How Women Can Get Kudos For Assertiveness at Work

Past research suggests that assertiveness and self-promotion can backfire for women at work. But does that hold true when a woman stands up for someone else?

A new study may offer women an effective strategy for exhibiting leadership abilities without being penalized.

The study finds that when women engage in “agentic” or assertive behaviors in a team atmosphere, they get more credit for their leadership than do men who carry out similar actions.

“Given the considerable research that finds women are penalized more than men for asserting themselves, it seems fairly clear that we are disadvantaged in that way, particularly when self-assertion is on behalf of our individual self-interest,” says Klodiana Lanaj, a management professor at the University of Florida.

“What our study adds to the mix is the insight that, when women’s assertive or take-charge initiatives are in the service of a team, they are not only accepted but make a greater impression than similar endeavors by men. That may not be commensurate with the resentment we encounter from self-promotion, but it strikes me as a significantly enhancing prospects for greater female organizational leadership.”

Why were women celebrated for their assertiveness in these situations? Lanaj offers that men are usually associated with these “agentic” behaviors so when women display them, they made a bigger impact.

The study followed 181 MBA students during the first year of their program. Students were divided into five-person teams—with at least one female student on each team—and completed three surveys.

The first, conducted two months before the teams were assembled, gathered personal data and personality traits of the individuals. The second, conducted six weeks after team interaction, rated each member on three behaviors—task-related (ex. planning and organizing team tasks), boundary-spanning (ex. coordinating outside the team to acquire resources), and social (ex. ability to listen to thoughts and feelings of team members). The third survey, conducted four months after the second one, asked participants to rate each member’s leadership abilities.

The study’s findings seem to support the assertion of Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, who writes in her book Lean In that women “hold ourselves back in ways both big and small by lacking self-confidence, by not raising our hands, and by pulling back when we should be leaning in.”

However, Lanaj warns that women simply displaying more “agentic” behavior will not erase the existing gender bias. A fundamental shift in how effective leadership is judged—both agentic and social—is necessary for true change.

This article was originally published in Futurity. Edits have been made to this republication. It has been republished under the Attribution 4.0 International license.