Why are there so few women in leadership roles? Is it a case of women not being ambitious enough? Or there something else behind it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Sheryl Sandberg, who is known for her efforts to empower working women, the biggest reason there are fewer women in leadership roles is because of the “leadership ambition gap.” As the name suggests, the leadership ambition gap is the disparity in aspiration to occupy leadership positions between genders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Keep reading to learn about the leadership ambition gap and how it contributes to fewer women aspiring to leadership roles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Perhaps the biggest reason there aren’t many women in leadership roles is what Sandberg terms the \u201cleadership ambition gap.\u201d Data shows fewer women than men aspire to senior-level jobs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This lack of leadership ambition in women starts before they enter the workforce.<\/strong> A survey of college students showed that \u201cbecoming a manager within 3 years of graduation\u201d was less of a career priority for women than men. (While strides are being made a bit with millennial women, there\u2019s still a long way to go.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n The result: more men <\/strong>aim for<\/em><\/strong> leadership roles and more men <\/strong>get<\/em><\/strong> leadership roles<\/strong>. This pattern starts in childhood and grows stronger. Data shows that in middle school, more boys aspire to leadership roles when they grow up. At the top 50 colleges, more than two thirds of student government presidents are male.<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Some disagree with the idea of inherent lesser ambition in women, saying women are simply more enlightened with more meaningful goals<\/a> than being a corporate executive. Sandberg doesn\u2019t completely disagree and doesn\u2019t dispute that women may have more innate nurturing tendencies. But, Sandberg, argues, a desire for leadership is a culturally enforced trait, and our culture sends the leadership message to boys — and not girls — early on.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are several factors behind the leadership ambition gap:<\/p>\n\n\n\n But perhaps the two biggest factors are: <\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender stereotypes imposed from birth encourage boys to see themselves as leaders and girls to see themselves as nurturers. This stereotype extends into adulthood, affecting how women behave in their careers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Boys and girls are treated differently even as babies.<\/strong> Data shows mothers nurture girls more, offering more help and comfort; meanwhile, boys are encouraged to play by themselves. Moms overestimate baby boys\u2019 crawling ability while underestimating that of girls. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Society soon chimes in to reinforce the stereotype. Sandberg recounts seeing Gymboree baby onesies that read, \u201cPretty Like Mommy,\u201d and \u201cSmart Like Daddy.\u201d<\/strong> A viral video of a 4-year-old girl in a toy store drives home the pressure: Upset by the sea of pink she\u2019s supposed to like in the girls\u2019 toy section, she laments, \u201cSome girls like superheroes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n As they grow, girls are actively discouraged from leadership.They are rewarded for being pretty and encouraged to be nurturing. If a girl is assertive, she\u2019s labeled \u201cbossy.\u201d <\/strong>Sandberg recalls her childhood as a \u201cbossy\u201d girl, directing other kids\u2019 play and organizing neighborhood shows. These behaviors would have been seen as leadership traits, not bossiness, in a boy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n School reinforces the stereotypes. Data shows teachers interact more with boys (calling on them, asking questions) than girls. Boys are more likely to shout out answers without raising their hand — and get listened to. In contrast, if a girl shouts out an answer without raising her hand, she is more likely to be scolded. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u201cstereotype threat\u201d complicates the fight against stereotypes. Social scientists say when a group is made aware of a negative stereotype, they are more likely to perform according to that stereotype. For example, if girls are aware of the stereotype that boys are better at math or science, when they are reminded of their gender before a test (even something as simple as checking the box F for female), they perform worse. This phenomenon discourages girls from entering tech fields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Stereotypes in the media help reinforce a negative image of women in leadership. Working women are portrayed as consumed by career with no personal life, like Sigourney Weaver in Working Girl<\/em> or Sandra Bullock in The Proposal<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Media stereotypes have real-world results: a survey showed that when there is a woman in a senior leadership role in a company, female subordinates say they \u201cdon\u2019t want to be like her.