Stereotype Threat at Work
A stereotype is an exaggerated opinion about a person or group of people. There are so many stereotypes, particularly around women. They face a lot of issues such as societal stereotypes including negative opinions on how women are expected to behave, perform their duties, their character, and personality. However, over the years, many of those stereotypes seem to be changing (Eagly et al. 3). The society is also changing its perception of women and their roles. They are given opportunities to compete equally with men in society and are rising above the former stereotypes. Although supporters of masculinity argue that men are naturally stronger and more capable than women in their roles at work, my research shows that men seem to fear competition from women. They thus continue to support gender stereotypes of their women colleagues in places of work. The paper will study the stereotypes and how they are a threat to men at work.
Many companies divide their jobs and roles according to gender. It is a stereotype that has been in existence since time immemorial. Men are given complex jobs to handle while women deal with easy tasks. It is a good thing in some occupations like the masonry, construction and other heavy-duty jobs. Still, the perception shows that women are inferior beings who cannot handle complicated matters. However, the idea is changing with time. Women are presently given the same tasks as their male colleagues. They are also expected to complete in good time with excellent performance. They have the skills and use energy as men. Some women tend to outdo men. Hence, it is not an issue of supporting the women through simple jobs but fear that if given a chance, they will become more competitive and take up roles that men think belong to them (Hideg, and Ferris 706).
A gender stereotype is also promoted in workplaces by men when they are given the responsibility to review work done by women. It is observed that the work done by men is often not given a lot of scrutiny and consideration compared to the quality of work when it comes to what has been done by women (Chernyak-Hai, Kim, and Tziner 50-1). The perception that women are not as capable as men has resulted in the issue of work done by men being less reviewed compared to work done by women. It is also the men who have the role of reviewing work done by men. It demonstrates the fear that men tend to fear the success of women. As such, they try to tame women by thoroughly reviewing their work (Doering, and Thébaud. 557). Therefore, by ensuring that they protect their positions and masculinity in organizations, it is men who review work done by women.
For a long time, women have been perceived as weak to undertake the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers. History shows that they were fields full of male dominance. The professions that women pursued are those believed to be feminine and straightforward, as well as less technical such as secretarial jobs. However, the world today is full of women in these fields. The perception that women cannot work efficiently in such careers is foregone. Parents are advising their children to go for their jobs of choice as well as encouraging ladies to undertake the STEM professions. However, the changes seem to pose a threat to the males in the fields. As a result, some of them tend to promote gender roles in society since they do not want women to occupy the various positions that are perceived to belong to the men. (Ferrera, and Dumont, 67).
The pay gap between the males and females holding the same positions in an organization still differs. Men are given higher pay than ladies, yet they do almost similar tasks. They are quickly promoted to more senior positions in organizations compared to women. According to a study done in Niobrara in Wyoming in 2015, men still earn more than women. Niobrara was chosen because it was the city with the smallest pay gap between males and females. Its pay difference was at 8.2 % all year round. Further examination was done to compare their median salary from the age of 16, and women earned about $23 731 while men made about $31 774 (Connolly, Wimbish & Feldman 8). Despite the different movements to have equal pay, the issue remains unchanged. It could be that some men fear to receive equal pay as their ladies colleagues because it would bring competition. Thus they promote the pay gap.
Women are perceived as shy in most organizations which are male-dominated thus fail to work efficiently. Additionally, they are stereotyped to fear to give their contributions during meetings or discussions. It is partly true, but I guess it is because of the expected adverse reaction and possible criticism from their colleagues that makes them unable to be proactive. It is known that in such gatherings, female contributions are rarely put into consideration, and some women are even interrupted only for their idea to be dismissed before they fully put it out. Despite the numerous negative reasons why women are shy, some women boldly express their views before men and capture their attention. Their courage attracts the ears of their male colleagues as they give their opinions articulately. As a result, some guys may find them competitive and instead affect the stereotype to quiet them.
Women in the United States of America are becoming more learned with college degrees than men, but they have the lowest rate of employment and pay. It is unfortunate that despite the struggle by females to match up and even exceed in knowledge and skills, the old stereotype of women being inefficient at work still stands. They have fewer chances of being employed in good-paying jobs and are also likely not to get the salaries they deserve. Men, on the other hand, despite having less academic qualifications, are assured of employment when they graduate. They are also likely to get higher pay than their female colleagues. The system is slowly suffocating the young females who are ready to take the world with innovative ideas and progress by discouraging them. It merely shows that women at work are not valued based on merit, such as education qualification (Banchefsky, and Park 27).
