The homophily effect: similarities in c-level roles across global companies

• Ano de defesa: 2024
• Autor(a) principal: Silveira, Elaine Barbosa Couto
• Orientador(a): Aggarwal, Ishani
• Tipo de documento: Tese
• Tipo de acesso: Acesso aberto
• Idioma: eng
• Palavras-chave em Português: Presidente do conselho; Princípio da homofilia; Similaridade; Características atribuídas e alcançadas
• Palavras-chave em Inglês: CEO; Chairman of the board; Homophily principal; Similarities; Ascribed and achieved characteristics
• Link de acesso: https://hdl.handle.net/10438/35759

Homophily, the propensity of individuals to form connections with those who share similar characteristics, is a well-established concept in the social sciences but remains underexplored in organizational environments, particularly in studies of C-level positions. This study delves into the principle of homophily between Board Chairman and Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), emphasizing both ascribed characteristics (such as gender and age) and achieved characteristics (such as educational background and professional experience). The research seeks to demonstrate the similarity, or the operation of the homophily principle, between these two actors in the top management of the largest companies in the world by revenue. Through a comprehensive review of existing literature, this study highlights significant findings, such as the observation of homophily on both ascribed and achieved characteristics. The research questions address the match or mismatch between the Chairman and CEO’s characteristics. Furthermore, it investigates whether industry sectors and financial performance moderate these relationships. This research employs a robust methodology, including developing a comprehensive database and applying appropriate statistical techniques to test these hypotheses. The findings contribute to the understanding of executive homophily in a global context.