Bonnie Chiu* considers whether the failure of Theresa May tells us anything about female political leaders and the gendered norms of leadership.
Commentators have blamed the Brexit mess on the false referendum promises, on the Tories prioritising party interests over national interests — and of course, on Prime Minister, Theresa May (pictured) herself and her flawed leadership.
At the People’s Vote March three weeks ago, there was an interesting conversation between two marchers. They were discussing why Britons found themselves in this situation.
“Theresa May is the worst Prime Minister this country has ever had,” one marcher said.
“I think she is so bad because she does not have any children.”
This loaded comment leads to a reflection on the gendered dimension of the Brexit debacle.
Is there one?
Does the failure of Theresa May tell us anything about female political leaders?
The first aspect to consider is the gendered norms of leadership.
Harvard Business Review research last year argued that “female leaders, much more than their male counterparts, face the need to be warm and nice (what society traditionally expects from women), as well as competent or tough (what society traditionally expects from men and leaders).”
In short, female leaders face a double bind.
Has Theresa May been subject to these double bind expectations that we do not expect from male politicians?
As the longest serving Home Secretary for over 60 years, she has earned herself a reputation as being tough.
In 2016, shortly after she became Prime Minister, she said that she was happy to be seen as a “bloody difficult woman.”
At the same time, throughout her journey as Prime Minister, there have been many accusations towards May regarding her lack of emotions and lack of children — transgressing the traditional expectations of women.
There is a case to be made that she is subject to more expectations as a politician as a result of her gender, regardless of how good (or bad) she is as a leader.
The second dimension to consider is female leadership traits.
Studies of female leaders in the corporate context show that women are more cooperative than their male counterparts.
Looking across the English Channel, German Chancellor, Angela Merkel is one of most powerful political leaders of all times.
Bloomberg called her an “arch-pragmatist and master of the art of compromise”.
On the contrary, May has spent the past two years trying to reach a compromise with other British politicians but to no avail.
Not only has her deal suffered the largest defeat in UK Parliamentary history, it has already been rejected three times — and she still wants to push it through the Parliament for a fourth time.
These actions do not appear to be characteristic of a leader who is cooperative — a trait often associated with female leaders.
A recent New York Times op-ed discussed and criticised her leadership style at length.
In this regard, the failure of Theresa May is largely a failure of her own making, an exception to the rule when it comes to female leadership.
On the one hand, Theresa May has arguably been trapped by the gendered norms of leadership; but on the other hand, she has not displayed leadership traits which are typically found among women.
This makes her, as a female political leader, a curious case.
In her limited days left as Prime Minister, her behaviours and our reactions towards her will continue to provide food for thought on the topic of female political leadership.
* Bonnie Chiu is Founder and CEO of Lensational and Managing Director of The Social Investment Consultancy. She tweets at @bonniesychiu and her website is bonniechiu.org.
This article first appeared at www.forbes.com.
