Changes in Perception and Behavior in Mixed Gender Teams

Abstract

Leadership and conflict on male and female task teams of varying compositions are compared for groups constituted in the late 1960s/early 1970s and the mid‐1980s. The data indicates substantial increase in the leadership activities of women in mixed sex situations, striking decrease in conflict on predominantly female teams, and impressive improvement in the ability of young men to work with women on analytical tasks.

Leadership change and shareholder value: How markets react to the appointments of women

“…Ely's work (1995) suggested that in occupations or industries in which women are well-represented, the association between successful leadership and masculinity may be less intense and more difficult to sustain. Recent work has also suggested significantly lower levels of work-related conflict in predominantly female work settings (Webber, 2006). Finally, Welbourne, Cycyota, and Ferrante (2007) found that women's leadership is associated with stronger short-and long-term performance, potentially increasing the visibility and recognition of women's leadership in industries with a strong female presence among top leaders.…”

Sex and sex dissimilarity effects in ongoing teams: Some surprising findings

“…Studies of emergent leadership in ongoing (i.e. semester-long) teams of business students typically find little evidence of sex differences, suggesting that the task behaviors of men and women do not differ when they interact over time (Goktepe & Schneier, 1989;Webber, 1987). Perhaps continued task interaction permits team members to provide information concerning their competence, which reduces the effect of sex on task behavior (Deaux & Major, 1987;Elsass & Graves, 1997;Harrison, et al, 1998).…”