent effect on organizational attraction. Previous research suggests subconscious mechanisms influence perceived fit towards organizations through language manipulation. After reading a job advertisement, 91 respondents participated in a survey that questioned them on how they perceived the organizations, if they felt there was a fit between themselves and the organization, and if they felt attracted to the organization as a place of work. Except for the venture names, the content of the advertisements was identical. Four venture names were used, two masculine and two feminine. The findings revealed no perceived differences between the gendered venture names. Person-Organization Fit was revealed to exhibit significant effect on Organizational Attraction. The findings suggest that signaling in situations of information discrepancy relies strongly on the relative dosage of the signal. Implications of the results of the study on sound symbolism, organizational gender, person-organization fit, and organizational attraction are discussed.

INTRODUCTION

Women are underrepresented in entrepreneurship nearly three to one (OECD, 2012) and across different cultures the meaning of the term “entrepreneurship” is associated with masculine traits (Ahl, 2006; Gupta, Turban, Wasti, & Sikdar, 2009; Thébaud, 2015). Hence, when men select into an entrepreneurial context they act in accordance with stereotypes about who they are, but also about who they should be (Thébaud, 2015). In contrast, the entrepreneurship context is less welcoming for women who need to overcome both powerful societal expectations (Fiske, C, Glick, & Xu, 2002; Gupta, Turban, & Bhawe, 2008; Gupta et al., 2009) and their own self-doubt about the ability to perform entrepreneurially (Thébaud,

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6 2010). Unfortunately, this is true both for entrepreneurs themselves as well as for start-up employees who apply for jobs in an overwhelmingly masculine working environment. Indeed, recent media reports proclaim that women are under-represented in entrepreneurship, not only as firm founders, but also as employees of entrepreneurial firms (Corbyn, 2015). It is therefore crucial to study the factors that encourage or impede female employment in start-up firms.

Building on signaling theory (Connelly, Certo, Ireland, & Reutzel, 2011) and sound symbolism (Klink, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2008; Klink & Athaide, 2011; Klink & Wu, 2013) we suggest that the underrepresentation of women in entrepreneurship may begin with the extremely subtle, yet effective, gendered signals that employers broadcast to their prospective employees through job advertisements. Indeed, we follow Gaucher, Friesen and Kay (2011) who demonstrated that masculine wording in job advertisements may keep women out of male-dominated jobs by cuing them to feel as if they do not belong. Unlike Gaucher et al. (2011), however, we focus on a different element of job advertisements that is even more immediate and ubiquitous in interactions between employers and job-seekers: the name of the venture. Names are relevant here because (1) naming a new venture is a fundamental choice that every entrepreneur must face and represents a decision entirely within the entrepreneurs’ control (Belenzon, Chatterji, & Daley, 2014; Smith & Chae, 2016) (2) Firm names have a unique effect on perception and behavior by key stakeholders, including prospective employees (Cooper, Dimitrov, & Rau, 2001; Lee, 2001); and (3) names signal association with specific gender traits such that, based on their name alone, some organizations may be categorized as masculine or feminine (Grohmann, 2009; Wu, Klink, & Guo, 2013). We therefore ask the following research question: What is the impact of gendered venture names on job seekers’ perceived organizational attractiveness?

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7 Consistent with signaling theory (Connelly et al., 2011) and sound symbolism (Klink, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2008; Klink & Athaide, 2011; Klink & Wu, 2013) we develop and experimentally test a model predicting that masculine (feminine) venture names will be more attractive for male (female) job seekers. Additionally, we use person-organization fit (Cable & Judge, 1996) and propose that the positive relationship between gendered venture name and job-seekers attraction is mediated by the extent to which a job-seeker perceives of a “fit” between their own gender attributes and those signaled by the organization. In other words, we expect that the level of attractiveness for a job advertised by an entrepreneurial venture will vary as a function of the congruence between a job seeker’s gender and the gender signaled by that venture’s name.

This study offers three main contributions to theory. First, we introduce sound symbolism (Klink, 2001) to existing gender wording literature concerning recruitment messages (Gaucher, Friesen, & Kay, 2011). Although popular in brand management, this type of gendered language has not been studied in the recruitment context. Second, we investigate how person-organization fit (POF) enhances understanding of how individuals feel included within a social group like the small team on which a new venture relies (Kristof, 1996). This is especially important in light of female job-seekers’ perceived “lack of fit” in masculine work environments. Finally, our study shows that the subtlety of sound symbolism is difficult to replicate outside of laboratory settings. Therefore, we provide reasons to more thoroughly examine sound symbolism as part of a larger research agenda focused on the power of linguistic signals in shaping prospective employees (e.g., Gaucher et al., 2011).

The remainder of this thesis is structured as follows. First we will review relevant existing literature on effects of gendered wording, signaling theory, person-organization fit and organizational attraction. Second, we explain how our study fits into the literature and the

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8 methods with which we will test our hypothesis. Finally, the results will be outlined followed by the conclusion and discussion on our findings.

