Are female leadership styles culturally universal or specific? A comparative study between Italy and Japan

The aim of the present research is to analyse to what extent female leadership styles vary across cultures – by digging more in depth on how the new “impostor phenomenon” affect successful women covering leadership position, since, nowadays, women still face either difficulty in entering the job market or they receive a lower salary compared to the male counterpart. This has been done through the analysis of the already existing literature upon the various leadership styles, gender differences and influences on leadership styles, and culture. After adopting the cultural definition and dimensions proposed by Hofstede, an experimental empirical section started. To explore the main research question, a sample of female managers and directors working in Italy and Japan filled out an online self-report survey. The quali-quantitative findings clearly reveal that leadership style varies according to the culture; while behaviours related to the Impostor Phenomenon seems to be universally felt. These results seem to take even more shape in the light of the social role theory and the Hofstede cultural dimensions of the two countries. Notwithstanding the obtained results, the research gives a lot of other suggestions, leaving space for further studies and consideration in the field of leadership studies, especially in relation with the female group.