Strength in numbers or guilt by association? Intragroup effects of female chief executive announcements

Abstract

We predict that the media reports on female CEOs as a coherent group, whereas male CEOs are treated as individuals by the media. We also suggest that the resulting investors' perceptions of group entitativity of female-led firms may not only influence the succession event–performance relationship at the focal firm, but may also have a significant effect on the value of other female-led companies. Results of a text analysis and an event study of appointments of female CEOs to Fortune 1000 firms provide support for these predictions. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.