Originally published here.

The aim of the study was to compare the self-rated leadership behaviors of men and women in female-dominated, male-dominated and mixed-gender work environments and make within-gender comparisons across these three contexts. Data was collected using the Developmental Leadership Questionnaire from a sample of Swedish leadership course participants (N = 1897). Female leaders rated themselves more favorably than male leaders in female- dominated and mixed-gender work environments. Only small gender differences were found in male-dominated settings. Women in female dominated and gender-mixed work environments reported more favorable self-ratings than women in male dominated contexts. Among male leaders, fewer differences were observed between different work environments. The results are discussed in terms of organizational culture, individual selection preferences and a rapidly growing proportion of women leaders in the Swedish labor market.

Discussion

The first aim was to compare the self-rated leadership behaviors of women and men in female- dominated, male-dominated and mixed-gender work environments. The results in female- dominated work environments were clear –women rated themselves higher on developmental leadership and conventional-positive leadership, while men rated themselves higher on conventional- negative leadership and destructive leadership. The only difference found in male-dominated work environments was that men rated themselves higher on conventional-negative leadership. In the mixed-gender work environments, the results resembled those obtained in the female-dominated settings. However, there was no significant difference on the destructive leadership scale in the mixed- gender case. The mean score among women on this scale in mixed-gender work environments was actually higher than the women’s mean score in female-dominated work environments (although the difference was not statistically significant). If a higher proportion of men lowers the threshold for women to use destructive leadership behaviors could be a topic for further research.

Further subgroup analyses of potential confounding effects of age and organizational management level mainly confirmed the presented overall picture. The lower number of statistically significant differences in the subgroup analyses can, at least partly, be explained by smaller sample sizes. The second aim was to make within-gender comparisons of the self-rated leadership behaviors of women and men in female-dominated, male-dominated and mixed-gender work environments. Beginning with women, a clear picture emerged. In female-dominated work environments (as com- pared to male-dominated work environments), female leaders reported more use of developmental and conventional-positive leadership behaviors and less use of conventional-negative and destructive leadership behaviors. These findings are in line with previous research (Burke & Collins, 2001; Hoyt, Simon, & Reid, 2009; Merchant, 2012). The result in mixed-gender work environments resembled that obtained in female-dominated work-settings. The relationship between type of work environment and men’s self-reported leadership was less clear. Male leaders used more conventional-positiveleadership, as well as more conventional-negative leadership, in male-dominated work settings.  Among male leaders, no differences between work environments were found on the scales designed to measure developmental leadership and destructive leadership respectively.

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