This study explores how work–life balance (WLB)-supportive organizational climates influence leadership aspirations in South Korea’s male-dominated accounting profession. Drawing on Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) and supported by Goal Congruity and Person–Organization Fit perspectives, we examine how gender norms and personal career values shape reactions to WLB-supportive climates. Survey data from 1,000 accountants were analyzed to test the direct effect of WLB-supportive climates, the moderating role of WLB importance, and a three-way interaction with gender. WLB-supportive climates were negatively related to leadership aspiration, reflecting entrenched ideal-worker norms. However, this effect was moderated by WLB importance: employees who highly valued balance reported stronger leadership aspirations in supportive climates, whereas those who did not value balance showed lower aspirations. The gender interaction was nonsignificant, suggesting convergence in how men and women interpret WLB climates. Findings clarify SCCT’s boundary conditions and highlight implications for inclusive leadership development.
AllenT. D.JohnsonR. C.SaboeK. N.ChoE.DumaniS.EvansS. (2012). Dispositional variables and work–family conflict: A meta-analysis. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 80(1), 17–26. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2011.04.004
3.
BerdahlJ. L.MoonS. H. (2013). Workplace mistreatment of middle class workers based on sex, parenthood, and caregiving. Journal of Social Issues, 69(2), 341–366. https://doi.org/10.1111/josi.12018
4.
Blair-LoyM. (2003). Competing devotions: Career and family among women executives. Harvard University Press.
5.
BriscoeJ. P.KašeR.DriesN.DysvikA.UniteJ. A.AdeleyeI.ZikicJ.AposporiE.BabalolaO.BagdadliS.Çakmak-OtluogluK. Ö.CasadoT.CerdinJ. L.ChaJ. S.ChudzikowskiK.Dello RussoS.Eggenhofer-RehartP.FeiZ.GianecchiniM. (2021). Here, there, & everywhere: Development and validation of a cross-culturally representative measure of subjective career success. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 130, Article 103612. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2021.103612
6.
CasperW. J.HarrisC. M. (2008). Work-life benefits and organizational attachment: Self-interest utility and signaling theory models. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 72(1), 95–109. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2007.10.015
7.
ChaudhuriS.RoychowdhuryS. P.ChaudhuriS. (2019). Gender-based wage inequality and economic liberalism in the presence of endogenous supply of female labour. Indian Economic Review, 54(2), 239–260. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41775-019-00050-9
8.
CheungF.HalpernD. (2010). Women at the top: Powerful leaders define success as work+family in a culture of gender. American Psychologist, 65(3), 182–193. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0017309
9.
ChoY.McLeanG. N.AmornpipatI.ChangW.HewapathiranaG.HorimotoM.LeeM.LiJ.ManikothN.OthmanJ.HamzahS. (2015). Asian women in top management: Eight country cases. Human Resource Development International, 18(4), 407–428. https://doi.org/10.1080/13678868.2015.1059804
10.
ChoY.ParkJ.JuB.HanS. J.MoonH.ParkS.ParkE. (2015). Women leaders’ work-life imbalance in South Korean companies: A collaborative qualitative study. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 27(4), 461–487. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrdq.21262
CreswellJ. W.CreswellJ. D. (2017). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Sage Publications.
13.
DaltonD. W.CohenJ. R.HarpN. L.McMillanJ. J. (2014). Antecedents and consequences of perceived gender discrimination in the audit profession. Auditing: A Journal of Practice & Theory, 33(3), 1–32. https://doi.org/10.2308/ajpt-50674
14.
DiekmanA. B.BrownE. R.JohnstonA. M.ClarkE. K. (2010). Seeking congruity between goals and roles: A new look at social roles and gender. Self and Identity, 9(2), 209–222. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298860903054202
15.
DurocherS.BujakiM.BrouardF. (2016). Attracting millennials: Legitimacy management and bottom-up socialization processes within accounting firms. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 39, 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2016.02.002
16.
