Here are some numbers and links that relate to the Look Who’s Talking workshop run on 8th March 2018.
Top grossing films:
- On average, about 78% of lines in Hollywood films are spoken by men.
- In 22% of films, female actors had the most amount of dialogue.
- You can view the full study here: https://pudding.cool/2017/03/film-dialogue/index.html
- The lack of representation by (speaking) women in films is mirrored by the lack of women making films:
- 1) Women account for 52% of moviegoers. (MPAA 2016)
- 2) On the top 100 grossing films of 2017, women represented:
- 8% of directors
- 10% of writers
- 2% of cinematographers
- 24% of producers
- 14% of editors
- (http://womenintvfilm.sdsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/2017_Celluloid_Ceiling_Report.pdf)
- https://womenandhollywood.com/resources/statistics/
…and in television:
- The same is true for TV. A 2016 study of 4500 of primetime British TV found that men are twice as likely to appear as women. This goes from soaps as most equal at (around 50/50) and sports as least (at 98/2.) http://www.channel4.com/media/documents/corporate/C4GENDERRESEARCH_2016.pdf
…and in children’s books:
- The same is true for children’s books. Twice as many of the characters in the top 100 children’s books of 2017 who were given a speaking part and a main role in the story were male – and, on average, there were three male characters present in each story for every two females featured. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/jan/21/childrens-books-sexism-monster-in-your-kids-book-is-male
What about real life?
- It’s an entrenched stereotype that women talk more than men. The reality is not that women talk more, however, but that we want and expect them to talk less. In an ongoing effort to determine “Who talks more?” media often focus on perpetually varying differences between the numbers of words men and women speak. But what matters isn’t the number of words, but when, how and where words are used. Men, and masculinized speech norms, dominate the public sphere. Despite what many people think, in private life men probably talk a bit more than women, and much more in public life: http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20131112-do-women-talk-more-than-men
- For example, a 2012 experiment in the U.S. studied 94 mixed gender groups making decisions together. In these groups, men spoke around 75% of the time and women 25%. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2205502/The-great-gender-debate-Men-dominate-75-conversation-conference-meetings-study-suggests.html
But why?
- It begins first in families: parents are twice as likely to interrupt or talk over daughters than sons and conversations initiated with girls are also twice as likely to involve chores.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/voices/yourvoice/classroom_talk.shtml
- Boys are socialized to use humour and aggressive speech as markers of masculinity. https://www.puc.edu/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/99200/Jokes-On-You-Final-WPA-Poster.pdf
- IN 2013, a school in New Jersey, USA had female students pledge not to use profanity on campus grounds and set a better example for their male peers. http://abcnews.go.com/US/nj-catholic-school-girls-swear-swearing-february/story?id=18386855
- And these patterns extend well into adulthood, where status often takes back seat to gender. Men speak more, more often, and longer than women in mixed groups.
- Observations of teachers show that up to two thirds of average classroom time is spent engaged in talking to male students. When teachers speak they also tend to direct their gazes, especially when they ask open-ended questions,
- Feminine usernames get an average of 100 sexually explicit or harassing messages a day compared to the 3.7 that masculine ones do.
Daves, Johns, men and women CEOs in the FTSE 100
http://fortune.com/2017/08/04/ftse-100-ceo-pay-women/
Passive, aggressive and assertive
When we are unhappy, upset or angry about a situation we tend to be:
Passive, aggressive, assertive…or a combination of them.
Passive Communication – I don’t really matter
Small mouth, big ears – just hearing, not speaking out
- Hearing what others want but not saying what you feel or need
- Apologising for things that aren’t your fault
- Avoiding conflict, even when it’s upsetting
- Not saying ‘no’ even when you need to
Aggressive Communication – You don’t really matter
Small ears, big mouth – not listening, just speaking
- Not listening or caring how others feel, just expressing your own opinions
- Judging, insulting and criticising the person rather than the action
- Threats, sarcasm, put-downs and exaggeration
- Talking over people, shouting, not listening
Assertive Communication – We both matter
Big ears, big mouth – speaking clearly and honestly, listening openly
- Being clear what the problem is
- Saying how you feel
- Asking for what you want
- Listening to others and respecting their views and rights too
- Apologising when it’s fair
- Compromising and trying to find a solution that suits everyone
Creating a Thinking Environment
Nancy Kline is a consultant and author who created the idea of the Thinking Environment. She’s worked with many statutory and corporate organisations from Universities to Easyjet and had some incredible impacts on creating more harmonious and productive workplaces. The ten components she identifies are:
- Attention Listening with palpable respect and without interruption
- Equality Giving equal turns to think and speak
- Ease Offering freedom from internal urgency
- Incisive Questions Finding and removing untrue assumptions that distort thinking
- Information Supplying the facts and dismantling denial
- Diversity Ensuring divergent thinking and diverse group identities
- Encouragement Giving courage for independent thinking by removing internal competition
- Feelings Allowing sufficient emotional release to restore thinking
- Appreciation Practising a 5:1 ratio of appreciation to criticism
- Place Creating a physical environment that says to people: “You matter”
Adapted from Time To Think, Listening To Ignite The Human Mind by Nancy Kline
More at www.timetothink.com
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