Written by Deborah Levine, Editor

The American Association of University Women wants you to know that the pay difference between men and women has not gone away. In its new study “Behind the Pay Gap,” the AAUW notes that new female graduates earn 20% less than their male classmates. After ten years, women earn 31% less. One of the reasons is that women often choose service professions and other low- paying careers such as teaching. Suze Orman says in a July 29 column that a key reason for the pay gap is that women don’t stand up for what they’re worth. She then goes on to give practical tips for negotiating that raise. I have no doubt that women need tips on negotiating raises and I hope many will take notes on what Ms. Orman has to say. However, there are a number of studies out on women in the workplace that show how complex a problem the pay gap can be.

The dilemma of women in the workplace is outlined in a recent study called “Damned or Doomed - Catalyst Study on Gender Stereotyping at Work Uncovers Double-Bind Dilemmas for Women.”  The report, the third in a series by the nonprofit organization, Catalyst, examines how a ‘men as default leaders’ mindset derails women’s advancement to business leadership. According to this report, regardless of how women choose to lead, their options remain limited. Gender stereotypes lead to a constant underestimation of women leaders. Even though women make up over 50% of management and professional occupations, only 15% for Fortune 500 corporate officers are women and only 14.6% of Fortune 500 Board members are women.

The Catalyst report states that gender stereotyping means that with similar leadership styles, men are still viewed as “default leaders” and women as “atypical leaders.” The report gives three main issues related to stereotyping that are the biggest road block for women. The first road block is a style perception. Women leaders are seen through a filter with two extreme ends. At one extreme, she is a perfectionist who gives others little credit. At the other end, she is a delegator who gives much credit but is seen as week. The second road block is the issue of higher standards. Women have to repeat leadership successes many more times than their male counterparts before they will be considered competent. The third road block is the issue of likeability. Assertive behavior is a basic leadership skill but results in different responses when exhibited by men and women.  

The likeability factor for assertive women was the topic of a new study by Victoria Brescoll, a post-doctoral scholar at Yale University. In her examination of how women who get angry are received at work, Dr. Brescoll states that women are likely to be perceived as out of control. While men may be forgiven angry outbursts, women are not so fortunate. She conducted experiments that showed that a female CEO who got angry was rated lower in competence than not only her male counterparts, but also male and female trainees who got angry. Even when there was good reason to get angry, the female CEO was assigned a higher salary than if she did not have a good reason, but still less salary than the male CEO. Brescoll found that the attitudes were fairly similar regardless if the experiment measured attitudes of men or women. Her work concurs with the Catalyst report in that these attitudes are largely unconscious.

The Catalyst report suggests some remedies for gender stereotyping. They include increased diversity training around gender, particularly for managers. A second key area for improvement is the process for performance review. Training needs to be provided to develop objective criteria and increase awareness of gender bias. Training may be a constructive long-term strategy for change. However, Brescoll’s observations contain good advice for professional women in the foreseeable future: While anger may be a powerful tool for men to achieve status at work, women may have to behave calmly to be seen as rational.