20_01_31_eco-pinto

Many important decisions are made in groups in which each person gives his or her opinion on what is the best decision for a business or entity (a business, a hospital, a university...). On many occasions, the components of the group have different levels of knowledge and experience about the subject to be dealt with. Therefore, it is easier for correct decisions to be made if those who are more qualified to do so give their opinion. The research conducted by Professor Coffman shows that gender stereotypes hinder this process. The reason she gives is that there are areas that are considered typically feminine (fashion) while others are masculine (sports). The problem is that such stereotypes mean that women who have experience and knowledge in masculine fields tend not to give their opinion. The opposite happens in the case of men, although with two exceptions. The first is that men have a greater tendency to give their opinion in groups dealing with "feminine" topics than vice versa. The second is that there are more areas that are considered "masculine" than vice versa. Professor Coffman's research demonstrates in her research that this behavior is bad for groups.

The evidence Professor Coffman uses to demonstrate these effects comes from an experiment consisting (briefly) of the following. A group of college students, answer 5 questions from each of the following 6 fields: art, pop culture, science, history, geography, and sports.

The subjects themselves feel that women know more about art and pop culture, while men know more about the rest. After answering 30 questions, they are told that they are now part of a "team" with another student. The "team" has to answer these 30 questions again, but they have to choose whether the "team" answer is to be one or the other. Depending on the issue of correct and incorrect answers they will win more or less money. Each of the two team members has to say whether he/she wants the question representing the team to be his/her own or the other one. Obviously, the answer that represents the team should be the one who knows more about subject.

Professor Coffman's research shows that this is not what happens. Women prefer the answer that represents the team to be the other person's answer in the domains they consider masculine and men prefer the answer that represents the team to be the other person's answer in the domains they consider feminine. This is true even if that person has correctly answered all 5 questions in a male domain (if female) or all 5 questions in a female domain (if male).

This results in the group answering fewer questions correctly than it could and, therefore, earning less money. It is not the person who knows the most who is chosen, but the person who the stereotype thinks fits the field.

Finally, Professor Coffman's research demonstrates that this problem is not fixed, even if the subject is told that she has answered more questions correctly in that domain than the other team member. That is, even if a woman knows that she has answered more sports questions well than the other team member, she does not want to be the one representing group in that domain. The stereotype may outweigh the knowledge goal .

At summary, a very interesting research on how stereotypes are a problem when it comes to choosing the best people for each task.

Many important decisions are made in groups in which each person gives his or her opinion on what is the best decision for a business or entity (a business, a hospital, a university...). On many occasions, the components of the group have different levels of knowledge and experience about the subject to be dealt with. Therefore, it is easier for correct decisions to be made if those who are more qualified to do so give their opinion. The research conducted by Professor Coffman shows that gender stereotypes hinder this process. The reason she gives is that there are areas that are considered typically feminine (fashion) while others are masculine (sports). The problem is that such stereotypes mean that women who have experience and knowledge in masculine fields tend not to give their opinion. The opposite happens in the case of men, although with two exceptions. The first is that men have a greater tendency to give their opinion in groups dealing with "feminine" topics than vice versa. The second is that there are more areas that are considered "masculine" than vice versa. Professor Coffman's research demonstrates in her research that this behavior is bad for groups.

The evidence Professor Coffman uses to demonstrate these effects comes from an experiment consisting (briefly) of the following. A group of college students, answer 5 questions from each of the following 6 fields: art, pop culture, science, history, geography, and sports.

The subjects themselves feel that women know more about art and pop culture, while men know more about the rest. After answering 30 questions, they are told that they are now part of a "team" with another student. The "team" has to answer these 30 questions again, but they have to choose whether the "team" answer is to be one or the other. Depending on the issue of correct and incorrect answers they will win more or less money. Each of the two team members has to say whether he/she wants the question representing the team to be his/her own or the other one. Obviously, the answer that represents the team should be the one who knows more about subject.

Professor Coffman's research shows that this is not what happens. Women prefer the answer that represents the team to be the other person's answer in the domains they consider masculine and men prefer the answer that represents the team to be the other person's answer in the domains they consider feminine. This is true even if that person has correctly answered all 5 questions in a male domain (if female) or all 5 questions in a female domain (if male).

This results in the group answering fewer questions correctly than it could and, therefore, earning less money. It is not the person who knows the most who is chosen, but the person who the stereotype thinks fits the field.

Finally, Professor Coffman's research demonstrates that this problem is not fixed, even if the subject is told that she has answered more questions correctly in that domain than the other team member. That is, even if a woman knows that she has answered more sports questions well than the other team member, she does not want to be the one representing group in that domain. The stereotype may outweigh the knowledge goal .

At summary, a very interesting research on how stereotypes are a problem when it comes to choosing the best people for each task.