This is a Psychology Festival of Learning presentation on optimizing differing male and female decision making styles in the workplace

1. Welcome
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2. Male and Female Decision-making in Personal and Professional Lives
By Mary Ovenstone, MPhil in Management Coaching
For SACAP Festival of Learning
September 2014

4. The Differences between
Female and Male Neurobiology
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

5. Mona DeKoven Fishbane, PhDInterpersonal neurobiology researcher and psychologistfrom Loving with the Brain in Mind,2013
o“Consensus in the literature is that sex differences and gendered behavior arise from a complex interaction of genetics, hormones, and socialization”
oNature AND nurture
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

6. Sex Differences in the Structural Connectome of the Human Brain, PNAS Dec 2013Large and definitive study (U of Pennsylvania Medical School and Psychology and Psychiatry School) A study combining brain scanning, divergent affects of hormones at puberty, and underpinned by a behavioural and cognitive study with the same cohort
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

7. Male brain:
oConnects within each hemisphere, front to back,
oFacilitates connectivity between perception and coordinated action
oOutperforms women in spatial processing and motor and sensorimotor speed.
oMore white matter
Female brain:
oConnects between hemispheres, greater overall cortical connectivity,
oFacilitates communication between analytical and intuitive processing modes,
oOut perform males in attention, word and face memory and social cognition tests.
oMore gray matter
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

8. Male and Female Decision-making
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

9. Female Decision-making
oWomen tend to initially ‘bundle’ thoughts and feelings and may communicate too much too soon if not self-disciplined.
oThey can be slower but more thorough in considering all the factors impacting a decision. Take fewer risks.
oStudies show that companies with women on ExCosor Boards make higher profits.
oIf rushed or intimidated they may back down and give in, but harbor resentment.
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

10. Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

11. When men and women think and make decisions together
Women should do preliminary thinking with a coach, alone or with other women who have the time and attention to expand the focus to include all available internal and external info.
oThey should work to separate out thefeelingsand analyze their relevance to the overall decision
oAre these personal feelings, gut feelings, intuition, accurate mirroring of other’s feelings?
oBoil it down to one statement: “This is what I feel about this topic.”
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

12. oThen describe thinkingabout the topic
oSeparate assumptions from observable facts Test assumptions for accuracy
oAnalyze and prioritize the facts
oCome up with the statement:
“This is what I think about the topic (and why); this is what I feel about it (and why), and this is what I suggest we consider doing about it.”
oPresent the statement at the meeting
oThen be open to negotiation (don’t take reactions personally!).
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

13. Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

14. Male decision-making
oMen tend to make quick, logical decisions based on available information and abstract ideas, or hesitate to make any decision in collaborative environments, particularly when considering feelings and ‘people-information’.
oTheir competitiveness and territoriality can interfere with executive decision-making.
Zero/sum vs. win/win solutions.
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

15. Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

16. When men and women think and make decisions together
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014
Menshould slow down their rush to solve the issue as a problem
oIn a quiet environment, men should check in with their bodies. Ask yourself, how do I feelin my gut about this decision?
oDoes this topic make me feel stressed? Worried about my position?
oWhat ‘feeling’ information am I getting from the others around me? Why do I/ they feel this way?

17. oWhat do Ithinkabout this topic? Am I making assumptions? If so, are they always true, sometimes true or not true?
oMen ask yourselves if you have tested the available data with the experts in allied fields?
oHave I thought about the long-term implications of each alternative decision—will they still hold true in 7 years, in the distant future?
oHow do each align with my values, the values of the company?
oBring formulated thoughts and feelings to the process and be open to others opinions.
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

18. Male and Female Thinking
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

19. Images of business structure generated by:
Male thinkingFemale thinking
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

20. Career Decisions
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014

21. The Jungle Gym: Sheryl Sandberg’s image of a woman’s career path
Business school images of a career path
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

22. Using David Rock’s SCARF Model in Corporate Decision-making
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014

23. Approach/ Avoidance:
The overarching principal of brain function is to seek reward and avoid pain. The avoidance of pain is stronger, easier to arouse and the effects last longer.
Many South African bosses use the carrot and stick approach
oEvokes fear, anger and stress in employees
oReduces brain function
oDecreases productivity
oIncreases sick days
oAssures low mental performance
oLowers the quality of decision-making
NOTE: See more in David Rock’s book.
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

24. The SCARF Model, available online
Leadership based on considering 5 primary domains of the social brain:
oStatus
oCertainty
oAutonomy
oRelatedness
oFairness
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014

25. Status
Your brain is constantly monitoring your status in any group. It literally assigns you a number in that group.
When you feel like you’re going up in status you start to feel some of the ‘toward’ emotions or a ‘reward’ response.
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014

26. Certainty
We feel safe when we can predict outcomes.
Any time we experience some uncertainty we get a limbic system ‘threat’ response. In other words, we experience more of the ‘away’ emotions.
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014

27. Autonomy
When an individual feels there is some choice in a situation they’re more likely to experience ‘toward’ emotions or a ‘reward’ response.
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

28. Relatedness
When you connect with people you like or even just recognize, you experience an injection of the ‘feel good’ hormones like dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin, and a decrease in the stress hormone cortisol. In other words, you experience more ‘toward’ feelings in your brain/body.
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014

29. Fairness
Everyone likes to feel they have been dealt with in a fair manner. For example, when we feel we have been treated unfairly in a pay review we experience ‘away’ emotions, a threat response.
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014

30. How might men and women experience the SCARF brain responses differently?
What should be considered in making decisions that effect others?
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014

31. Male and Female Decision- making in Personal Lives
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014

32. Relationship Skills
oWeekly dates—NO decision-making
oWeekly meetings for decision-making and resolving feelings
oActive listening
o‘I messages’
Male and Female Decision Making
SACAP Festival of Learning-September 2014
© Mary Ovenstone, Cape Town 2014

33. Mary Ovenstone
MPhil in Management Coaching
Executive and Leadership Coach
Counselor for Individuals and Couples
Developer of Brain Exchange Solutions Courses
Tel: 021 761 8312
Cell: 082 730 0317
Email: mary@maryovenstone.com
Web: www.brainexchangesolutions.com
www.maryovenstone.com

34. Thank you
To view material from this talk visit www.sacap.edu.za/events
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#psychologyfest