THEORETICAL BACKGROUND & HYPOTHESIS DEVELOPMENT Venture Name as a Gendered Recruitment Signal

Signaling describes the transferring of information and, since its introduction in Signaling Theory (Spence, 1974), the theoretical construct of signaling is increasingly being applied in studies dealing with employee recruitment. Thus, signaling is used to explain the communication of information in situations where information is incomplete. In the recruitment process, both the employer and the employee have limited knowledge about one another. At the same time, they have few opportunities to exchange the needed information about themselves towards the other party (Lippman & McCall, 1976; Salop & Salop, 1976; Spence, 2002). The original study by Spence (1974) focuses on the prospective employee sending signals of competence (i.e. degree of education, work experience, personality traits) towards the employer. While the employee is actively signaling towards the company that he or she is the best person for the job, at the same time the company needs to reduce uncertainty and persuade the job-seeker that it is the best place to start or continue their career (Edelson, Haynie, & McKelvie, 2011; Walker, Feild, Bernerth, & Becton, 2012). Similarly, to communicate preferable personality traits of the job-seeker, the organization is seen as having personality traits referred to as ‘Venture Personality’ (Slaughter, Zickar, Highhouse, & Mohr, 2004). To signal venture personality there are two messaging types: indices and signals. Indices are attributes or characteristics of a company that are considered fixed, although they are able to change over time. For example, organization size and age do change but it occurs organically and thus is referred to as indices. Signals of the organizational personality, like gender, can be

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9 manipulated through use of brand or corporate image management (Gatewood, Gowan, & Lautenschlager, 1993).

Organizational Attraction Using Symbolism

Collins and Stevens (2002) argue that organizations can use marketing concepts like brand management (e.g. congruence between the individual and brand personality) in their recruiting activities. Likewise, both Lievens and Highhouse (2003) and Collins and Stevens (2002) adopt concepts from marketing and employ them to job-applicant attraction towards a business. Lievens and Highhouse (2003) have also drawn upon the marketing literature by applying the instrumental-symbolic framework to argue that initial applicant attraction to an organization is, in part, a function of two types of information that is derived from an organizational brand. This information includes instrumental attributes and symbolic meanings. Instrumental attributes refer to factual information about the job or organization such as pay, beneﬁts, working hours, advancement opportunities, and training programs (Cable & Graham, 2000; Highhouse, Zickar, Thorsteinson, Stierwalt, & Slaughter, 1999; Lieven, Grohmann, Herrmann, Landwehr, & van Tilburg, 2015; Turban & Keon, 1993). Symbolic meanings refer to organizational attributes, such as venture personality traits, that applicants infer from organizational information. For example, signaling the organizational gender through the use of gendered wording and in order to communicate symbolic meaning. In support of their argument, Lievens and Highhouse (2003) found that instrumental attributes signiﬁcantly predicted organizational attractiveness and that symbolic meanings incrementally predicted organizational attractiveness.

Signaling Gender through Language

The first major research in the field of gender wording in job advertisements was performed by Bem & Bem (1973) who investigated sex-bias in recruiting advertisements. However, the conclusion of their experiments is no longer relevant due to the Equal

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10 Employment Opportunity Commission (1973) which put an end to sex segregation in advertisements. Still, their research has caused others to explore the influence of gender wording from a different perspective. Gaucher et al. (2011) investigated the impact of gender wording in job advertisements in a series of studies. Their paper explores the role of masculine wording associated with male stereotypes, such as leader, competitive, and dominant. And likewise, where feminine wording is associated with female stereotypes, such as support, understand, and interpersonal. This stereotype by which feminine and masculine wording are matched with female or male dominated occupational areas originated from the old days when society was structured in a hierarchical way, the man being the provider and the woman's occupying the more domestic–housekeeping–role. Indeed, gendered wording in job advertisements is often unintentional these days, and merely perpetuating the echoes of traditional gender roles. Despite the relative subtlety with which these stereotypes are maintained today, men are still associated with traits as leadership and agency whereas women are associated with communal and interpersonally oriented traits. Gaucher et al’s (2011) research concluded that women are more sensitive to gender wording than men, indicating the ‘existence of structural mechanisms” fueling gender inequality in the job-market.

There are multiple possibilities to alter the perceived venture personality through symbolic meaning. One method, specifically relevant to our research, is the use of gender -related language. Within the field of marketing, brand management is being used to signal the gender of a product through font-type, logo, semantics, and sound symbolism (Lieven et al., 2015). Research has shown that thin, sharp, high, light characteristics signal femininity and improve buying intentions in female products (Lieven et al., 2015). The same being true for thick, blunt, low, dark characteristics in brand image to improve buying intentions in male products (Klink, 2003). In regard to recruitment, gendered wording has also been studied in the field of human resource management. Through the use of masculine wording in recruitment

