Date

3-10-2026

Department

Helms School of Government

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy in Public Administration (PhD)

Chair

Melissa Beaudoin

Keywords

Diversity, inclusion, representative bureaucracy theory, gender studies

Disciplines

Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration

Abstract

The purpose of this research study was to discover why the female executive employee population is experiencing a gap in representation in senior management at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The scholarly literature addressing federal disparities across the gender demographic identified several issues such as underrepresentation, social equity, pay equity, turnover intention, job satisfaction, and diversity as primary barrier drivers preventing or slowing female promotion. The issues are rarely investigated in an intersecting manner which plausibly could create several hurdles women must navigate to obtain a promotion and decrease their representation in executive service. The theoretical approach used is representative bureaucracy theory (RBT). Kingsley (1944) first developed the concept of RBT, conceiving that a public administration that looks like its citizenry will better serve all aspects of the population. Parity between men and women in executive government service is critically important to establish active and passive representation. The study used a multimethod approach by investigating women's lived experiences in the General Schedule (GS) 15 attempting to promote into executive positions. The investigation interviewed executive women and codified participants' feelings, perceptions, and beliefs about perceived work barriers. This study allows public administration to comprehend the influence of barriers on the promotion of women in executive positions.

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