SACRAO 2016Volunteer State Community College

What Would I Do If I Woke Up a WOman?

Presented by

Dr. Angela Neal Brooks

Department Chair

Assistant Professor of Psychology

Phone: (615) 4820-8600, ext 2857

Cellular: (615) 957-8746

Volunteer State Community College

1480 Nashville Pike

Gallatin, TN 37066

SESSION TITLE: What Would I Do If I Woke Up a WOman?

SUMMARY: Sheryl Sandberg’s book “Lean In: Women, Work, and The Will To Lead” discusses how women are socialized differently than men. Male leaders are encouraged, even expected to be assertive, confident, and outspoken. However female leaders with the same traits are not viewed in such high esteem as their male counterparts. Women leaders are often characterized as bossy, aggressive, or downright mean. Why is this the case? This session will address the issue of the double standard for women versus men in leadership roles in higher education. It will also discuss through brainstorming ways to overcome many of these self-imposed labels women in leadership roles have been given. This session will also address the myth of can women have it all? The session will also discuss the importance of mentorship amongst female professionals as well as explore what mentorship looks like.

Lean In: Women, Work, & The Will To Lead by Sheryl Sandberg Excerpts:

  1. Men still run the world. Of the 195 independent countries in the world, only 17 are lead by women (National Center for Education Statistics, 2012).
  2. 21% of fortune 500 CEO’s are women; 14% of executive officers; 17% of board seats; 18% of elected congressional officials; these statistics are worse for women of color ranging from 3-5%(Konrad, 2000; Schweitzer, 2011).
  3. Getting rid of internal barriers is critical to gaining power; it’s not institutional barriers (Sandberg, 2013).
  4. Girls outperform boys in the classroom; 57% of undergraduate and 60% of masters degrees are earned by women (Rosen, 2012).
  5. Women, especially millennials are less likely to characterize themselves as “leaders”, “visionaries”, “self-confident”, and “willing to take risks” (Sandberg, 2013).
  6. Ambition is expected of men but is optional or a negative for women. “She’s very ambitious” is not a compliment for women. (Sandberg, 2013).

Socialization of Girls and Boys:

  1. Parents talk to boys and girls differently.
  2. Mothers overestimate boys’ crawling ability while underestimating girls’ (Sandberg, 2013).
  3. Mothers spend more time cuddling/comforting girls while they spend more time watching boys’ play. Society often says “smart like daddy” (boys) and “pretty like mommy” (girls) (Sandberg, 2013).
  4. Chang (2011) reported that JC Penny marketed a T-Shirt to teen girls that stated: “I’m too pretty to do homework so my brother has to do it for me”.
  5. Women are called “bossy” while men are called “leaders” or “assertive”.
  6. Teachers scold girls for calling out answers and encourage them to raise their hands while boys are allowed to engage in this behavior without scolding (Sandberg, 2013).
  7. Young women internalize societal cues (Sandberg, 2013).
  8. Gender stereotypes introduced in childhood are reinforced throughout girl’s lives and become self-fulfilling prophesies.
  9. Stereotype threat occurs when people are made aware of negative stereotypes and we become more likely to perform according to that stereotype (boys perform better in Math) (Sandberg, 2013).
  10. Most women are not thinking about having it all, they’re worried about losing it all – their jobs, their children’s health, and their families’ financial stability – the conflict between being a good employee vs. a responsible parent(Sandberg, 2013).

Ted Talks/YouTube Videos:

  1. Popular Sheryl Sandberg & Ted Videos (6 Videos-45 minutes)
  2. Why We Have Too Few Women Leaders
  3. Women Consistently Underestimate Themselves
  4. Clip from Ted Talk by Sheryl Sandberg
  5. So We Leaned In…..Now What?
  6. Lean In Book Trailer
  7. We’ve Got To Get Women At The Table
  8. Sheryl Sandberg: Success and Likeability
  9. Sheryl Sandberg: The 3 Biggest Mistakes Working Women Make- Oprah’s Next Chapter
  10. Sheryl Sandberg: The Importance of Authentic Communication
  11. Facebook COO, Sheryl Sandberg Commencement Speech/Harvard 2014

Online Resources:

Lean In Community:

References:

Sheryl Sandberg, (2013). Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead (New York: Alfred A. Knopf).

National Center for Education Statistics, “Table 283: Degrees Conferred by Degree Granting Institutions by Level of Degree and Sex of Student: Selected Years, 1869-70 through 2021-22 “Digest of Education Statistics (2012).

Hanna Rosen, The End of Men: And the Rise of Women (New York: Riverhead Books, 2012).

Alison M. Konardet. al., ‘Sex Differences and Similarities in Job Attribute Preferences: A Meta Analysis. Psychological Bulletin 126, no. 4 (2000): 593-641.

Andrea Chang, “JC Penny Pulls, “I’m Too Pretty to Do Homework Shirt,” Los Angeles TIMES Blog, August 31, 2011,

Linda Schweitzer et al., “Exploring the Career Pipeline: Gender Differences in Pre-Career Expectations, “Relations Industrielles, 66, no. 3 (2011): 422-44.

Southern Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (SACRAO) 2016