Template-Type: ReDIF-Paper 1.0
Title: Committee Deliberation and Gender Differences 
in Influence
Author-Name: Jonas Radbruch
Author-Email: jonas.radbruch@hu-berlin.de
Author-Name: Amelie Schiprowski
Author-Email: amelie.schiprowski@uni-bonn.de
Classification-JEL: D71, J16, M51
Keywords:  Committee Decision-Making, Gender Differences, Hiring

Abstract: This paper provides empirical evidence on the aggregation of information in committees.
We analyze unique data from the decision-making process of hiring committees within a large private 
company. In the hiring process, committee members first conduct independent one-to-one interviews 
and give individual recommendations before deliberating on a collective hiring decision. We find that 
committees’ final hiring decisions are systematically less aligned with the initial recommendations 
of women than with those of men, even though women and men are equally qualified and experienced. 
This disparity in influence is strongest when recommendations exhibit high disagreement and when 
a single woman deliberates with two men. The estimated distribution of influence reveals that almost 
all men are more influential than the median woman. We offer suggestive evidence
that these findings have implications for the effectiveness of gender quotas.

Note: 
Length: 53
Creation-Date: 2023-05
Revision-Date: 
File-URL: https://www.crctr224.de/research/discussion-papers/archive/dp430
File-Format: application/pdf
Handle: RePEc:bon:boncrc:CRCTR224_2023_430