Kristof: Banks Need Women, Women and Women
Nicholas Kristof is feeling empowered, having had a hand in the creation of a new focus of a Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee, global women’s issues. And I like what he’s doing with that feeling: tonight, he tells us in his blog that tomorrow, the New York Times will feature this column by him, “Mistresses of the Universe,” in which he discusses the following:
Banks around the world desperately want bailouts of billions of dollars, but they also have another need they’re unaware of: women, women and women.
I particularly love this elucidation he offers for skeptics:
One of the shortcomings of any system of men sitting in front of screens making financial bets was reported last year in the journal Evolution and Human Behavior, in case you missed your copy. That study found that men are particularly likely to make high-risk bets when under financial pressure and surrounded by other males of similar status.
As for women, their risk-taking was unaffected by this kind of peer pressure.
The study’s authors point to an evolutionary hangover. Across cultures, women prefer high-status men, while a woman’s reproductive prospects depend much less on her social status. Thus, when men of similar status gather, they jockey for an edge and jostle for the alpha role — and try to get ahead with high-stakes gambles.
On the plus side, boasting about these financial bets might make a great pickup line. On the downside, the bank goes bust.
Please read his entire column though. I left a comment at the blog already.
I’ve written about this topic, including some of the items to which he turns (Davos, Barnard president Debora Spar, the need for critical mass of women and not just one or two) recently, and often. I’m glad he’s giving it attention, but, as I wrote in my comment to him on his blog:
I’m well aware that women could not have gotten the vote without men approving of it, but there is still something stinging about the fact that it’s a man’s voice, surrounded by that of so many women all saying the same thing, that ends up making the difference.
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2 Responses to “Kristof: Banks Need Women, Women and Women”
You make strong point here and in Kristof comment section. . .once again found the mind waving out with a question after reading this. . .Why would these institutions continue to not hire more women when this knowledge has been available for so long?. . .I tried to find out if women by percentage are more apt to make ethical stances than men and wondered if fear of whistle blowers could be a factor? I found research where the retaliation for women whistle blowers is higher than men. I do not know how to sort “evolutionary hangover”, and the present greed, power, corruption of Wall Street on this one?
River – thanks for the comment. This really stands out:
“I found research where the retaliation for women whistle blowers is higher than men. I do not know how to sort “evolutionary hangover”, and the present greed, power, corruption of Wall Street on this one?”
It's just so systemic, textbook definition of historical discrimination and what that breeds. That's not an excuse for women to stop trying and pushing, or for men like Kristof to be allied in the effort. But it sure does make it difficult to be heard, understood, accepted and persuade others to action/champion/enact steps that embrace these points.
There's no question that women make choices that lead to the current numbers in such industries – but we've been at the stage of looking at why other options are more attractive to women for a long time. We KNOW why. So the workplace, the industries – recognizing the value that women and diversity overall lend to their endeavors – really need to figure out how to become attractive options, in order to attract those individuals who will enhance their performance.
You are right – why wouldn't businesses do all that? Frankly, I think fear and loss of control, sharing the pie – whether it's power or whatever – are all culprits. And that goes to what we value/call success in general.
It's complicated, to say it simply.