Gender Stereotype Activation and Power in Mixed-Gender Negotiations

Abstract

We hypothesized that the distribution of resources in a mixed-gender negotiation would depend on the relative power advantage of men versus women, as well as the manner in which gender stereotypes were activated in the minds of negotiators. More specifically, we expected negotiators who had a strong alternative to the current negotiation (BATNA) to reap more resources than negotiators who had a weak alternative. We predicted that the effect of power (possessing a strong BATNA) would be especially important when gender stereotypes were explicitly activated compared to when they were implicitly activated because the explicit activation of gender stereotypes was expected to marshal cognitions that relate to power. To test these hypotheses, we conducted an experiment in which we manipulated relative power (strong BATNA vs. weak BATNA) within the dyad and the manner in which gender stereotypes were activated (implicit vs. explicit). Results support our hypotheses. We also conducted mediation analyses to gain a better understanding of how the negotiation process is affected by power and stereotypes.