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11 messages it is shown that gender discrimination is maintained within job advertisements (Gaucher et al., 2011). On an even more subtle level the perception of words can be manipulated through the use of gendered vowels and consonants. Vowels and consonants and the sounds they produce have meaning, called sound symbolism, which can signal meaning different to or in conjunction with the semantic meaning of a word. Recognition of phonetic - or sound symbolism dates back as far as Plato (Klink, 2000), where he argued that the letter r was able to express all human emotions. This view is shared by Hinton et al. (1994) defining sound symbolism as ´directly linking sound with meaning’. All words are built by combining different vowels and consonants and relations have been made between characteristics attributed to front- and back vowels, as well as consonants that are divided into stops and fricatives. Front vowels (e.g. e and i) are perceived as being lighter, smaller and more feminine, whereas back vowels (e.g. o and u) are perceived as heavier, bigger and more masculine. These characteristics have been studied in the field of marketing to change gender perception of brands. Masculine Brand Personality (MBP) and Feminine Brand Personality (FBP) are enforced by the use of the aforementioned vowel and consonant constructions (Grohmann, 2009; Lieven et al., 2015; Wu et al., 2013). Studies suggest that gender perceptions attributed to brands elicit a positive response from consumers (Grohmann, 2009; Lieven et al., 2015). Lieven et al. (2015) tested brand designs and names and used two names which had been constructed by following these guidelines. The study found that the masculine name (Bloyt) and the feminine name (Edely) were indeed perceived as was intended. According to Wu, Klink, and Gao (2013) such judgments are dependent on the product category and the fit between the masculine/feminine name. For example, when a coupe (car) has a masculine sounding name (e.g. “Nollen” instead of “Nillen) it is perceived as more masculine, and is also better liked. The same logic applies to a fragrance, which is perceived as a feminine product, to which a feminine name is better suited (e.g., “Phrish” instead of “Phrosh”)

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Gendered Venture Name

To date no specific literature exists on the perceived gender of an organization and the extent to which the name of a company can signal gendered information to outsiders. Nevertheless, the body of research on the process of naming a business is vast. Every entrepreneur has to choose the name of his or her company and these names are chosen deliberately (Smith & Chae, 2016), and after much thought about what they may signal to consumers (McDevitt, 2014). The signaling strength of the venture name is proven to be especially relevant in the context of attracting investors. For example, during the Internet boom in the late 1990s and early 2000 a large amount of companies chose to change their names to include ‘.com’, in doing so signaling their focus towards Internet and the business opportunities it provides (Cooper et al., 2001; Lee, 2001). In the study by Lee (2001) two groups of businesses were studied which had changed their name to include ‘.com’. The first group only esthetically changed their name, while the second group changed not only their name but also changed their overall strategy by focusing more on the Internet. The second group did show higher returns and overall trading activity, although to a lesser extent the first group improved on both metrics as well. This goes to show that signals attributed to the firm’s name alone may serve as powerful indicators of identity and quality influencing not only the perceptions of the investors but their actual behavior (i.e., buying stocks of businesses). Contrary to these findings, Cooper et al. (2001) conclude that the name changes signal the association to Internet and improve their stock performances, however they argue that the effects are driven by investor mania, based more on the investor his or her emotions rather than a rational thought process. The cosmetic change of venture name signaled the disassociation with Internet, even for companies that continued to rely on the Internet for most of their business and as a result experienced a large sustained growth in shareholder wealth (Cooper, Khorana, Osobov, Patel, & Rau, 2005).

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13 Given the above we expect that a gendered name, broadcasting a gendered signal through sound symbolism, carries that signal to the minds of job applicants via its appearance on job recruitment material such as job advertisements. We therefore expect that the fit between the gendered name and the gender of the applicant may have an impact on job attractiveness.

Hypothesis 1: A masculine (feminine) venture name improves organizational attraction, when the venture name resembles the job seekers’ gender.

In the following section we will explain in more detail the mechanism that functions as a mediator in our study and explain what this aforementioned `fit` exactly is.

Gendered Venture Name as a Cue for Perceived Person-Organization Fit

In this section we review existing literature on POF and suggest how gendered venture names can facilitate a better perceived fit to would-be applicants in the recruitment process. This is particularly interesting as the effect of POF to organizational attraction has been proven to be positive (Carless, 2005; Chapman, Uggerslev, Carroll, Piasentin, & Jones, 2005; Kristof-Brown, Zimmerman, & Johnson, 2005; Swider, Zimmerman, & Barrick, 2015).

POF originates from the theory of person-environment fit (PEF), which is commonly defined as: “the compatibility between an individual and a work environment that occurs when their characteristics are well matched” (Schneider, 2001). Literature on PEF is

abundant and dates back over a century (Parsons, 1909). Several distinct categories have been developed to distinguish between the different types of environmental fit. The different theoretical categories are: person-vocation fit (PVF), person-job fit (PJF), person-group fit (PGF), supervisor fit (PSF), and finally the fit relevant to our present study: person-organization fit (POF). Start-ups are highly reliant on the small labor force and the lack of

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14 rigid job descriptions, legitimizing the bias toward POF in the field of new ventures (Edelson et al., 2011).

