Business Assignment
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GIVING FEEDBACK
The Gender Gap in Feedback and Self-Perception by Margarita Mayo
AUGUST 31, 2016
Most of us tend to think a little too highly of ourselves, according to the science. Researchers have
consistently found that we humans tend to overestimate our own performance. This creates a
challenge for peers who give us critical feedback: even friendly colleagues are likely to perceive us as
having more weaknesses than we would attribute to ourselves. When faced with conflicting
information about our skills – our own opinions as well as other people’s – how do we respond?
6/30/2018 The Gender Gap in Feedback and Self-Perception
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YOU AND YOUR TEAM SERIES
Giving and Receiving Feedback
How to Get the Feedback You Need by Carolyn O’Hara
The Common Myths About Performance Reviews, Debunked by Peter Cappelli
Happy Workplaces Can Also Be Candid Workplaces by Emma Seppala and Kim Cameron
Research has examined the short-term effects of peer feedback, but little is still known about how
long these responses last. Because receiving feedback from peers calls into question our self-
perceptions, it is not unreasonable to expect that some of us will develop psychological defense
mechanisms. In other words, receiving feedback involves some emotional fallout that may block the
very same learning processes they are intended to boost.
We put this theory to the test in a study with MBA teams published in the Academy of Management
Learning and Education. With my research team, I investigated how MBA students react to feedback
they received about their leadership competences from their peers.
Our study involved 221 MBA students, 169 males
and 52 females, with an average age of 30 and
with around six and a half years of work
experience. At the beginning of the one-year MBA
program, students were assigned to learning
teams of five or six members. These teams
worked together every day, getting to know each
other well so that each member could provide
constructive, accurate feedback to one other.
Peer feedback was collected at the end of each
trimesters (that is, in January, April, and June).
We asked students to complete an online survey
that asked them to rate themselves and their
teammates using a 5-point response format (1 =
completely disagree to 5 = completely agree) on
four key leadership competences – “shows
confidence when facing unforeseen situations,”
“knows when to work and when to relax,” “doesn’t feel stressed or frustrated when doing several
tasks at the same time,” and “actively seeks the opinions of others.” One week after completion of
the leadership survey, students received the results, including their average rating from team
members compared to their self-rating on each of the four leadership competences.
6/30/2018 The Gender Gap in Feedback and Self-Perception
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All the students initially rated themselves higher on each competence than their peers did,
supporting the notion that people overestimate their leadership competences. Over time, the
average self-ratings declined in response to feedback from others. For example, the average self-
rating for self-confidence in January was 3.95 compared to an average peer rating of 3.69, while the
corresponding figures for April were 3.85 and 3.59 and for June were 3.74 and 3.60.
6/30/2018 The Gender Gap in Feedback and Self-Perception
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Thus, the results showed that students’ views of their own leadership skills went down after
receiving feedback, and continued to drop in response to more feedback. Feedback from others
leads us to compare others’ ratings with our own self-evaluations. This comparison triggers
reflection about ourselves and a readjustment of our own inflated views so as to align them with the
more realistic evaluation of others. Thus, our self-ratings of our leadership competences decrease
over time.
This effect was stronger for women. We found that women more quickly aligned their self-
awareness with peer feedback, whereas men continued to rationalize and inflate their self-image
over time. That is, in our survey, women were a lot more sensitive to peer feedback than men. After
six months, women perfectly aligned their views of leadership with their peers’ assessment. In
contrast, men continued to inflate their leadership qualities. For example, for self-confidence the
pattern was quite different for men than it was for women. For men, it was 3.99 (self-rating) vs. 3.70
(peer rating) in January; 3.92 vs. 3.64 in April; and 3.84 vs. 3.64 in June. These results suggest that
women close the gap between self-perception and peers feedback faster than men, demonstrating
greater sensitivity to social cues.
6/30/2018 The Gender Gap in Feedback and Self-Perception
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All in all, our results show that men and women deal differently with the emotional fallout
associated with receiving feedback. The incorporation of peer feedback requires changing our
personal frame of reference. But whereas women tend to assimilate new information into the way
they see themselves; men tend to overestimate their leadership views to preserve their sense of
personal efficacy.
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Could women’s greater sensitivity to their peers’ feedback be an advantage in gaining positions of
leadership? Women’s alignment of their self-image to reflect what others think of them increases
self-awareness, which is the first step for learning. Thus, women should be motivated to seek out
training and advice to develop their leadership competences and improve their chances of
promotion. However, when assimilation of negative feedback involves doubts about one’s
competences and lowers confidence, it can discourage women to take on new challenges.
Equally, does men’s overestimation of their leadership abilities when given feedback impair or
facilitate their leadership development? Preserving their positive self-views can encourage them to
seek out new challenges and take advantage of opportunities. At the same time, ignoring what
others are saying so as to protect their sense of psychological security is hardly a prescription for
success in the long run.
Margarita Mayo (margaritamayo.com) is Professor of Leadership and Organizational Behavior at IE Business School in Madrid. She was recently featured on the Thinkers50 Radar as one of 30 thought leaders to watch in 2017. Her new book,
Yours Truly: How to Stay True to Your Authentic Self in Leadership and Life will be published by Bloomsbury in 2018.
Related Topics: DEVELOPING EMPLOYEES | GENDER
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6/30/2018 The Gender Gap in Feedback and Self-Perception
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Irene DAmico 2 years ago
One thing though that the study does *not* emphasize is the systematic lower rating by peers of women.
This smells of unconscious bias -- which research says is the biggest obstacle towards gender equality. The specific
bias shown by the peer-related data of this study looks very detrimental, as, at the end of the experiment, it leads
women participants to have a substantial lower score than men in all the four dimensions used in the study.
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