2.6 Limitations and recommendations for future research

The research has a few limitations. The use of search engines and search terms is a limitation. In this review, only articles found through the application of specific search terms in selected databases were considered. At the beginning of the review, the broad use of search terms led to a more general scope than anticipated. Consequently, relevant articles could have been missed. The geographic demarcation of the study to Europe is also a limitation for the presented results. The identified barriers are not tailored to the European context but may also be found in studies from/concerning other jurisdictions. Another limitation pertaining to the European focus is that no contextual factors and country differences were considered in the analysis. Future research can focus on how the identified barriers and their interrelationships play a role in different European/national contexts.

This review identified, in articles from several disciplines, multiple barriers that contribute to women’s underrepresentation at the corporate top. The in-depth examination of these barriers can inform the development and adoption of appropriate and effective legislative as well as organizational interventions aimed at tackling these issues. Some barriers such as gender stereotypes and biases, require the development and adoption of different types of public policy, legislative or organizational interventions than for instance the barriers regarding work-family matters or organizational culture do. The interrelatedness of the barriers further complicates the development of appropriate interventions. Future research can, therefore, examine the development and introduction of specific interventions in public policy, legislation and in corporate practice to eliminate many of these (interrelated) barriers.