Michelle Ryan is a Professor of Social and Organisational Psychology at the University of Exeter. She recently held a five-year Academic Fellowship funded by the Research Council of the UK. She is involved in a number of research projects including (a) the glass cliff (b) a social identity analysis of the individual and the group (with Alex Haslam, Jolanda Jetten, Tom Postmes, Catherine Haslam, & Huw Williams; funded by the ESRC); (c) women and mentoring (with Mette Hersby); (d) the gender wage gap (with Clara Kulich); (e) social identity and surveillance (with Aisling O’Donnell and Jolanda Jetten); (f) the psychological impact of fractured identities (with Thomas Morton); (g) face-ism, gender, and leadership (with Steffen Giessner); and (h) a social identity analysis of sexuality (with Chris Robus). Michelle also teaches in the School of Psychology, with a module on the Psychology of Gender.

Primary Interests:

Gender Psychology
Group Processes
Intergroup Relations
Organizational Behavior
Political Psychology
Prejudice and Stereotyping
Self and Identity
Sexuality, Sexual Orientation

Gender Psychology
Group Processes
Intergroup Relations
Organizational Behavior
Political Psychology

Prejudice and Stereotyping
Self and Identity
Sexuality, Sexual Orientation

Research Group or Laboratory:

Glass Cliff Research Group [Map]

Books:

Barreto, M., Ryan, M. K., & Schmitt, M. (Eds). (2009). The glass ceiling in the 21st century: Understanding barriers to gender equality. APA Division 35 Book Series.

Journal Articles:

Haslam, S. A., Platow, M. J., Turner, J. C., Reynolds, K. J., McGarty, C., Oakes, P. J., Johnson, S., Ryan, M. K., & Veenstra, K. (2001). Social identity and the romance of leadership: The importance of being seen to be "doing it for us." Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 4, 191-205. [Special Issue on social identity processes in organizations].
Haslam, S. A., & Ryan, M. K. (2008). The road to the glass cliff: Differences in the perceived suitability of men and women for leadership positions in succeeding and failing organizations. Leadership Quarterly, 19, 530-546. [Emerald Management Reviews Citation of Excellence - one of the 50 best management articles published in 2008]
Haslam, S. A., Ryan, M. K., Postmes, T., Jetten, J., & Webley, P. (2006). Sticking to our guns: Social identity as a basis for the maintenance of commitment to faltering organizational projects. Journal of Organizational Behaviour, 27, 607-628.
Iyer, A., & Ryan, M. K. (2009). Challenging gender inequality in the workplace: Men’s and women’s pathways to collective action. Journal of Social Issues, 65, 291-814.
Kulich, C., Ryan, M. K., & Haslam, S. A. (2007). Where is the romance for women leaders? The effects of gender on leadership attributions and performance-based pay. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 56, 582-601.
O’Donnell, A. T., Jetten, J., & Ryan, M. K. (in press). Who is watching over you? The role of shared identity in perceptions of surveillance. European Journal of Social Psychology.
Reynolds, K. J., Turner, J. C., Haslam, S. A., & Ryan, M. K. (2001). The role of personality and group factors in explaining prejudice. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 37, 427-434.
Ryan, M. K., & David, B. (2003). Gender differences in ways of knowing: The context dependence of the Attitudes Toward Thinking and Learning Survey. Sex Roles, 49, 693-699.
Ryan, M. K., David, B., & Reynolds, K. J. (2004). Who cares? The effect of gender and context on the self and moral reasoning. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 28, 246-255.
Ryan, M. K., & Haslam, S. A. (2009). Glass cliffs are not so easily scaled: On the precariousness of female CEOs’ positions. British Journal of Management, 20, 13-16.
Ryan, M. K., & Haslam, S. A. (2007). The glass cliff: Exploring the dynamics surrounding women's appointment to precarious leadership positions. Academy of Management Review, 32, 549-572.
Ryan, M. K., & Haslam, S. A. (2005). The glass cliff: Evidence that women are over-represented in precarious leadership positions. British Journal of Management, 16, 81-90.
Ryan, M. K., Haslam, S. A., & Kulich, C. (in press). Politics and the glass cliff: Evidence that women are preferentially selected to contest hard-to-win seats. Psychology of Women Quarterly.
Ryan, M. K., Haslam, S. A., & Postmes, T. (2007). Reactions to the glass cliff: Gender differences in the explanations for the precariousness of women’s leadership positions. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 20, 182-197.

Courses Taught:

The Psychology of Gender

The Psychology of Gender

Michelle Ryan
School of Psychology
University of Exeter
Perry Road
Exeter EX4 4QG
United Kingdom

Phone: +44 (0)1392 725120
Fax: +44 (0)1392 724623