Workplace Communication Styles Exhibited by Men and Women

Communication skills play a significant role in determining an individual’s success in a
given career or profession. People with good communication skills tend to perform better than
others, especially when possessing leadership positions. In a working environment, it is easy to
notice the existing differences in communication styles depicted by both men and women. Both
genders exhibit certain kinds of behavior patterns, although this implies that all men and women
have those characteristics. Psychologists postulate that there are variations between men and
women, ranging from their behaviors and perceptions. This talk explores the difference between
men’s and women’s communication styles exhibited in different workplace situations.
Men and women depict different communication styles when managing their
subordinates. Men tend to give orders more directly, while women are subtle in their speech.
Also, women give room for discussion when providing directions, and they will always try not to
sound so authoritative. For instance, they may use phrases such as, “this may be a bad idea
but…,” before making any suggestion or “don’t you think” after a dialogue. This communication
style is effective when one wants to present what is in their minds without hurting others.
However, challenges arise when such a woman orders a workforce that does not understand
when she suggests or possesses an order. Psychologists’ postulate that gender roles require
women to enhance harmony in their relationships (Balachandra & Brush, 2021). Such is
portrayed in softened demand, cautious tone, and nitpicked statements in their communication.
Women’s mode of communication in the workplace may be misinterpreted as lack of confidence
which is not always the case. The same way that the direct communication style of most men
cannot be defined as dominance or arrogance. These are two different but effective approaches to
communication in a workplace setting.

3
The other gender difference in communication style is that women tend to ask more
questions than men. Being inquisitive shows different things in men and women. For instance,
men ask crucial questions with the single purpose of collecting relevant information from the
workforce (Balachandra & Brush, 2021). However, there are two main reasons why women ask
questions. The first reason is based on the need to gather information. Having primary
information is significant in a workplace, especially because it enhances decision-making
processes. Therefore, both genders focus on collecting information by asking questions and
gathering insights from the human resource. The other reason women ask questions is that they
want to access the interests of other workers to strengthen the organizational relationships.
Women are careful not to make decisions that will hurt the team and the consequences associated
with the same. Establishing the interests of workers will require asking more questions that focus
on assessing their beliefs, attitudes, and perceptions towards issues such as organizational
strategies or new changes implemented in the workplace.
The other difference in communication style is based on how and how much men and
women speak. Men hold on to the belief that they should only speak when necessary and
therefore have a clear purpose for communication. Such explains why men speak with purpose
and clarity when addressing a given subject. Besides, men emphasize the workplace goals and
objectives, such as enhancing productivity and efficiency (Barnett et al., 2021). Such applies to
their communication style where they speak to clear doubts. Men will rarely share their feelings
unless they are of vital significance
On the other hand, women express their emotions through communication. Therefore,
they speak to share as they seek to strengthen their relationship and understanding with other
workers. Besides, women organize different ideas that come to their minds which helps them

4
pick all areas they need to address. In most cases, women do not look for ideas when starting a
conversation. Rather, they expect that the coworkers will lend a listening ear. Therefore, women
tend to speak too much unknowingly when trying to bring forth a point.
The other difference is exhibited in sharing information. Men will always want to show
their expertise in whatever they are discussing. For women, they aim at building a working
relationship with others when sharing information. Therefore, they offer an opportunity to every
coworker to achieve the same knowledge for effective discussion. Such establishes a good
relationship with other workers as they feel engaged in the organizational decision-making
(Barnett et al., 2021). Unlike women, men interrupt others and try to show that their information
is more relevant than that of others. Such explains why conversation among men is interruptive
and competitive. Women wait for others to table their ideas and interests before speaking out
their minds. The implication is building goodwill among fellow workers as compared to men.
Communication can either be verbal or non-verbal. Body language, or non-verbal, is
another factor that men and women exhibit differences in communication. Women tend to
employ more non-verbal communication skills as compared to their male counterparts. Such is
associated with their personality of being expressive, and therefore, it is common to find them
using body language such as waving their hands and raising their eyebrows. Besides, women try
to gain their audience’s attention when communicating, hence employing non-verbal
communication when sharing information.
On the other hand, men rarely exhibit their emotions, and they are always calm when
communicating. Also, men try to avoid body language, which may be misinterpreted, hence
breeding emotional conflicts (Barnett et al., 2021). Therefore, body language when

5
communicating marks a crucial difference between how men and women communicate in a
workplace setting.
Listening is part of communication. Men and women depict different ways of listening
and responding to a conversation. Maintaining eye contact is a crucial component of listening
and communication. Researchers postulate that most men listen to the speaker without
maintaining eye contact (Coffman & Marques, 2021). They may look in different directions in
the room while trying to avoid eye contact.
On the other hand, women are good at maintaining eye contact as they tend to look the
speaker into the eyes and make gestures as a sign of approval. The challenge arises when a
woman facilitator speaks to men who tend to look away from them (Coffman & Marques, 2021).
In such as case, women tend to think that the man is not interested in the topic of discussion
especially considering that they do not ask questions like women. Nevertheless, appearing
detached does not necessarily mean that the individual is mentally absent in the discussion.
The different styles of communication raise concerns about gender roles in the
workplace. Men prefer being more direct when handling issues, while women use a gentle tone.
There is nothing wrong with the variation of communication between the two genders. However,
issues arise when the differences cause misinterpretations and misunderstandings in the work
environment (Coffman & Marques, 2021). The impact can affect both the teamwork and the
entire organizational behavior. Previously, men had dominated most professionals in the work
setting. However, now the scenario is changing, and therefore the effects can ruin the probability
of getting promoted to a higher hierarchy. Women build stronger relationships to acquire
assistance when the need arises in the workplace. Men and women depict different abilities, and
that is why they gain leadership roles. However, this can cause challenges, especially if they

6
work alone and find it hard to seek assistance. Therefore, they should develop collaborative
personalities that enhance their activeness in the work setting. People who understand the
differences between men’s and women’s personalities in an organization perform better.
Both men and women exhibit different communication styles in the workplace. The
difference is associated with their distinguished personalities. People communicate in a given
manner depending on the habit they formed since childhood. The reaction of coworkers to a
given manner of communication is what is important. Therefore, people should seek to establish
the reason behind the style of communication that an individual adopts. The implication is
improving the understanding among workers, which enhances the organizational behavior.
People should develop communication skills that enhance workplace relationships, whether men
or women.

Reference

7
Balachandra, L., Fischer, K., & Brush, C. (2021). Do (women’s) words matter? The influence of
gendered language in entrepreneurial pitching. Journal of Business Venturing Insights,
15, e00224.
Barnett, M. D., Maciel, I. V., Johnson, D. M., & Ciepluch, I. (2021). Social anxiety and
perceived social support: Gender differences and the mediating role of communication
styles. Psychological Reports, 124(1), 70-87.
Coffman, M., & Marques, J. (2021). Gender and Communication Are There Decisive
Differences?. Exploring Gender at Work: Multiple Perspectives, 67.