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n When women accept the stereotype of a woman in management as negative, they are less likely to pursue opportunities for advancement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n While men assume they can have successful work and family lives, women assume that doing both will be difficult to impossible. Women are afraid of the challenges they\u2019ll face with a demanding job and family commitments. They\u2019re afraid of not being liked, making wrong choices<\/a>, drawing negative attention, and failing. They fear being a bad wife and mother. True equality can be achieved only when more women are in leadership positions. To get more women in these roles, men and women alike have to understand the biases and stereotypes that have been perpetuating the status quo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s time for everyone to cheer on girls who want to sit at the table and lean in to their careers. Men, too, need to be supported and respected for contributing within the home and supporting their partners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For gender equality to prevail, women have to stop sabotaging other women. When women turn on other women, we all lose. Women need to support and stick up for women in order for true equality to prosper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, when Marissa Mayer became CEO of Yahoo and announced she\u2019d be taking just a few weeks maternity leave, which she would work through, she was roundly criticized by women for setting unreasonable expectations. Her individual choice was not respected. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u201cQueen Bee\u201d phenomenon still exists. Women in power often discourage other women from gaining power, as if there\u2019s only so much to go around.<\/strong> This attitude was born of self-preservation in a male-dominated workforce in the past, but still lingers. Data shows that once a woman achieves success, her capacity to see gender discrimination is actually reduced. Worse, when women view other women negatively, that viewpoint is respected because a lack of bias is assumed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u201cmommy wars,\u201d which pit stay-at-home moms against working moms, are hurting all women.<\/strong> Each group judges the other because they have mixed feelings about their choices and hold that discomfort against women who remind them of the path not taken. Guilt and insecurity make us second-guess ourselves and resent each other, and this has to end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There\u2019s evidence that attitudes among women and men are changing. A survey found that high-level women are starting to \u201cpay it forward\u201d by supporting the careers of junior women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When women help one another, we help ourselves. Acting as a coalition makes everyone stronger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This coalition has to include men. Men need to take an active role in encouraging talented women in the workforce and advocate for their career advancement<\/a>. Men also need to commit to changing the leadership ratios in organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We are working toward a world where the old social norms<\/a> don\u2019t exist and both women and men have more choices based on their passions, talents and interests, not their gender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Workplace change<\/a> is our more immediate problem. There\u2019s a lack of sick leave and vacation pay for working mothers<\/a>. Maternity leave pay is not standard. Work standards are inflexible and unfair, penalizing working moms and dads. Families can go into debt or poverty as a consequence of these policies. These policies have to change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sandberg wrote Lean In<\/em> to encourage women to dream big, power through obstacles, and reach their full potential. When more women lean in, we change the power structure of our world and expand opportunities for all. Having more women in power will lead to fairer treatment for all women. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In the future there won\u2019t be female leaders and male leaders, there will simply be leaders.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Why are there so few women in leadership roles? Is it a case of women not being ambitious enough? Or there something else behind it? According to Sheryl Sandberg, who is known for her efforts to empower working women, the biggest reason there are fewer women in leadership roles is because of the “leadership ambition gap.” As the name suggests, the leadership ambition gap is the disparity in aspiration to occupy leadership positions between genders. Keep reading to learn about the leadership ambition gap and how it contributes to fewer women aspiring to leadership roles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":19005,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45,29,24],"tags":[302],"class_list":["post-36996","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-career","category-society","tag-lean-in","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nGender Stereotypes<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Fear Is Holding Women Back<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Without fear, Sandberg asserts, doors open for women. They can pursue work, family, or both. They can take risks. Sandberg urges women to fight their fears and pursue leadership boldly, without caring what other people think<\/a> and what stereotypes say.<\/strong> A sign in the Facebook office said: \u201cWhat would you do if you weren\u2019t afraid?\u201d For Sandberg, this advice led to her writing Lean In<\/em>, something that initially scared her.<\/p>\n\n\n\nKeeping the Discussion Going<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Women Supporting Women<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Opportunities for Everyone<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n