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Men support cracking the glass ceiling more than women do, a new study suggests.

Researchers at Michigan State University found that male workers are more likely than their female counterparts to support women becoming high-level executives.

In fact, the latest study reveals that men actually report higher job satisfaction when they believe a woman has a chance of becoming CEO of a company of organization.

"Promoting gender equality at the top has positive consequences for job satisfaction for both men and women," Susan Linz, an economist at Michigan State University, said in a news release.

"So it's worth it for firms to create environments where women have opportunities to advance, as higher job satisfaction means higher productivity, higher revenues and a healthier bottom line," Linz said.

Researchers claim the study is the first to examine the link between job satisfaction and advance promotion opportunities. Researchers said this is important because an increasing number of women worldwide are reaching the upper management ranks in spite of significant barriers.

The findings are surprising because men reported higher job satisfaction than women when it came to gender equality in the top job.

"We find little evidence that men dislike working for a woman or view women's advancement to upper-level positions as creating a more competitive work environment," Linz said.

Researchers explain that men actually view women's rise to the top as an indicator of their own promotion opportunities.

"In other words, if they can do it, I can do it," Linz said.

The latest study involved 6,500 workers from 700 employers in six formerly socialist countries: Russia, Serbia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

While result from individual countries varied, the study revealed that overall men and women support gender equality in the workplace.

"Even in cultures where women may still not be considered equal, there is a positive link between job satisfaction and perceived gender equality -- and it's particularly strong among the younger generation," Linz added.

The findings are published in the journal Kyklos.