Meanwhile, the amount of research showing the positive effect of POF on organizational attraction is steadily growing (Cable & Judge, 1996; Carless, 2005; Chapman et al., 2005). According to POF theory, individuals make assessments of fit between their personal values and the values of the organization, and make job choice decisions based on these assessments (Ng & Burke, 2005). As job-seekers have to act in a situation in which they have incomplete information, they rely on the signals firms broadcast in recruitment messages and perceive them as indicators of the venture personality. While multiple definitions on POF exist, the most comprehensive definition is ‘the compatibility between people and organizations occurs when: (a) at least one entity provides what the other needs, or (b) they share similar fundamental characteristics, or (c) both’ (Kristof, 1996). One entity providing what the other needs is referred to as complementary fit. For example, the person has the time (supply) to perform labor, and the organization needs that time (demand) to fulfill its obligations to the customer. In exchange for the time the person requires (demand) financial compensation form the company that pays wage or salary out of its account (supply). Supplementary fit is the congruence between organizational and personal characteristics (personality, values). The POF discussed in this study is related to supplementary fit and we will use these two terms interchangeably.

Person-Organization Fit Improving Organizational Attraction

Tom (1971) suggests that the organization’s attraction to job seekers is based on both the objective factors and the subjective factors of a job. Effectively signaling these

characteristics is critical because there are limited opportunities to interact with potential applicants. Objective factor theory perceives the job advertisements as an opportunity to transfer information about pay, benefits, location, career and educational opportunities. The

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15 relevance of these factors is argued to differ between genders. Casper, Wayne, & Manegold (2013) have studied the same concept but instead of referring to objective and subjective factors they use surface- and deep-level factors. They argue that objective factors have a stronger influence on men, whereas women are more concerned with subjective factors, for example diversity management, work-life balance (Bellou, Rigopoulou, & Kehagias, 2015; Thébaud, 2015). Subjective factor theory accentuates the ‘fit’ between individual personality patterns and the personality of the organization. The idea of a preference towards an

organization by its personality and the concept of POF in recruitment has emerged from Schneider’s (1987) attraction-selection-attrition (ASA) model. He suggests that the attraction to, the selection into, and remaining in an organization are all determined by the perceived similarity between the person and his or her work environment. Schneider’s work examines the interactions between POF and person-job fit (PJF) on organizational attraction, selection and attrition. Our present study focuses on the mediating effect of POF in the relationship between gendered venture names and organizational attraction.

The importance of POF is demonstrated by Rynes & Cable (2003) by revealing that job-seekers are just as much concerned about choosing the right organization as they are about choosing the right job. For example, the perception of being the right organization to women is shown to be improved by subjective factors (a diverse workforce, measures to improve family-work balance, and colleagues with whom they share similarities). While men, being the socially dominant gender, are less concerned with subjective factors since they control the majority of power in organizations and are more concerned with objective factors like compensation (Ng & Burke, 2007). Horvath & Sczesny (2015) examined the role of language in POF and revealed that for female respondents a higher perceived fit was found in recruitment messages when male/female word pairs (he/she, him/her) were used instead of male words (he, him) alone. An improvement of self-perceived fit of applicants is experienced by implementing

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16 more gender specific language or gender neutral language. The strength of this phenomena increases when the position is perceived to be more masculine by itself (Bem & Bem, 1973; Gaucher et el., 2011; Heilman, 2012). Horvath & Sczesny (2015) revealed that this is especially true for higher managerial positions.

The present study extends this research and further explores the influence of gender wording on organizational attraction. We examine if, by implementing sound symbolism to signal gender through the venture name, we can increase organizational attraction and the perception of POF. As POF is proven to increase organizational attraction we anticipate it will have a positive mediating effect on our overall model. We therefore hypothesize that:

Hypothesis 2: The positive relationship between masculine (feminine) venture names and male (female) job-seekers’ attraction to work for this venture is mediated by perceived person-organization fit.

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FIGURE 1CONCEPTUAL MODEL

METHOD

Sample

An online survey was sent by email to 213 alumni students from a Dutch University who in the past had participated in a Bachelor program in Business Studies. From this original sample 34 people started the survey, constituting an initial response rate of 16.0%. In the end 20 people finished it, a completion rate of 9.4%. Next a convenience sample was constructed, and another 827 surveys were distributed, initially 140 recipients started the survey (16.9%) resulting in another 57 finishing the survey (6.9%). The survey was then distributed through social media contributing 34 finished surveys, bringing the total to 111 completed surveys. In the survey a control question was included which was used to filter the respondents who read the questions thoroughly and had answered sincerely. This resulted in the exclusion of 20 participants from the final dataset, bringing the final sample to n = 91.

Since we were interested in the differing effects our manipulations had on men and women, we controlled for gender with 35.2% female and 64.8% male respondents. Our goal

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18 was to include as many students and young professionals in our sample, assuming they would represent a relatively homogenous group, who had recently joined the workforce or would do so in the foreseeable future. 29.7% of the respondents replied that they were looking for employment or were planning to do so within 6 months. Controlling for education a total of 79% of the respondents had finished or were currently enrolled in a bachelor or master program. The mean age of the respondents was 34 years.

Procedure

Respondents were randomly assigned to read one of four versions of a job advertisement, each presenting a different gendered venture name: Edely, Semini, Bloyt, or Kuboto. See the appendix for examples of both a masculine (appendix A) and a feminine (appendix B) named job advertisement. All respondents received an identical (apart from the name) job advertisement for the position of junior marketeer at a crowdfunding start-up. After reading the advertisement followed a questionnaire about participants’ perceptions of the venture in the ad, and a few questions regarding demographic information. All participants were then debriefed and were logged out of the system.

