Study Finds More Americans Would Rather Work for a Male Boss
Women may be 'leaning in' these days in higher numbers, but more Americans still say they'd prefer to have a male boss.
That's the most obvious takeaway from Gallup research data released earlier this week. In its annual Work and Education survey conducted in August, Gallup asked respondents to describe their ideal choice of boss if they were taking a new job, and 35 percent said they would prefer to work for a man. Meanwhile, 23 percent said they'd prefer a female supervisor, and 41 percent said they had no preference.
While the overall numbers lean male, more interesting is that the survey found two subgroups of respondents who were slightly more inclined to want a female boss. The first group consisted of those who already work for one. Thirty-two percent of people who currently work for female managers cited that as their preference, versus 31 percent of them who say they'd rather have a man.
The other group was Democrats. Thirty-three percent of survey takers who identified with that party said they'd prefer a female boss, while 32 percent said they'd rather report to a guy.
A subgroup that surprisingly didn't show a preference for women as managers? Women themselves. Forty percent of female respondents said they'd prefer a male boss, while just 27 percent of women said they'd like to work for a woman.
Does this show that once someone works for a woman, they are more open to the idea? Gallup says it's possible. It could be that workers who initially prefer female bosses gravitate toward them, Gallup's Frank Newport and Joy Wilke write in the data's release, or it could be "that the experience of working for a female boss affects workers' preferences. If the latter is the case, and if the proportion of U.S. workers who have female bosses increases in the future, the current preference for a male boss in the overall population could dissipate."
I'd take that a bit further and connect those two thoughts. It's certainly possible that the more women get into leadership roles, the greater the likelihood that employees will actually seek them out as the people they want to work for. That, in turn, could then push more organizations to promote women into higher managerial roles.
Such a cycle might one day help to balance the ratios of people who prefer a male boss to a female one. But of course, an even better outcome will be when the vast majority of people care less about the gender of their managers, and care much more about their ability to lead and their integrity on the job.
More people prefer a male boss, but gender gap is narrowing
"My last boss was a woman. All she did was micromanage everyone."
"Every woman boss I've ever had was extremely passive-aggressive in their leadership."
"It (was) much easier being managed by a male because he didn't put up with the pettiness or the gossip."
Sorry, ladies of the working world. Those are comments we received in response to my recent piece about how companies with more women in C-suites and corporate boards do better financially.
But so many commenters said they absolutely preferred working for a man, we knew we had to explore the "why" behind that sentiment.
Then this week, the Gallup organization added some numbers -- and fuel -- to the debate.
'I'm not surprised'
In telephone interviews with a random sample of 2,059 adults, Gallup found that Americans still prefer a male boss over a female, with 41% choosing to work for a man and 23% saying they prefer women supervisors. It's the highest-ever number recorded for women bosses since Gallup has been asking.
When you compare these results to the 1953 responses -- that's when Gallup first asked this question -- the gap has narrowed significantly. In 1953, 66% chose a male boss and 5% picked a female one, a huge gap that has been reduced to an 18-point difference today.
"I think it's great to see that trend, so I'm very encouraged by it, but I'm not surprised that it's still a 2-to-1 ratio of people preferring to work for men than women," said sociologist and workplace consultant BJ Gallagher, who has written several books, including a best-seller on diversity called "A Peacock in the Land of Penguins."
Topping the list of reasons, according to Gallagher, is the fact that men still have more power in the workplace than women.
"If you had your druthers, you'd rather work for somebody who has some influence, some power, some clout, some status and that's true for men and women," Gallagher said.
"It trickles down so that if you work for a powerful boss, you're a little bit more powerful. Your whole department is seen in a more positive light if the boss is a powerful (and) influential person," she said.
'How to Tell a Male Boss From a Female Boss'
In conversations with Gallagher and other experts, it's clear another factor is at work -- the real stereotypes that exist about working for a woman.
"It's an old stereotype that women may not be good bosses so when that happens, it sticks," said Susan Nierenberg, vice president of global marketing and corporate communications for Catalyst, a nonprofit focused on expanding opportunities for women in business. "Because the stereotype is in the water, and there are fewer women leaders than men, you may remember the woman who treated you badly and say, 'Oh yeah, I remember her.' And it reinforces the stereotype.
"Perception is not reality, and stereotypes are perceptions."
Gallagher has created a list titled "How to Tell a Male Boss From a Female Boss" with examples of perceived gender differences -- "A male boss is assertive; a female bossy is bossy" and "A male boss is attentive to details; a female boss is picky."
Opinion: Are female leaders too cheerful for their own good?
"There is a double standard," said Gallagher, who also wrote "Everything I Need to Know I Learned From Other Women." "The same exact behavior in a male boss is seen as a plus, and the same behavior in a female boss gets seen as a negative."
For instance, Gallagher said if a male boss "gets agitated and slams his fist down on the table and goes, 'I want this done by 3 o'clock this afternoon,' everyone goes, 'Ooh, take charge kind of guy.'"
If a woman does the same thing, Gallagher said, people are likely to say, "Oh, what a bitch."
"So the same tone of voice, the same words, the same body language, the same everything gets filtered through our stereotypes and assumptions about how various groups should behave," she said.
The 'token woman' issue
Fueling the stereotypes, Gallagher and leaders from Catalyst said, are environments with few women in leadership positions.
"When there's going to be a token woman, one woman is going to make it to the top, what does this do?" said Ilene Lang, president and CEO of Catalyst, during an interview last month.
"Does that encourage anybody to support women? Does it encourage women to support other women? It's a culture that will encourage women to fight with other women or to discourage other women."
