The Authority Gap by Mary Ann Sieghart - Review

“The authority gap is a measure of how much more seriously we take men than we take women. We tend to assume that a man knows what he's talking about until he proves otherwise. Whereas for women it's all too often, the other way round, and as a result, women tend to be underestimated more. They tend to be interrupted, more talked over more. They have to prove their competence more and we often feel uncomfortable when they're in positions of authority,”

The Authority Gap between men and women means women are interrupted, disliked, doubted, questioned by themselves and others, ignored, and patronised – it also puts them in danger, means they are not taken seriously, and makes them poorer.

The Authority Gap explains how we don’t take women seriously, what we would gain if we did, how we can, and why we should. She interviews CEOs, businesswomen, prime ministers, scientists, students, lawyers, judges, lecturers, women of colour, and transgender people about their experiences of being a woman. The people she speaks to eloquently provide a nuanced analysis of being a woman in their spheres.

Her daring chapters, of which some are titled ‘All things bright and beautiful, or maybe if you’re beautiful you can’t be bright?’, ‘Conversational manspreading: how men hog the floor’, and ‘Lady Macbeth meets Medusa: why do we hate women in power?’ explore ageism, competency, perception, social currency, likeability, and the language we use that contribute to and are symptoms of the Authority Gap.

The Authority Gap is an amalgamation of perceptions, norms, and habits. It is created and perpetuated by its very symptoms of itself. For women, being likeable is a social currency, we reward likeable women, and likeability correlates with not possessing characteristics that will reward her authority (brashness, disagreeability, confidence, and assertiveness). There is a balance that must be struck; a combination of confidence and warmth in the exact ratio that means they are likeable without giving up their influence.

A large part of the analysis is looking at women in institutions; work or education, and how these scenarios are microcosms of women’s authoritative positions. Whether it be speaking up in a classroom or a boardroom or being encouraged towards promotion or higher education – the authority gap is at work and is diligently examined.

Sieghart finishes her writing by breaking down her previously examined areas (work, politics, education, media, culture), and explains ways that men, women, employees, colleagues, and teachers can work to lessen the gap. One of these, for example, is the implementation of ‘reverse mentors’ – young, often female, employees that can provide feedback on conduct, policies, and interactions to ensure that they are more inclusive and authoritatively equal.