EaglyA. H.WoodW. (2012). Social role theory. In Van LangeP. A. M.KruglanskiA. W.HigginsE. T. (Eds.), Handbook of theories of social psychology (Vol. 2, pp. 458–476). Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446249222.n45
17.
EdwardsJ. R.CableD. M. (2009). The value of value congruence. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94(3), 654–677. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014891
18.
ElyR. J.IbarraH.KolbD. M. (2011). Taking gender into account: Theory and design for women’s leadership development programs. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 10(3), 474–493. https://doi.org/10.5465/amle.2010.0046
FouadN. A.KantamneniN. (2008). Contextual factors in vocational psychology: Intersections of individual, group, and societal dimensions. In BrownS. D.LentR. W. (Eds.), Handbook of counseling psychology (4th ed., pp. 408–425). Wiley.
21.
GoldinC. (2021). Career and family: Women's century-long journey toward equity. Princeton University Press.
22.
GrayM. P.O’BrienK. M. (2007). Advancing the assessment of women’s career choices: The career aspiration scale. Journal of Career Assessment, 15(3), 317–337. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072707301211
23.
GreenhausJ. H.BeutellN. J. (1985). Sources of conflict between work and family roles. The Academy of Management Review, 10(1), 76–88. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1985.4277352
24.
GreenhausJ. H.KossekE. E. (2014). The contemporary career: A work–home perspective. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 1(1), 361–388. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-031413-091324
25.
GreenhausJ. H.PowellG. N. (2006). When work and family are allies: A theory of work-family enrichment. Academy of Management Review, 31(1), 72–92. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2006.19379625
26.
HaarJ. M.RussoM.SuñeA.Ollier-MalaterreA. (2014). Outcomes of work-life balance on job satisfaction, life satisfaction, and mental health: A study across seven cultures. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 85(3), 361–373. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2014.08.010
27.
HayesA. F. (2018). Partial, conditional, and moderated moderated mediation: Quantification, inference, and interpretation. Communication Monographs, 85(1), 4–40. https://doi.org/10.1080/03637751.2017.1352100
28.
IbarraH. (1993). Personal networks of women and minorities in management: A conceptual framework. The Academy of Management Review, 18(1), 56–87. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1993.3997507
29.
KalyshK.KulikC. T.PereraS. (2016). Help or hindrance? Work-Life practices and women in management. The Leadership Quarterly, 27(3), 504–518. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2015.12.002
30.
KimY. H.O’BrienK. M.KimH. (2016). Measuring career aspirations across cultures: Using the career aspiration scale with young Korean women. Journal of Career Assessment, 24(3), 573–585. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072715599538
31.
Korea Institute of Women Certified Public Accountants. (2022). White paper on Korea Institute of women certified public accountant. Korea Institute of Women Certified Public Accountant.
32.
Korean Women's Development Institute. (2016). The 2016 Korean women manager panel survey. Korean Women's Development Institute.
33.
KossekE. E.LewisS.HammerL. B. (2010). Work—life initiatives and organizational change: Overcoming mixed messages to move from the margin to the mainstream. Human Relations; Studies Towards the Integration of the Social Sciences, 63(1), 3–19. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726709352385
34.
KossekE. E.Ollier-MalaterreA. (2013). Work-life policies: Linking national contexts, organizational practice and people’s lives. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 34(5), 597–615. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.1834
35.
KossekE. E.PichlerS.BodnerT.HammerL. B. (2011). Workplace social support and work–family conflict: A meta‐analysis clarifying the influence of general and work–family‐specific supervisor and organizational support. Personnel Psychology, 64(2), 289–313. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2011.01211.x
36.
KristofA. L. (1996). Person-organization fit: An integrative review of its conceptualizations, measurement, and implications. Personnel Psychology, 49(1), 1–49. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.1996.tb01790.x
37.
KuronL. K. J.LyonsS. T.SchweitzerL.NgE. S. W. (2015). Millennials’ work values: Differences across the school to work transition. Personnel Review, 44(6), 991–1009. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-01-2014-0024
38.