Leaders are noted by their values of courage, assertiveness and dominance. All these are related to the characters of male. Women are stereotyped to be weak and full of emotions. As a result, they have been perceived as inefficient leaders while the males remain the better choice. It is based on the view that men are more responsible than the women who are always easily distracted by minor issues (Locke n.p.). Moreover, very senior positions as Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and managers are given to men since it is believed that they are more focused than women. However, women activists and other fighters of equality have pointed out the discrimination and discouraged it. Women are thus being considered for various leadership positions either as a mandate or to fulfil the gender balance. The change seems to be a threat to males who end up celebrating chauvinism.
Women who are competing for the same job positions as males tend to be judged more harshly when they make a mistake than their male counterparts. Women are given minimal chances to make an error. They are forced to do everything to perfection to be recognized. On the other hand, male are allowed a window to commit a mistake because they will not be given harsh judgments. For example, consumers of a product from a company headed by a woman are less likely to continue using the product whenever there is a failure ethically. Moreover, their competence will hardly be considered because of the assumption that a woman is heading the firm. Such approaches make it hard for female leaders to thrive in their positions and compete favourably in the market. They are also discredited of their efforts and hard work to uplift the institution as well as several employees.
When it comes to prioritizing in firms, male are preferred over female employees. Many firms will consider retaining a male worker or employing a male worker instead of a female one. A good case is during the first months of the Covid-19 outbreak, most of the people who were laid off because companies needed to reduce their operating costs were majorly females. At the moment, the situation is almost returning to normalcy, and we see that the first people the companies want to hire back are males. The prioritizing is giving males an advantage over females in finding means to earn a source of income. Women are left out because of gender stereotype. An abolishment of such male privilege such that there is equality in choosing between male and female employees to lie off or hire will create a real stiff competition between the two genders. However, since the males want to reduce it, they continue to promote the exercise of the stereotype in their favour.
In job interviews, men are given a better chance to express themselves more than ladies. Women tend to be interrupted and asked complex questions compared to other male interviewees. The effect is that more men get job opportunities which were rightfully for the ladies. A good example is during the presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. The disparity in questioning and interruptions could be noticed clearly. According to Bloomfield & Tscholl (4), Clinton was asked very tough questions and interrupted more time than Trump. Moreover, he questioned many of her statements to ascertain whether they were true or not. The prejudice is broadcasted all over the United States, yet it was alleged to be an unconscious bias. As a result, young girls learn at a very early age of such open discriminations. It would have been a different outcome if both parties were treated equally, but the aspect of fear of competition comes into play.
In most organizations, the decision making roles are left to men while women’s contribution is considered as insignificant. It is only in organizations where women are part of the management team that their ideas will be listened to and believed. Despite that, very few women are allowed to propose ideas which are readily welcomed and acted upon as decisions by men and other fellow women. Most of their ideas are usually mocked or directly dismissed for maybe the grounds of not being realistic, logic or articulate. As a result, some women tend to keep their ideas to themselves. Some may end up looking clueless, yet they have the best innovative ideas but will never come to light. Additional adverse effects are failure to get recognized from lack of expressing ideas and lack of promotion due to their many innovative ideas. Hence, making it difficult for women to climb the corporate ladder where they can make effective decisions (Ellemers 279). It is because men fear that if more women have easy access to decision-making opportunities, they will do better than men.
Women receive harsher penalties whenever they commit a mistake than when male employees do. Women are considered as rational beings; thus, each time they make a mistake; it is linked to the stereotype of their emotions. All errors they make are classified as irrational therefore meant to look as if it is in their genetics to commit the mistakes. Small errors may cause severe penalties to their jobs, and they are only given one or two other chances to stay at work. On the other hand, mistakes made by male employees are considered rational. They are usually given a mere warning with a little or no penalties.
Men are quickly promoted to top-level executive positions than ladies when they schmooze with their bosses. According to the stereotype, women who schmooze at work are lazy or do not have enough work to do. However, when the males schmooze with others, it is considered constructive talk. The discrimination portrayed in the scene clearly shows the difference between men and women at work. Additionally, since most leaders are males when the male workers schmooze with them, they get a quick promotion, but when ladies do the same, it is considered inappropriate. Worst case scenario is when a lady tries to schmooze with a lady boss; they usually end up fired while they may tolerate a little that of the men.
In conclusion, stereotyping of women has been existence since time immemorial. Women are seen as weak and are the ones affected by the adverse effects of the perceptions. As seen from the discussion, there are so many stereotypes affecting them at work. They include lower pay than men, biased division of labour, harsher punishment in case of a mistake, inequality during an interview, few employment opportunities, insignificant consideration in decision making, hard to get a promotion, reviewing of their work and discrimination in employment among others. The reason behind the stereotypes could be due to cultural affiliation or other causes; however, the competition seems to be the pillar behind the continual promotion of gender-based stereotypes by their male colleagues.
Works Cited
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Connolly, Catherine, Laurel A. Wimbish, and Laura L. Feldman. “The Wage Gap between Wyoming’s Men and Women: 2016.” (2016): 8
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