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IZOLDA TAKÁCS: THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY
In literature, a number of features based on binary oppositions were col¬
lected in connection with gender. Female gualities are considered being "af¬
fectionate, helpful, friendly, kind, and sympathetic, as well as interpersonally
sensitive, gentle, and soft-spoken. In contrast, men are associated with being
especially aggressive, ambitious, dominant, self-confident and forceful, as well
as self-reliant and individualistic”. The latter traits “are also associated in most
people’s minds with effective leadership. As a result, women leaders find them¬
selves in a double bind”. If they have the characteristics of women, they are not
good leaders and can be criticized because they are not strong enough. But if
they are good managers, with masculine features, they seem to be disagree¬
able."
“Representations of non-traditional ‘exceptions’ (feminists, careerist women)
reflect negative attitudes (being seen as competent, but not lovable), making
adaptation to the traditional role expectations ‘desirable’””.!*
Identity is also part of the gender-conscious language use, as the research
has shown that it is disagreeable when a woman is ‘too’ confident and manly
in task-oriented situations because it violates the expectations towards women.'*°
“The environment prefers more insecure women, who may even seek help in
some things.”
The hierarchy created by the evolving tendency of the job and preserved by
the orderly closeness of the male world is present among scientists as well. The
disadvantage of women researchers is mainly due to gender stereotypes and
the division of male-female roles.'** This was the result of the research carried
out by two sociologists, Maria Schadt and Zsuzsanna Pötö between January
2007 and November 2009. Gender inequalities in research and development
(R&D) were measured by examining different factors at the institutional
(workplace, family) level, based on which the factors preventing the career
prospects of women working in scientific research are reproduced. In their
questionnaire study, a representative sample was taken that provided a
154 Ryan et al.: Think crisis-think female, 471.
According to researchers’ supposition, in the field of scholarly work, most women have cho¬
sen to renounce competition as a solution to conflicts (Schadt, M.: Eselyegyenlötlenseg a
tudományos szférában, in Nagy, I. — Pongrácz, T. (eds.): Szerepváltozások. Jelentés a nők és
férfiak helyzetéről 2011, Budapest, TÁRKI - Nemzeti Erőforrás Minisztérium, 2011, 66).
With all this, it became apparent that “the positive changes in women’s education and high¬
er education are usually only changes on the plane of consciousness, while inequalities
persist among scientists” (ibidem).
Kovacs—Szabé: Tarsadalmi nem és szexizmusok, 44.
Cf. Carli, L. L. - Eagly, A. H.: Gender effects on social influence and emergent leadership, in
Powell, G. N. (ed.): Handbook of gender and work, Thousand Oaks, Ca, Sage Publications,
1999. 203-222, https://doi.org/10.4135/9781452231365.n11
Nagy: Szervezet és nemek, 62.
Schadt: Esélyegyenlőtlenség a tudományos szférában, 66.
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