LapierreL. M.LiY.KwanH. K.GreenhausJ. H.DiRenzoM. S.ShaoP. (2018). A meta‐analysis of the antecedents of work–family enrichment. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 39(4), 385–401. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2234
39.
LentR. W.BrownS. D.HackettG. (1994). Toward a unifying social cognitive theory of career and academic interest, choice, and performance. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 45(1), 79–122. https://doi.org/10.1006/jvbe.1994.1027
40.
LuA. C. C.GursoyD. (2013). Impact of job burnout on satisfaction and turnover intention: Do generational differences matter?Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, 40(2), 210–235. https://doi.org/10.1177/1096348013495696
41.
LynessK. S.JudieschM. K. (2014). Gender egalitarianism and work–life balance for managers: Multisource perspectives in 36 countries. Applied Psychology, 63(1), 96–129. https://doi.org/10.1111/apps.12011
42.
MacKinnonD. P.LockwoodC. M.WilliamsJ. (2004). Confidence limits for the indirect effect: Distribution of the product and resampling methods. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 39(1), 99–128. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327906mbr3901_4
43.
NgT. W.FeldmanD. C. (2014). Subjective career success: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 85(2), 169–179. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2014.06.001
44.
PetersK.RyanM. K.HaslamS. A.FernandesH. (2013). To belong or not to belong: Evidence that women’s occupational disidentification is promoted by lack of fit with masculine occupational prototypes. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 82(3), 168–180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2013.01.003
45.
PowellG. N.MainieroL. A. (1992). Cross-currents in the river of time: Conceptualizing the complexities of women's careers. Journal of Management, 18(2), 215–237. https://doi.org/10.1348/096317999166482
46.
QuinnR. E.CameronK. S. (1983). Organizational life cycles and shifting criteria of effectiveness. Management Science, 29(1), 33–51. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.29.1.33
47.
SasmazM.FogartyT. J. (2023). Work-life balance in public accounting: An experimental inquiry into supervisor support for subordinate career progression. Advances in Accounting, 61, Article 100646. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adiac.2023.100646
48.
SealyR.SinghV. (2010). The importance of role models and demographic context for senior women’s work identity development. International Journal of Management Reviews, 12(3), 284–300. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2370.2009.00262.x
49.
SinghR.RaginsB. R.TharenouP. (2009). What matters most? The relative role of mentoring and career capital in career success. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 75(1), 56–67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2009.03.003
50.
SinghV.VinnicombeS.KumraS. (2006). Women in formal corporate networks: An organizational citizenship perspective. Women in Management Review, 21(6), 458–482. https://doi.org/10.1108/09649420610683462
51.
TwengeJ. M.CampbellS. M.HoffmanB. J.LanceC. E. (2010). Generational differences in work values: Leisure and extrinsic values increasing, social and intrinsic values decreasing. Journal of Management, 36(5), 1117–1142. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206309352246
52.
TysiacK. (2017). Flexibility as a retention tool. Journal of Accountancy, 232(12), 32–34.
53.
WatsonM.McMahonM.FoxcroftC.ElsC. (2010). Occupational aspirations of low socioeconomic black South African children. Journal of Career Development, 37(4), 717–734. https://doi.org/10.1177/089484530935935
54.
WichtA.MiyamotoA.LechnerC. M. (2022). Are girls more ambitious than boys? Vocational interests partly explain gender differences in occupational aspirations. Journal of Career Development, 49(3), 551–568. https://doi.org/10.1177/08948453219916
55.
WilliamsJ. C.Blair-LoyM.BerdahlJ. L. (2013). Cultural schemas, social class, and the flexibility stigma. Journal of Social Issues, 69(2), 209–234. https://doi.org/10.1111/josi.12012
56.
YouJ.LeeE. (2019). Study of determinants of female managers’ career aspirations. The Journal of Women and Economics, 16(2), 27–50.
