FRIDAY, Dec. 5, 2014 (HealthDay News) — Although people often think of men as better negotiators, new research suggests that women are more effective than men in certain types of financial negotiations.
“One reason men earn higher salaries than women could be women’s apparent disadvantage vis-a-vis men in some types of negotiations,” lead author Jens Mazei, a doctoral candidate at the University of Munster in Germany, said in a news release from the American Psychological Association.
“But we discovered that this disadvantage is not inevitable; rather, it very much depends on the context of the negotiation,” Mazei said.
The new study analyzed data from more than 4,600 women and more than 6,200 men. The volunteers were included in 51 studies conducted in the United States and several other countries. The participants included business people as well as graduate and undergraduate students.
The results of financial negotiation varied depending on the situation and the person. In the study, women outperformed men when they had negotiating experience and when they knew the bargaining range. They also did better than men when they negotiated on behalf of someone else, according to the researchers.
The findings were published online recently in the journal Psychological Bulletin.
“Our analysis suggests ways to lessen or even reverse gender differences in negotiations favoring men,” co-lead author Joachim Huffmeier, of the Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health in Dortmund, Germany, said in the news release.
“It looks as though gender roles no longer give men a bargaining advantage if women are trained in negotiation, have information about the bargaining range and if they are negotiating for other individuals,” Huffmeier concluded.
More information
Harvard University has more about negotiation skills and personality.
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