You Lead Like a Girl: Gender and Children’s Leadership Development

Abstract

Recent leadership initiatives encourage children, particularly girls, to defy gender stereotypes. Yet those creating and participating in these initiatives, like all members of our culture, have their own gender biases, have received gender socialization, and live in a society where the masculine is more valued than the feminine. We conducted participant observation of two gender segregated leadership summer camps to examine how camp counselors and directors teach leadership to boys and girls. We find counselors unintentionally reinforce gender stereotypes and promote gendertypical behavior while attempting to break down these same stereotypes and behavioral expectations. We argue the gender segregated environment leads to a problematic "separate but equal" approach to thinking about leadership that advances the individual abilities of boys and girls but does less to decrease gender disparities in emotional development, physical competition, or leadership styles. This research contributes to our understanding of how well-intentioned organizations and authorities, seeking to minimize gender disparities and develop strong leaders, unwittingly reproduce gender differences and perpetuate gender inequality.

Leader development for adolescent girls: State of the field and a framework for moving forward

“…Reciprocally, the environment provides adolescent girls with cues on how to think about themselves as leaders. Many of the leader development programs in the reviewed literature inadvertently reinforced gendered-views of leadership, sending strong signals to adolescent girls that they are not leadership material, which in turn influenced the development of their leader identity (see Trumpy & Elliott, 2019). Currently, our empirical understanding of the leader development environment is limited to only analyzing one element at a time, rather than examining the reciprocal determinism within the environment (e.g., mentors, school, type of program, other extra-curricular opportunities) which can work (in)congruently to either reinforce or reduce gendered barriers in leadership.…”

“…The environment gives adolescent girls' cues on the (gendered-) leadership behaviors they should display (Bandura, 1989;Eagly & Wood, 2012). While adolescent girls' leader development activities should inherently seek to reduce gender-barriers within leadership, often programs and facilitators reinforce gendered expectations, rather than educate and allow adolescent girls to master a tapestry of leader behaviors (Trumpy & Elliott, 2019). Reciprocally, the leader behaviors that adolescent girls display shape the environment around them.…”

“…For example, when adolescent girls see the negative treatment of women leaders by others in their environment, this reinforces 'think-leader, think-male' stereotypes, and sends signals that deter adolescent girls from engaging in leadership. Alternatively, when the environment positively highlights women leaders, these messages positively reinforce to adolescent girls that they can and should be engaging in leadership (Trumpy & Elliott, 2019).…”

“…Fourthly, motivational processes explain which leader behaviors adolescent girls are motivated to engage in, as we do not perform every leadership behavior we learn (Wood & Bandura, 1989). For example, if girls are punished for engaging in competitive, rather than cooperative, leader behaviors, they will shy away from competitive behaviors (Trumpy & Elliott, 2019). Leader development programs give adolescent girls a palette of leadership tools in which to create their own leadership masterpiece, but they need to be motivated to use specific colors.…”

“…Drawing on alumnae networks/local businesses/workplace leaders to integrate mentoring into the program Mullen and Tuten (2004) Ensuring mentors involved in the program receive training and materials to help guide mentor sessions. Trumpy and Elliott (2019) Engaging women as mentors and role models. Archard (2013b) Varieties of leader development opportunities…”