A relatively recent development in management education is case studies portraying female leaders. To gain a better understanding of how female learners react to such case studies, we conducted two qualitative studies: Study 1 used the reactions of three female US university students (learners) towards thirteen case studies. Study 2 used the reactions of five American and five Turkish female learners towards four of the thirteen case studies of Study 1. Both studies showed that case studies with female leader protagonists help female learners to see themselves as leaders (identity work), provide lessons about leadership in general and leadership as a female leader, and increase sensitivity to gender- and race-related discrimination. However, the strength of these effects depends on the case study's narrative and the learner's culture and individual characteristics.
