Women with high cognitive abilities may experience greater disadvantages at work than similarly capable men, according to an international research team. The study found that they received less support and encountered more hostility from colleagues. Among men, higher cognitive performance was not associated with comparable drawbacks. The findings were published in the Journal of Applied Psychology.
The research involved 826 people from 140 teams. It did not examine promotions, salaries or long-term career outcomes, but focused on the informal workplace relationships that can influence professional success. These interactions include who receives help, information and encouragement from colleagues.
The findings reflect a broader pattern that can be difficult to capture through formal workplace systems. Sara Winslow, who spent two decades in sales, told Fast Company that she faced increasingly hostile comments from male colleagues after receiving an internal award for outstanding performance. She also described attempts to undermine her expertise in meetings. One of those colleagues later became her supervisor and assigned her the country's smallest sales territory, according to her account.
Nitya Chawla, a professor at UCL School of Management and the study's lead researcher, said there is a difference between recognizing someone as a potential leader and wanting to work with, support or see that person succeed. In her view, companies may be overlooking informal forms of disadvantage that shape employees' careers.
Chawla stressed that the findings should not suggest women need to downplay their intelligence or change their personalities. Instead, she said responsibility lies with employers. Workplace equality efforts have traditionally focused on structural barriers, but inequality can also appear when colleagues are less willing to cooperate, share information or offer assistance.
The researchers recommend that companies pay closer attention to daily interactions between employees. Regular discussions could help reveal how workers experience their professional relationships and identify patterns of bias, exclusion or attempts to undermine particular colleagues.
For Chawla, organizations should assess not only whether formal processes are fair, but also whether everyday workplace culture reflects the same standards. Recognizing intelligence and rewarding performance are separate from creating an environment in which employees can develop freely and receive meaningful support.
Sources: t3n.