The narratives suggested that effective and frequent
communication was required in order to blend a focus
on others with an emphasis on task completion. One of
the authors referred to her “strong communication skills
(speaking, listening, and writing)” as key to her success.
Another noted, “People need to know expectations and
need to understand the reasons for doing things.” The
third discussed how open communication is necessary
in order to accomplish goals. When comparing her
own success to that of a male colleague, she said, “But
he did not communicate the reasons for his actions
and played everything very close to the vest. If there
is anything I learned as a sociologist who focuses on
workplace dynamics, it’s that workers will accept most
any change or action in the workplace, even ones that
affect them negatively on a personal level, so long as
they are given a reasonable explanation.” She suspects
that women are likely to explain, communicate, and
reason with others in the workplace because they are less
comfortable dictating and perhaps were even concerned
that, if they did those things, the employees would be
less likely to follow their mandates due to their gender.
Prior research found that women who were task-oriented
were at greater risk than men of being considered pushy
or aggressive (Gale, 1988; Reinarz, 2002). The writers
speculated that their heavy reliance on communication
is an attempt to avoid these labels and ensure they do
what was referred to as “bringing others along with
us.” Their emphasis on communication to accomplish
tasks is consistent with Helgeson’s (1990) findings in a
narrative study revealing that female managers in her
sample placed such an emphasis on sharing information,
that they routinely scheduled time to communicate. In
an extensive study of gender differences in leadership
styles, Kabacoff (1998) found that women in leadership
roles were much more likely than men to state clear
expectations for others, clearly express thoughts and
ideas, and maintain a flow of communication.