Women who want to succeed at work should resist the temptation to act like men, scientists have said.
Studies show that assertive women are often less likely to get ahead than those who exhibit more feminine traits.
If however, they try to conform, promotion comes their way.
The findings, which will dismay feminists, suggest that the best way for a woman to succeed in a man’s world is to act like a lady.
Past research has shown that women oozing with self-confidence, assertiveness and other characteristics linked with successful management can be sidelined at work in favour of meeker types.
It is thought that while such traits are highly-prized in men, go-getting women are penalised for not being feminine enough.
Instead of being seen as strong bosses, feisty women are perceived as being less likeable.
In one US study into the so-called ‘backlash effect’, volunteers were given a selection of CVs from university students applying for summer job at a bank.
A woman applicant who attempted to negotiate extras such as help towards their transport or living costs was three and a half times less likely to get a job offer than a similarly pushy male.
In fact, the pushy women were the least likely of the lot to get taken on.
The latest study set out to explore what women who are naturally assertive can do to get ahead in the workplace.
Eighty young men and women completed questionnaires about their personality and while doing master’s degree in business administration in America.
Around eight years later, the researchers got back in touch with them to find out how their careers were going.
Some had been promoted five times, others just once or twice, a journal published by the British Psychological Society reports.
The results revealed that ‘macho’ women who were true to themselves had been promoted less than more feminine sorts.
But the bossy women who made a conscious effort to not appear to threatening by ‘self-monitoring’ their behaviour had done better than those who had carried on regardless.
科学家们认为，那些想获得事业成功的女性应该避免“男性化作风”。
研究发现，强势的女人往往比那些有女人味的员工更难成功。
但是如果她们能顺应人们的观念，做出改变，升职便不成问题。
以上研究结果表明，女性在男人世界里获得成功的途径是“表现得像个女人”。这一发现一定会让女权主义者大为失望。
以往的研究显示，充满自信的、有主见的、具有成功品质的女性往往在那些喜欢温顺女性的工作中遭受排挤。
人们普遍认为，对于男性员工来说，以上品质很重要，但是如果一个女人有野心的话，她会因为不够女性化而吃亏。
争强好胜的女人不会被看作是能力强的老板，不仅如此，人们还觉得她们不招人喜欢。
在美国的一项关于“抵制效应”的研究中，研究人员给志愿者一些挑选出来的大学生简历，这些学生应聘的是某银行的暑期实习生岗位。
如果一个女性申请者试图争取一些诸如交通费和生活费的补助，那么她得到该工作的可能性要比跟她一样争取补助的男性申请者小3.5倍。
事实上，这种强势的女人是所有人中最不可能被录用的。
这项的调查旨在探究天生强势的女人如何在工作中获得成功。
80名年轻男性和女性于在美国攻读MBA期间填写了关于他们个性特征的问卷。
约8年后，研究人员与这些人取得了联系，询问他们的职业发展情况。
一本由英国心理学会出版的期刊报告说，这些人中有的人已经获得五次升职，而其他人则只有一两次。
研究结果显示，我行我素的“男人婆”要比那些更女性化的女人升职次数少。
而有的女人虽然专横，却能有意控制自己的行为，使自己看起来没什么杀气。这些女人要比那些不顾外界看法的“男人婆”更成功。

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