Gender Differences in Managerial Communication: Fact or Folk-linguistics?

Abstract

The literature on gender differences in managerial communications is strongly influenced by folk-linguistics. This study used written managerial communications to test the quality and stylistic differences purported to exist between genders . The gender of the sender and the receiver did not have a significant effect on the style or quality of written communications. Differences in communication styles between men and women may be limited to verbal and nonverbal communication. WOMEN WHO ARE SEEKING MANAGERIAL POSITIONS in organizationshave encountered difficulties in being promoted and in gaining the acceptance of other employees (Stead, 1978;Henning and Jardin, 1976). to the difficulty which women as managers encounter.Communication presents a special difficulty for women. Written and oral communication skills are two of the most important skills for success as a manager (Warbois, 1975). Yet, sex differences based on folk-linguistics, which has been defined as common beliefs about a language (Hoenigswald, 1966), suggest that stereotypically women demonstrate ineffective communication characteristics such as verbosity, constrained vocabulary, and indirect requests (Thorne and Henley, 1975). The research reported here questions the validity of the stereotypes of women as communicators in regard to writing style and quality.A review of the literature on women's communications provides a foundation for understanding the problem. Lakoff (1973) asserted that women are discriminated against both in the language they are taught to use and the way general language use treats them. This contention spawned a flurry of research purporting to ask and answer questions about women's language. Thorne and Henley (1975) characterized interest in language and sex as &dquo;spreading like wildflowers,&dquo; but &dquo;numerous speculations, untested hypotheses, and anecdotal observations evident in the emerging literature&dquo; must be checked by careful research. Concurrently, Kramer (1974a) was expressing the same concern about the extensive use of anecdotal reports and unsupported speculation about women's communication rather than empirical research.In an early literature review, Eakins and Eakins (1978) conclude that communication differences between sexes exist, but the research is at The University of Iowa Libraries on July 11, 2015 job.sagepub.com Downloaded from 42 principally anecdotal. Furthermore, empirical studies which report gender differences in communication do so as adjunct findings in studies primarily designed to investigate other variables (Talley and Richmond, 1980). Two recent books, Spender's Man Made Language (1980) and Kramarae's Women and Men Speaking (1981), indicate that there is some evidence for the existence of sex differences in human communication. However, Bradley (1981) indicates many of the conclusions are based on opinion, speculation, introspection, and personal experience. Barryman (1980) states that the research on sex-based language distinctions is characterized by some unsupported, some t...

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