Assets, Liabilities, and Gender Equity

Abstract

Men and women communicate differently. However, existing research has yet to examine if the stereotypical gender communication differences are evident in all groups and settings, in particular the case of Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) when presenting financial results. The growing number of female CEOs in the business world creates the possibility of gender-related variation in the communication of financial results, and thus different interpretations of that information by users of financial reports.
 This study synthesizes existing research on gender, CEO, oral, and financial communication to fill the gap in research and answer the question: do CEO gender and company economic performance affect how CEOs communicate financial results? Through text analysis of year-end earnings release press conferences and regression analysis of factors that influence measures of the attributes of communication, this study reveals male and female CEO communication patterns do not necessarily align with existing stereotypes. Results show clear differences as expected, unexpected differences, and several non-differences, illustrating that, as a whole, male and female CEO communication are surprisingly similar.
 The similarities may be due to the individual personalities of CEOs, a function of a long-standing male dominated executive environment, or other factors not controlled for in the models used in this study. Either way, analysts and other financial statement users should refrain from over-interpreting CEO language on the basis of gender as gender and economic performance appear to have an overall trivial effect on the substance and style of CEO communication.