ALTERNATIVE VALUES
The alternative values approach is the one that posits the most extreme differ- ences between men and women (see, for example, Ferguson, 1994). It contends that women’s and men’s interests, priorities, and basic attitudes toward life are fundamentally different and, in fact, are sometimes diametrically opposed. This perspective is an outgrowth of the feminist standpoint and is quite critical of wale-dominated organizations.
A contributor to the alternative values approach is psychoanalytic feminism, which stresses that early childhood experiences and parent-child interactions differ for boys and girls (Cockburn, 1991). The argument is that the marginal position of women is established early in life, with what is seen as feminine rueing devalued and what is seen as masculine being valued. Women are viewed as possessing an ethic of caring for others and often choosing to work in fields that afford thenl the opportunity to apply this ethic. Such fields (e.g., health care, social service, 8.nd humanistic fields) do not provide as many leadership oppor- tunities as those that males are socialized to pursue (e.g., engineering and business). Thus, men and women enter organizations with very different values