But when the culture of the organization focuses on mentorship and sponsorship, and there are more women in leadership positions, that "Queen Bee myth" of women not helping women gets busted, Lang said.
sourcesï¼?[http://en.twwtn.com/Information/26_50475.html]
That's the most obvious takeaway from Gallup research data released earlier this week. In its annual Work and Education survey conducted in August, Gallup asked respondents to describe their ideal choice of boss if they were taking a new job, and 35 percent said they would prefer to work for a man. Meanwhile, 23 percent said they'd prefer a female supervisor, and 41 percent said they had no preference.
While the overall numbers lean male, more interesting is that the survey found two subgroups of respondents who were slightly more inclined to want a female boss. The first group consisted of those who already work for one. Thirty-two percent of people who currently work for female managers cited that as their preference, versus 31 percent of them who say they'd rather have a man.
The other group was Democrats. Thirty-three percent of survey takers who identified with that party said they'd prefer a female boss, while 32 percent said they'd rather report to a guy.
A subgroup that surprisingly didn't show a preference for women as managers? Women themselves. Forty percent of female respondents said they'd prefer a male boss, while just 27 percent of women said they'd like to work for a woman.
Does this show that once someone works for a woman, they are more open to the idea? Gallup says it's possible. It could be that workers who initially prefer female bosses gravitate toward them, Gallup's Frank Newport and Joy Wilke write in the data's release, or it could be "that the experience of working for a female boss affects workers' preferences. If the latter is the case, and if the proportion of U.S. workers who have female bosses increases in the future, the current preference for a male boss in the overall population could dissipate."
I'd take that a bit further and connect those two thoughts. It's certainly possible that the more women get into leadership roles, the greater the likelihood that employees will actually seek them out as the people they want to work for. That, in turn, could then push more organizations to promote women into higher managerial roles.
Such a cycle might one day help to balance the ratios of people who prefer a male boss to a female one. But of course, an even better outcome will be when the vast majority of people care less about the gender of their managers, and care much more about their ability to lead and their integrity on the job.
More people prefer a male boss, but gender gap is narrowing
"My last boss was a woman. All she did was micromanage everyone."
"Every woman boss I've ever had was extremely passive-aggressive in their leadership."
"It (was) much easier being managed by a male because he didn't put up with the pettiness or the gossip."
Sorry, ladies of the working world. Those are comments we received in response to my recent piece about how companies with more women in C-suites and corporate boards do better financially.
But so many commenters said they absolutely preferred working for a man, we knew we had to explore the "why" behind that sentiment.
Then this week, the Gallup organization added some numbers -- and fuel -- to the debate.
'I'm not surprised'
In telephone interviews with a random sample of 2,059 adults, Gallup found that Americans still prefer a male boss over a female, with 41% choosing to work for a man and 23% saying they prefer women supervisors. It's the highest-ever number recorded for women bosses since Gallup has been asking.
When you compare these results to the 1953 responses -- that's when Gallup first asked this question -- the gap has narrowed significantly. In 1953, 66% chose a male boss and 5% picked a female one, a huge gap that has been reduced to an 18-point difference today.
"I think it's great to see that trend, so I'm very encouraged by it, but I'm not surprised that it's still a 2-to-1 ratio of people preferring to work for men than women," said sociologist and workplace consultant BJ Gallagher, who has written several books, including a best-seller on diversity called "A Peacock in the Land of Penguins."
Topping the list of reasons, according to Gallagher, is the fact that men still have more power in the workplace than women.
"If you had your druthers, you'd rather work for somebody who has some influence, some power, some clout, some status and that's true for men and women," Gallagher said.
"It trickles down so that if you work for a powerful boss, you're a little bit more powerful. Your whole department is seen in a more positive light if the boss is a powerful (and) influential person," she said.
'How to Tell a Male Boss From a Female Boss'
In conversations with Gallagher and other experts, it's clear another factor is at work -- the real stereotypes that exist about working for a woman.
"It's an old stereotype that women may not be good bosses so when that happens, it sticks," said Susan Nierenberg, vice president of global marketing and corporate communications for Catalyst, a nonprofit focused on expanding opportunities for women in business. "Because the stereotype is in the water, and there are fewer women leaders than men, you may remember the woman who treated you badly and say, 'Oh yeah, I remember her.' And it reinforces the stereotype.
"Perception is not reality, and stereotypes are perceptions."
Gallagher has created a list titled "How to Tell a Male Boss From a Female Boss" with examples of perceived gender differences -- "A male boss is assertive; a female bossy is bossy" and "A male boss is attentive to details; a female boss is picky."
Opinion: Are female leaders too cheerful for their own good?
"There is a double standard," said Gallagher, who also wrote "Everything I Need to Know I Learned From Other Women." "The same exact behavior in a male boss is seen as a plus, and the same behavior in a female boss gets seen as a negative."
For instance, Gallagher said if a male boss "gets agitated and slams his fist down on the table and goes, 'I want this done by 3 o'clock this afternoon,' everyone goes, 'Ooh, take charge kind of guy.'"
If a woman does the same thing, Gallagher said, people are likely to say, "Oh, what a bitch."
"So the same tone of voice, the same words, the same body language, the same everything gets filtered through our stereotypes and assumptions about how various groups should behave," she said.
The 'token woman' issue
Fueling the stereotypes, Gallagher and leaders from Catalyst said, are environments with few women in leadership positions.
"When there's going to be a token woman, one woman is going to make it to the top, what does this do?" said Ilene Lang, president and CEO of Catalyst, during an interview last month.
"Does that encourage anybody to support women? Does it encourage women to support other women? It's a culture that will encourage women to fight with other women or to discourage other women."
But when the culture of the organization focuses on mentorship and sponsorship, and there are more women in leadership positions, that "Queen Bee myth" of women not helping women gets busted, Lang said.
sourcesï¼?[http://en.twwtn.com/Information/26_50475.html]
