Perimenopause and barriers to women's careers | Analysis

The article analyzes the multi-causality of professional barriers for women, questioning the completeness of human capital theory. The author indicates that differences in professional standing do not result solely from individual resources or choices, but are a product of institutional selection and systemic inequalities. A key element of the analysis is the child penalty theory, which proves that parenthood drastically alters women's career trajectories depending on organizational culture and systemic support. In this context, perimenopause is considered not as the sole cause, but as a factor overlapping with previous cumulative disadvantages. The text proposes a model of competition and complementarity of explanations to understand the underrepresentation of women at the highest levels of professional hierarchy.