Measures

Organizational Attraction. To assess organizational attraction, we obtained five items

from Highhouse et al., (2003): “For me, this company would be a good place to work”, “This company is attractive to me as a place of employment”, “I am interested in learning more about this company”, “A job at this company is very appealing to me”, and a reversed item “I would not be interested in this company except as a last resort”. The measures were designed to focus on attractiveness in isolation, excluding variables often used in similar research (e.g. intentions towards the company) (Fisher et al. 1970; Turban & Keon, 1993). As reported by previous studies, the internal reliability of the scale was good (α=.89).

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Gendered venture name. Fictional venture names are used to signal gender and two out

of the four names were obtained from Lieven et al. (2015), Edely to communicate femininity and Bloyt to convey masculinity. Two more names were constructed following the suggestions made by Klink (2000, 2001), and followed the same guiding principles of front/back vowels and stop/fricative consonants as used in the two names adopted from Lieven et al. (2015). Based on their study, the second feminine name used was Semini, and our masculine addition was Kuboto. Resulting into two categories, feminine (Edely, Semini) and masculine (Bloyt, Kuboto). We have used fictional names without any semantic meaning or affiliation to a known organization or brand to exempt any existing gender association that could possibly influence the outcome. The gendered venture names consist of 1% of the total word count in the job advertisements.

Manipulation check. To examine the extent to which the venture name would signal

gender, we obtained the Masculine Brand Personality (MBP) and Female Brand Personality (FBP) (Grohmann, 2009) to capture if our gendered name manipulations had succeeded. Respondents were asked to indicate how well each of a series of terms described the company in the job advertisement they had just read. Each scale item consisted of six gender attributes (masculine: adventurous, aggressive, brave, daring, dominant, and sturdy; feminine: expressing tender feelings, fragile, graceful, sensitive, sweet, and tender) which were presented in randomized order. In contrary to Grohman’s findings, we found that one of the items in the feminine category did not meet our scale reliability criteria. By deleting the item: “Fragile”, the scale reliability improved from α=.67 to α=.74. The masculine items scale’s internal reliability proved reliable (α=.76).

Person-Organization Fit. We hypothesize that POF has a mediating function between

gendered venture name and organizational attraction. We obtained a three-item scale from Cable and DeRue (2002). The items included: “The things that I value in life are very similar

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20 to the things that my organization values”, “My personal values match my organization’s values and culture,” and “My organization’s values and culture provide a good fit with the things that I value in life.” We chose these items due to their proven reliability, asthey have been widely applied in other studies (e.g. Swider et al., 2015; Carless, 2005; Edelson et al., 2011). In agreement with their findings our scale reliability was strong (α=.87).

Gender. Gendered wording in job advertisements is shown to have a stronger impact

on women’s perceptions of the firm, than men (Gaucher et al., 2011). Gender is included as the moderating variable in our model. Anticipating that when the respondent is male (female) it improves the effect of the gendered venture name on POF, and improves the effect of gendered venture name on organizational attraction. Respondents were asked to specify their gender ( -1 = male, 1= female).

Control Variables. The following demographic characteristics were employed as

controls: Age (years old), level of educational attainment (1 = no schooling completed, 2 = some high school, no diploma, 3 = high school graduate, diploma or the equivalent 4 = Some college credit, no degree, 5 = Trade/technical/vocational training, 6 = Associate degree , 7 = Bachelor’s degree, 8 = Master’s degree, 9 = Professional degree, 10 = Doctorate degree), Study Specialization (1 = Business / Management, Economics / Finance, Communications, -1 = Behavioral Science / Psychology, IT / Computer Science, Engineering, Political Science, Law, Sociology, Culture, History, Mathematics, Philosophy, Religion, Health, Biology, Bio-Technology, Arts and Humanities, Languages, Other), and Status as a Current Job seeker (“Are you currently looking for a job or expect to do so in the next 6 months?”; 1 = Yes; -1 = No).

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21 RESULTS

Before testing the hypothesis, it was important to first examine randomization into the experimental conditions. Next, we tested if and to what extent the manipulation of the gendered venture names had an effect. And finally, by using moderated mediation PROCESS Macro for SPSS (Hayes, 2013; model 8), we tested our hypothesis.

Preliminary Analysis

Table 1 summarizes the means, standard deviation, and the correlations for all our variables. We have divided the means and standard deviations into the four original samples, to reveal that the randomization of the samples was successful. Four correlations were found between our variables. Firstly, we found a correlation between two of our control variables, educational relevance and educational level, neither had a correlation with one of the variables in our final model so this correlation had no influence on our hypothesis test. The negative correlation (r = -.54) showed that the respondent’s educational relevance regarding our job advertisement, had a significantly (p < 0.01) negative predictive value over educational level. Secondly, a negative correlation (r = -.24) was found between Job seeker and Feminine Brand Personality. The correlation was significant (p < 0.05). Thirdly, Feminine Brand Personality and Organizational Attraction, were positively (.21) correlated and also statistically significant (p < 0.05). Fourthly, Person-Organization Fit and Organizational attraction were strongly correlated (r = .66, p < 0.01).

