Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), Videoconferencing, and Gender.

Business communication applications soared during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic; the pandemic will eventually end, but telecommunications will now be a form of how we communicate and may be even more prevalent after the pandemic. As many cities shut down, organizations in the health care system and businesses alike had to change the way they work, and working remotely or from home became the new norm. As expected, the demand for videoconferencing also grew exponentially; mobile app downloads reached 62 million during the week of March 14 to 21, 2020, a 90% increase compared with pre-COVID-19 weekly download average [1]. Google Hangouts (Google, Mountainview, California), Zoom (San Jose, California), and Microsoft (Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, Washington) teams had increased downloads 30, 14, and 11 times more than the weekly average in the United States in the 2019 fourth quarter, respectively [1].

Communication styles differ between genders. Communication is not only about what one says and what one means—it is how one says it. Communication is influenced and shaped by our cultural experiences and gender stereotypes, and it is a learned social behavior from childhood [2]. This learned behavior from childhood affects our perception of the confidence and competence of any person with whom we converse in adulthood. This determines who gets heard and who gets credit in the workplace. Because we all judge others’ communication style by our own norm, women can be perceived as less competent and less confident due to a different communication style than that of men in leadership.

Several communication differences between genders can further exacerbate the gender gap with the use of videoconferencing. The differences in communication between men and women include the following:

Unequal talking time. Men tend to speak for longer periods of time; in fact, women speak approximately two-thirds the time of men during meetings [3]. The communication style of women tends to be more succinct because they feel they should not take up too much of people’s time [2]. The length of speaking time has been found to translate into who has the most influence and credit—the man who has the longest floor time [3]. When women are outnumbered in a group, they speak two-thirds as much as a man, and a lone female speaks the least. In contrast, outnumbered men in a group do not have these characteristics.

Numerous and negative interruptions. McKinsey & Company (New York, New York) with LeanIn.org released a report in 2019 regarding women in the workplace that included 329 companies and surveyed more than 68,000 employees; this report found that 50% of surveyed women had experienced being interrupted or spoken over, and 30% had others take credit for their ideas [4]. Negative interruptions are those that aim to decrease the authority of the speaker, and men commit these the most [3]. Examples of these are being cut off while speaking and saying “I do not think so” and “That is not right.” Overall, 70% of the interruptions women receive from men are negative interruptions, which are critical in nature and argumentative [3]. Having experienced interruptions may be a reason women speak less in male-dominated groups. Interruptions will decrease talking time by a woman, and talking time predicts those in a group who are most influential.

In the setting of overlapped speech due to video or audio lag, male group members tend to be more eager in joining in during a meeting with a level of confidence that they are influential [3], and thus will naturally take over, which leaves the female members no longer speaking.

Nonverbal gender gap. Nonverbal cues are just not part of men’s communication arsenal. Have you ever asked a man “Do you notice anything different about me?” What was their answer? Men in general find difficulty at both decoding and encoding nonverbal cues [5], thus they do not use them frequently in their communication. However, women are the opposite. They rely more heavily than men on nonverbal cues to determine when to speak and to interpret how they are perceived when they speak. Examples of these nonverbal cues include nodding in agreement, smiling, using facial expressions, and gesturing. The lack of visual cues can be a problem for women because they cannot gauge others’ expressions about whether an idea is appreciated, which inhibits them from speaking more.

Communication dynamics [ ]. Men tend to communicate with a power dynamic in mind—a one up mentality. Women tend to communicate with a rapport dynamic, wherein they act to save face for others and to buffer comments that can be interpreted as putting others down. Men tend to speak in a manner that elevates their authority (ie, lengthy, direct, and augmentative). Women tend to speak in succinct, indirect, and self-deprecating styles. In a one up communication style, lengthy verbiage from one person and negative interruptions when coupled with the lack of or delayed nonverbal cues can intimidate women from speaking up.

Some actions may decrease the negative effects of videoconferencing:

Use the chat function. This allows all to participate in the meeting even when there are others talking. The only pitfall is having too many simultaneous conversations or topics at one time. But it does ensure that all people can have a say. This can be a power tool in “amplification”—when a woman makes a key point in the meeting, other women would repeat it and give credit to its author, which can be typed out in a timely manner without interrupting the flow of the meeting.

Use emojis. These are becoming more prevalent in our virtual world. The Adobe Emoji Trend Report of 2019 demonstrated 91% of those surveyed use emojis to show support to the person they are talking to; 61% use emojis in a work setting; 78% found that using emojis positively affect the likability of the person who is sending the emoji; 74% found emojis make positive news or feedback more sincere; and 94% like the fact emojis can help communicate beyond language barriers and can instantly share ideas and thoughts. However, there is a generational gap in the frequency of emoji use [6]. We are often discouraged from using emojis because they may cause the sender to seem more unprofessional and feminine [7]. This perception in itself is interesting; perhaps rather than emojis being unprofessional, per se, their association with a female voice makes them unprofessional, which is an unconscious bias that should be eliminated. Although emojis may be imperfect, they may be the best tool when nonverbal communication is minimal.

Turn your video on. This option is a double-edged sword and does not mitigate the issues associated with video lag. The pros include the ability to send and receive nonverbal communication; being present and seen are also important for representation. It is important to take into account that more women than men worry about their appearances and how they will be judged on videoconferencing. There are steps to alleviate this concern, including positioning of the video camera, lighting, and clothing color or patterns [8]. Fortunately, on the Zoom platform a filter can be added to help “touch up my appearance.”

Encourage more women to be in the videoconferences, avoid interruptions when they speak, and be supportive. The more women present, the more likely their opinions will be given a voice. There are additional factors that make speaking up difficult, such as racism or other forms of discrimination. Organizations should make clear a zero tolerance policy in the marginalization of others, even in meetings. Misconduct, when observed, should be reported through appropriate channels without retaliation. Regardless of the format of the meeting, those in the meeting should be ready to speak out against such behavior to help improve the overall work culture of inclusion and diversity.

Encourage input from women and those who are less vocal. This can be done by everyone at the meeting, but it is especially important for the videoconference leader or a group moderator to be cognizant of and to implement. For those in the meeting to not feel targeted, it may be good for the group moderator to say to the group at the beginning of the meeting something along the lines of “Because I value each and one of your opinions, and I understand the challenges of virtual meetings, I will periodically ask someone specifically for their views and opinions so their voices are not lost.”

Observe these issues in videoconferences and consider actions to mitigate the gender gap in telecommunications.