Research commissioned by the Girls’ Day School Trust has caused controversy online today after reports surfaced that stated ‘Girls want to enjoy work but not lead’, based on the study.
Headlines based on the survey of girls aged 9 to 18, across state and private schools in England and Wales, implied girls are less ambitious than boys when it came to leading a workforce, but further examination of the report show that they simply want to lead in less irresponsible and unethical way than today’s role models.
According to the study, ‘being a leader’ was the lowest priority in a list of 17 career ambitions and only 33% wanted to be their own boss. Instead, they tend to prioritise being respected over being a leader per se, and are nearly three times as likely to prioritise being healthy and safe than be a leader (why those two things are competing with each other in this survey remains to be seen, as one can imagine that when given a choice between ‘being healthy’ or ‘being a leader’, the majority of people regardless of gender or age would choose to be… healthy).
But as you examine the role models girls have for leadership, you see exactly why they have such an aversion to it (if you can even say that, given 42% still noted that they want to take on leadership roles). The girls in the study noted that good leaders are inspiring, responsible, ensure individuals are understood and appreciated, have an impressive work ethic and do not give up easily – qualities they apparently do not see across their examples of public-facing leadership today.
‘Few girls see political leadership today as aspirational, describing government as lacking in the above qualities and in need of “competent, honest and thought-through leadership, to form a system that people can trust and have confidence in,’ the report stated.
Current leaders stand accused of turning a generation off the stale male model of traditional leadership.
Kevin Stannard, director of learning at the GDST added that while the results show a ‘resounding rejection of leadership as an aspiration, it is traditional models of leadership that are under scrutiny here, and current leaders — economic and political — stand accused of turning a generation off that stale male model.
‘Girls and young women in the survey prefer more collaborative models; and feel that earning the right to lead is a more commendable aspiration than just wanting to be a boss.’
Essentially, rather than the extremely simplified headlines that imply girls do not want to lead, what we learn from this research is that they actually have an incredibly nuanced understanding of what leadership embodies and the concept of it across our society. Ultimately, they want to change what it means to be a leader.
‘I think that there has been a perception that to embody leadership, to be a leader, you have to be tough, you have to be aggressive, it’s all about profit. Actually, this data shows us, their strength is going to be about shaping the world in a more caring and kinder way,’ campaigner Gina Miller told The Times.
‘Women and girls should be aspiring into positions where they can influence change by taking their life experiences, their authentic selves, and driving the conversation. We all have a duty to encourage girls to realise that if they don’t like what they see in the world, they can take up space, challenge and be heard when it comes to businesses, cultures, leadership, the future, politics and finance.’