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TABLE 1MEANS,STANDARD DEVIATIONS, AND CORRELATIONS

Edely Semini Bloyt Kuboto

n = 20 n = 24 n = 25 n = 22 Variables M SD M SD M SD M SD 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 Gender -.40 .94 -.25 .99 -.36 .95 -.18 1.01 - 2 Age 33.85 9.86 30.25 11.84 34.44 9.86 35.73 12.19 -.09 - 3 Educational level 6.15 1.87 6.88 1.94 7.04 1.17 6.86 1.61 -.10 -.06 - 4 Education Relevant 1.65 .49 1.42 .50 1.36 .49 1.64 .49 -.10 .20 -.54** - 5 Job seeker -.30 .98 -.42 .93 -.36 .95 -.55 .92 -.03 -.16 -.04 -.08 - 6 Masculine Brand Personality 3.07 .86 3.37 .63 3.17 .74 3.02 .69 -.03 .05 .07 -.13 .03 (.74) 7 Feminine Brand Personality 1.99 .72 2.04 .61 2.04 .62 1.99 .73 -.04 -.16 .07 -.02 -.24* .18 (.76) 8 Person-Organization Fit 4.53 1.52 4.63 1.10 4.73 1.18 5.06 .63 .10 -.01 .01 -.17 .08 -.08 .14 (.87) 9 Organizational Attraction 4.33 1.57 4.73 1.16 4.53 1.39 5.18 1.00 .18 -.03 .04 -.08 -.01 .03 .21* .66** (.89) Note: Total n = 91. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01 .

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Randomization check. By conducting a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA),

with gendered venture name as the independent variable and age, gender, educational level, educational relevance and job seeking status as the dependent variables, showed no significant effects, V = .143, F(15, 255) = .848 , p =.623. For the MANVO we used Pillai’s trace, since has been suggested to be the most robust method (Olson, 1979). Examining the univariate analysis revealed no significant difference among the dependent variable groups: Gender F(3, 87) = .231, p = .87, Age F(3, 87) = .955, p = .42, Educational Level F(3, 87) = 1.199, p = .315 Educational Relevance F(3, 87) = 2.066, p = .11, Job seeking status F(3, 87) = .273, p = .85. Showing that the randomization into the experimental conditions was successful.

Manipulation Check. We controlled for whether the names we manipulated were

perceived as masculine or feminine according to the suggestions made by Klink (2001) and used in Lieven et al. (2015). A paired sample t-test was conducted to evaluate whether a statistically significant difference existed between the mean of feminine venture personality and the mean of masculine venture personality. This procedure was first done on the group assigned to the feminine named ventures (Edely, Semini) and then repeated for the group who received the masculine named ventures (Bloyt, Kuboto). Assumption testing indicated no gross violation of assumptions. The results of the paired sample t-test were significant, t (43) = 8.70, p < .001, however indicating that feminine named ventures were perceived as more masculine (M = 3.20, S = 0.75, N = 44) than feminine (M = 1.99, S = 0.66, N = 44). The mean difference between the MBP and FBP scales being 1.21, with the 95% confidence interval for the difference between means of 0.93 and 1.49. This result was contrary to our expectations as well as inconsistent with previous research. Next, a second paired sample t-test was performed, this time on the masculine named ventures. The results were also significant t (46) = 8.64, p < .001, revealing that in this case job advertisements that included a masculine venture name were

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24 perceived as more masculine (M = 3.13, S = .72, N = 47) than as feminine (M = 2.05, S = .66, N = 47). The mean difference being 1.09, with the 95% confidence interval for the difference between means of .84 and 1.35 as graphically displayed in figure 2.

FIGURE 2MEANS FBP AND MBP

In isolation, the result on the masculine named ventures suggests that the manipulation of the name was as intended. However, in context with the results on the femininely named organizations the results show that both gender categories were perceived as masculine. Despite of this disappointing result and in light of the fact that the entire design of the experiment hangs on the correct interpretation of the gendered signal (which we did not achieve), we go on to report on how we might have continued to test the conceptual model “as-if” the manipulation check was confirmed. This is done for the sake of completing the thesis but in no way means that we can draw any conclusions based on these tests.

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25 Moderated Regression Analysis (H1)

Assessing the predictive value of the gendered venture name (X) over organizational attraction (Y), moderated by gender (W) we performed a moderated regression analysis using PROCESS macro for SPSS (Hayes, 2013). The overall predictive value (R² = .07) of the gendered venture name, gender and their interaction on POF showed no statistical significance (p = 0.11). Neither the gendered venture name nor the gender of the job seeker showed significant effect (p > 0.05) on Organizational Attraction. Table 2 shows the results of the mediator variable model, as well as our second model; the dependent variable model

TABLE 2RESULTS PROCESS MODEL 1

Outcome of the Process Macro (model 1) Used to test whether the Gendered Venture Name has a positive effect on Organizational Attraction Moderated by Job seekers' gender

Variable B p

Mediator variable model

Constant 4.69 .00

Gendered Venture Name (IV) .22 .08

Gender (Moderator) .23 .11

Gendered Venture name x Gender .05 .73 Note. IV = Independent Variable.

