Cognitive basis of gender communication: A cross‐cultural investigation of perceived constraints in requesting

Abstract

There has been a significant discussion regarding the similarities and differences in communication styles between females and males. If the stereotype is true that men use language "to assert a position of dominance" by coming directly to the point (clarity), whereas women use language to create and maintain relationships of closeness, this should be reflected in a differential preference for conversational constraints. Crosssituational goals (i.e., conversational constraints) serve as criteria for making a choice between tactics in the pursuit of interaction goals. Focusing on five conversational constraints, this study compared the ways in which conversational constraints are perceived across gender groups. Two main questions structured this research: (1) Do males and females differ significantly in their perceived importance of conversational constraints? (2) Is there cross-cultural consistency in the findings? The results showed that participants' sex did not have any significant main effect on the perceived importance of all five conversational constraints in any of the four cultures studied. Even though many researchers have claimed gender differences in verbal styles (i.e., power, politeness, directness), males and females are relatively homogeneous in their self perceptions of preferred conversational styles across cultures. ). The general claim is that men's and women's speech seems to have different contents and to serve different purposes. Perhaps the most widespread belief about men's speech as compared with women's is that it is coarser and more direct. Male speech is characterized as competition-oriented, or adversarial; on the other hand, female speech is characterized as collaboration oriented, or affiliative. The problem is that research on the topic of sex differences in communication has provided no clear findings. In their recent meta-analysis, Canary and Hause (1993) report that sex differences in social interaction are small and inconsistent; that is, about 1% of the variance is accounted for and these effects are moderated by other variables. Similarly, Wilkins and Andersen (1991), in their metaanalysis of managerial gender communication, found that communication differences between male and female managers are minimal and of little social significance. Furthermore, gender differences in personality traits also are found to be generally constant across gender groups (for recent reviews, see Feingold, 1995). Eagly, Karau, and Makhijani (1995) recently presented a synthesis of research on the relative effectiveness of women and men who occupy leadership and managerial roles. Aggregated over the organizational and laboratory experimental studies, male and female leaders were equally effective.Prior research has explored either sex differences or gender differences in the behavior (in other words, strategy choices) of men and women during social interaction.

Man and Woman Talk in Indian Organizations: Grammatical and Syntactical Similarities

“…Is the difference in language style then real or perceived? Kim and Bresnahan (1996), in a study of four cultures, found no differences in the communication goals of men and women. They stated that “perceived difference” resulting from stereotypes is much steeper than the “actual difference.”…”

An Empirical Test of the Propositions by Gray and Tannen Relating to Gender Communication in Malaysia

“…Gray (1992Gray ( , 2002 failed to cite any empirical evidence (as it appears that he has not conducted any scientific research on the topic) to support his theories about specific communication characteristics, and his findings frequently conflict with reputable and scholarly research in these areas. For example, Kim and Bresnahan (1996) examined the determination of intention or motive behind verbal strategy choices, and found no significant differences between what men and women perceive as important in communication. Men and women, across four cultures, both found constraints such as interruptions and self-disclosure, to be important in communication behaviour.…”

Mars, Venus and Gray: Gender Communication

“…Kim and Bresnahan (1996) examined the determination of intention or motive behind verbal strategy choices and found no significant differences in what men and women perceive as important in communication. The Bem's Sex Role Inventory (Wong, McCreary and Duffy, 1990) argues that men and women can and do develop attributes in both masculine and feminine gender domains.…”