The Psychology of Gender 4th Edition

246 Chapter 7

similar to the earlier study by Carli (1990).

However, when her student status was made

salient, men were more influenced by the as-

sertive than the tentative speaker. Reid and

colleagues (2009) argued that by making her

student status salient, they were establishing

a shared identity between the female leader

and the male respondents. In this condition,

men viewed the assertive woman to be more

competent and more similar to them than

the tentative woman. Female respondents

were not influenced by the speech style or

the salience condition, most likely because

they shared both sex and student status iden-

tities. These findings suggest that one way in

which strong women can influence men is to

emphasize a shared status—that is, to find a

way in which men can identify with them.

Outside the laboratory, it appears that

women have made some progress in terms of

leadership. When women and men are asked

whether they would prefer to work for a female

or male boss, the preference for a male boss has

declined substantially—especially among men

(see Figure 7.9; Carroll, 2006). In 2006, 34% of

males said they would prefer a male boss, 10%

a female boss, but the majority—56%—had

no preference. Among females, 40% said they

would prefer a male boss, 26% a female boss,

and 34% had no preference.

If female leaders are harmed by an as-

sumed lack of communal characteristics, how

are lesbian and gay leaders viewed? There is

very little research on views of LGBT (lesbi-

ans, gay, bisexual, and transgendered) lead-

ers. Whereas sex and race are visible to others,

sexual orientation is not. We do know that

LGBT leaders who self-disclose are viewed

more favorably than those who try to conceal

their sexual orientation (Fassinger, Shullman,

& Stevenson, 2010). The burden for gay men

may be to prove their masculinity, whereas the

burden for lesbians may be to prove their fem-

ininity. Because lesbians are stereotyped to be

FIGURE 7.9 Preference for a male boss has substantially declined over time

and having no preference has substantially increased over time—especially for

men. Preference for a female boss has slightly increased, more so for women.

Source: Adapted from Carroll (2006).

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

1953 1975 1989 1999 2006

0

Male

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Female

Female Boss No Preference

Male Boss

1953 1975 1989 1999 2006

Female Boss No Preference

Male Boss

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