Moderated Mediation Analysis (H2)

The goal of determining the ability of gendered venture name, person-organization fit and gender to predict organizational attraction was explored by performing a moderated mediation analysis using PROCESS macro for SPSS (Hayes, 2013). Before we tested the overall model we first examined how gendered venture name and gender affect Person-Organization Fit. We hypothesized that both POF and organizational attraction are positively affected by gendered venture name, while moderated by gender. The overall predictive value (R² = .04) of the gendered venture name, gender and their interaction on POF showed no statistical significance (p = 0.36). None of the three variables showed significant effect (p > 0.05) on POF. Table 2 shows the results of the mediator variable model, as well as our second

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26 model; the dependent variable model. The dependent variable model was tested and significantly predicted organizational attraction (F (4,86) = 18.28, p < 0.001) with R² of .46 (p < 0.001). Despite the predictive value of the overall model, gendered venture name (b = .10, p = .32), gender (b = .17, p = .54)and their interaction (b = -.01, p = .94), all proved statistically insignificant. POF is shown to be the only significant positive effect on Organizational Attraction (b = .70, p < 0.001).

TABLE 3RESULTS PROCESS MODEL 8

Outcome of the Process Macro (model 8) Used to test whether the indirect effect of Gendered Venture Name on Organizational Attraction via Person-Organization Fit Was Contingent on the Respondent’s Gender

Variable B p

Mediator variable model

Constant 4.30 .00

Gendered Venture Name (IV) .19 .13

Gender (Moderator) -.08 .81

Gendered Venture name x Gender .07 .54

Dependent variable model

Constant 1.16 .02

Gendered Venture name (IV) .70 .32

Gender (Moderator) .10 .54

Person-Organization Fit (Mediator) .17 .00 Gender Venture Name x Gender -.01 .94

Note. IV = Independent Variable.

DISCUSSION

The research we conducted tested a model of sound symbolism in the context of recruitment, specifically the relation of a gendered venture name on organizational attraction mediated by POF. Unfortunately, the respondents did not perceive the gender of the organization differently through our employed sound symbolism manipulations. We did find a strong positive effect of POF on organizational attraction, adding to the existing literature (Carless, 2005; Chapman et al., 2005; Kristof-Brown et al., 2005; Swider et al., 2015) the importance of increasing POF in recruitment messages.

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27 Contributions to Theory

Previous literature revealed that the application of gender wording relates to positive personality congruence between the person receiving the gender signals and the organization sending them, in both brand management (Lieven et al., 2015) and recruitment (Gaucher et al., 2011). Our study into gender wording manipulations, expanding on the work by Klink, 2009, Gaucher et al. 2011, & Lieven et al. 2015, contradicts these findings. Our gendered manipulation of the venture name proved unsuccessful, no difference was measured between the masculine and the feminine names when asking how the job advertisement made respondents feel regarding to the MBP and FBP scales (Grohmann, 2009). Implying that instead of the sound symbolism manipulation used, the overall higher masculine perception associated to our job advertisements, regardless of the name they held, had been drawn from other information signals in the job advertisement, and arguably not the venture name. Similarly, in brand management, when the gender signals portrayed by the brand contradicted the gender associated to a product category, the manipulation effects were diluted (Klink, 2008). This was evident in the previous given example of the masculine product characteristics of a convertible car and the feminine product characteristics of a fragrance, that proved to be stronger gender signals than the manipulation of the brand name. Signaling theory has been shown to be a mechanism that works in situations of information disparity. Contrary to one of the studies that found positive effects in signaling (Connelly et al., 2011) our research contained considerably more direct and indirect information than comparable studies (Gaucher et al., 2011; Grohmann, 2009; Klink, 2008; Lieven et al., 2015), therefore we argue that the venture name as a method of communicating organizational personality was not viewed by readers as the most relevant source of information, since the organizational and job description itself provided abundant information. In our job advertisement the venture name was used five times, which is only one percent out of the total of five hundred words that made up the complete text.

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28 Whereas Gaucher et al. (2011) used on average 7-8% and Lieven et al. (2015) provided just the name and a product category, accounting for 50% of the information provided was signaling a specific gender. In fact, when the product category was perceived as opposing the gender of the brand name it proved unsuccessful in their study.

Consistent with literature on POF (Carless, 2005; Swider et al., 2015) our findings support that POF has a positive effect on organizational attraction, regardless of gender similarities between the respondent and the organization. We expected that the interaction between the gendered venture name and the biological sex of the respondent would provide new insights into how the POF could be improved.

Implications for Practice

The significant positive relationship between POF and organizational attraction, contributes to the legitimacy of this concept in recruiting. Especially because start-ups generally work with small teams without clear job descriptions (Edelson et al., 2011), therefore relying more heavily on fit between the individual and the organization (POF), instead of the individual and the job (PJF). Our findings reveal that the POF has a strong positive predictive value on organizational attraction.

