As children, boys enjoy taking risks. Most boys are also impressed by other boys who take risks. Especially if the risk-taker succeeds.
Girls are less likely to enjoy risk taking for its own sake and are much less likely to be impressed by risk taking behaviour in others. Girls may be willing to take risks but they are less likely to seek out risky situations just for the sake of living dangerously.
Part of this difference is that risky and dangerous activities trigger a ‘flight or flight’ response that gives a tingly charge, an excitement that many boys find irresistible. Men physiologically respond to risky situations with an increased heart rate, dilated pupils, and a surge of adrenaline in the blood to prepare them to fight or run away.
Females, however, respond to threat and confrontation with the ‘puke and pee’ response – they feel dizzy, nauseous and need to go to the bathroom frequently. This idea might not align with your understanding of threat response. But remember that little study has actually been done on women’s specific response to threat and stressful situations. Most scientific data is based on male studies and extrapolated to include women.
The assertive male risk-taking strategy sometimes works for men and sometimes leads them to over-estimate their ability. In a 1996 issue of the American Journal of Public Health, Jonathan Howland wrote that nearly all drowning victims are male and that men consistently overestimate their ability to swim in threatening situations.
The study found that women consistently underestimate their ability to minimize their risk of failure.
Does this impact how men and women take risks in the workplace?
Tune into the next blog and find out some bizarre facts. Find out more
about Jeanne’ s ideas at www.martrain.org.
