In the past 50 years, fewer than eighty women worldwide have attained the office of prime minister or president. In 2010, women held just seventeen of the world's 252 executive posts - slightly less than seven percent. In Shattered, Cracked, or Firmly Intact?, Farida Jalalzai explores the patterns of women executive's paths, powers, and potential impacts, examining the global and national mechanisms that prevent women from attaining executive office. Combining a broad understanding of global dynamics of executive power with detailed studies of individual women leaders, Shattered, Cracked, or Firmly Intact? analyzes how institutionally embedded gender expectations limit women's representational impact.