Limitations and Suggestions for Future Research

Our study contains a number of limitations that need to be acknowledged. First, our sampling method of convenience sampling resulted in a small heterogeneous group of people that did not represent the population that would likely be interested in the job advertisement that we used. The advertisement was directed at young graduates looking for a starting position in a recently established venture. The majority of our respondents did have the required education level (bachelor), but unfortunately most of them were not looking for a job, nor had they graduated in a field relevant to marketing. As suggested by (Gaucher et al., 2011) the effect of sound symbolism on women is stronger and our sample distribution was strongly

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29 skewed, with 65% male in relation to 35% female. In combination with the small sample size, this makes it increasingly difficult to statistically prove the hypothesized effect of sound symbolism.

Second, given the fact that no difference was found between the four experimental conditions on any of our variables, we need to look at our research design. Sound symbolism has been exclusively tested in controlled laboratory situations where the dosage of manipulated words is considerably higher than the dosage in this study. Coming from the smallest dosage we have found in the field of recruitment, that of 7-8% (Gaucher et al., 2011) and taking the leap to the real-life situation of 1% we worked with, lacks the necessary iterations to find the minimal dose needed to signal gender.

Third, given that all advertisements had a higher MBP than FBP rating suggests that signals other than the venture name communicated masculine characteristics. Further research is required to establish what these signals might be, we suggest however that the industry, in our case finance, could be biased toward more masculine characteristics, as well as the age of the firm. New ventures are riskier career options and could therefore be perceived as being more masculine than feminine.

These limitations suggest additional considerations for future research. The effects of sound symbolism in low dosages are subtle and need a more rigorous research design. With a much larger sample, representing a homogenous population that demographically fits with the job advertisement. To be able to test the effects of the gendered venture name the content in the advertisement, including the industry and the age of the organization need to be perceived as gender neutral. Iterations from the laboratory setting towards practical implication are needed to develop sound symbolism in the venture naming process.

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30 CONCLUSION

Signaling gender can be done by the use of gendered wording, this has been shown in previous research in recruitment (Gaucher et al., 2011) as well as in brand management (Lieven et al., 2015). In our study we have been unable to duplicate these results. We argue that the main reason for this is the ‘dosage’ of the signal. Consistent with signaling theory we believe that in situations where little or no additional information is available, people will base their perceptions on the sources available. In our study all four advertisements proved to be perceived masculine regardless of the name used. This suggests that without realizing this beforehand, other gender associations are present in our job advertisement which deluded the effect of gendered manipulation of the venture name.

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35 APPENDIX

Appendix A: Masculine Named Job Advertisement

About Bloyt

At Bloyt, we help investors who are interested in crowdfunding. We change how people invest in entrepreneurs by bringing actionable data to early stage investing. We empower investors by helping them ask better questions and make better informed decisions.

We at Bloyt are here to bridge the gap between formal-investors and crowd-investors, and do our part in taking crowdfunding to the next level. The investment tools we provide are receiving great

feedback from our initial clients. We have introduced our beta product to a select group of investors, entrepreneurs, academics and crowdfunding professionals. Based on their feedback, we now start rolling out our Information as a Service (IaaS) product in full force.

What kind of team members are we looking for?

You are entrepreneurial

You are able to create, see and seize opportunity. You make things happen. You are comfortable with taking the initiative and taking care of whatever you feel needs taken care of. You embrace the opportunity of working in a start-up.

You are intellectually curious

You enjoy learning. There is a lot that interests and excites you. You are passionate about doing new things and gaining new insights.

You think big, but are willing to start small

You enjoy coming up with, and working towards big goals. You understand that through hard and smart work, you can make anything possible. You also understand that this sometimes means you have to start small, and you welcome the opportunity to get your hands dirty.

You enjoy being part of a team

Building a great company is hard work. The journey is rewarding, even more so when shared with the right people. You understand the importance of building a strong team and culture and actively contribute to it.

About the role: Junior Marketeer

At Bloyt we need a marketeer to help us communicate about what we do and how we do it. Preferred background and skills in addition to the above:

• BSc / MSc degree in a relevant subject • Strong analytical skills

• A passion for finance and investing in general, and crowdfunding in particular • Affinity with and interest in the financial industry

• Fluency in English and at least one other European language • Knowledgeable about Facebook marketing, SEO and social media • The ability to make the best out of a limited budget

Your responsibilities:

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36 • Work with research to distribute top content

• Provide actionable insights for the product development team

• Everybody on our team is responsible for providing excellent customer service

• We are a start-up; you will likely be having a lot of other responsibilities in addition to the above that nobody can currently foresee

What we are offering:

• Being part of Bloyt and building something great

• The freedom to create the specifics of your role, as in a start-up not much is set in stone • A unique opportunity to apply your skills to the relatively new crowdfunding sector • A competitive compensation plan

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37 Appendix B: Feminine Named Job Advertisement

About Edely

At Edely, we help investors who are interested in crowdfunding. We change how people invest in entrepreneurs by bringing actionable data to early stage investing. We empower investors by helping them ask better questions and make better informed decisions.

We at Edely are here to bridge the gap between formal-investors and crowd-investors, and do our part in taking crowdfunding to the next level. The investment tools we provide are receiving great