The hidden bias: singles in family-friendly work culture

Purpose Building on social role theory and attribution theory, this study aims to investigate cognitive biases embedded in a family-friendly work culture and people’s stereotypes toward single employees. These factors will lead to the negative and prolonged effect on single employees’ career development. Design/methodology/approach This research consists of two studies: Study 1 used an experimental design with 117 hotel supervisors to examine the likelihood of assigning overtime to a single employee. Study 2 recruited 249 full-time hotel supervisors to assess their perceptions of single and married employees with children who declined overtime requests. Findings Supervisors in family-friendly work cultures are more likely to assign overtime work to single employees than to married employees with children. When single employees decline such requests, supervisors perceive their refusals as unwillingness, leading to poor evaluations; in contrast, refusals from married employees with children are interpreted as inability, leading to neutral assessments. Practical implications Hotels should cultivate an inclusive nonwork supportive culture and provide supervisors with bias awareness training to mitigate cognitive biases. Originality/value Drawing on empirical evidence, this study provides theoretical insights into the unintended negative consequences of family-friendly work cultures for single employees.