Abstract
Evaluations play a critical role in the allocation of resources and opportunities.
Although evaluation systems are a cornerstone of organizational and market
processes, they often reinforce social and economic inequalities. The body of
organizational research on inequality and evaluations is extensive, but it is also
fragmented, siloed within specific contexts and types of evaluations (e.g., hiring,
performance). As a result, we currently lack a systemic understanding of the
conditions under which inequalities emerge. This paper provides a unifying
framework to identify how gender and racial inequality is produced and reproduced in
evaluations across professional contexts (e.g., digital platforms, entrepreneurship,
traditional employment). Our framework categorizes the drivers of inequality into
three main areas: prevailing beliefs in evaluative contexts, the design and structure of
evaluation processes, and the characteristics of evaluators. Our approach not only
sheds light on the common processes that exacerbate inequality but also underscores
why an integrative framework is critical for both theoretical advancement and
enacting effective reforms.