Why Women’s Networks Are Stronger During Crisis | Tiantian Yang

The Gender Difference in Workplace Networks

Dan Loney: The impact of one business combining with another can play a significant role in how social networks in the workplace develop and potentially come apart. Research from our guest today and her colleagues look at that. Tiantian Yang is an assistant professor of management and of sociology here at the Wharton School. Tiantian, what drove you to want to look at how networks in the workplace get impacted, especially when there's some strong event like a merger or an acquisition?

Tiantian Yang: You know the idea of networks and how important it is. Everyone can even feel that in their daily lives. We have all kinds of social relationships. When people look for jobs, they ask their friends, their family members. And in organizations, these kind of networks are really important, because networks serve as a conduit for information and resources. Such networks are not only shaped by the formal structures — for example, the kind of jobs people have. Usually, if they are working in higher level, more powerful positions, they tend to be the center of larger networks. However, there are also the interpersonal relationships that shape these networks. So, it's a very complex dynamic, and different people tend to engage networks differently, which have consequences for a lot of important things.

Loney: For this research, you were looking at the medical community as to how some of these impacts occur?

Yang: Yes. I kind of stumbled on the health care industry. But after I studied the industry, I realized networks are so important. For example, when people look for doctors, and doctors sometimes need to refer them to other doctors — for instance, generalists need to refer their patients to a specialist. These kind of referral networks are not only shaped by insurance networks, but also by doctor’s networks. These networks are very important, because they really affect the common patients doctors will have and the kind of effective care that will be delivered. So, they have consequences for both physicians and the patients.

Loney: But you note that there is a difference between men's networks and women's networks, especially when there is this kind of disruption.

Yang: Yes. The disruption you are referring to is merger and acquisition that we studied. But I think there are other kinds of restructuring events in organizations. Going back to the question about gender difference in networks, it's very interesting that when people think about gender and networks, they tend to think about network formation, right? For example, some people have better networks — larger, expansive, more useful networks — because they're good at networking, meaning that they reach out to people more to build larger networks. They're good at making friends.

But network formation is only one kind of network dynamics. The other kind is network maintenance. After people establish networks, make friends, build new networks, they have to have ways to maintain networks. And if they are not good at maintaining networks, they may experience network decay, which is that networks will become weaker and eventually disappear.

When people talk about gender differences in networks, and also the gender gap in resources acquired from networks, they tend to attribute this to men's better ability to build the networks with other men. So, it's gender homophily, because men's networks tend to be larger, stronger, and also because men tend to occupy higher positions in organizations, more powerful positions. Gender homophily allows men to build better networks. That's the kind of combination and notion people have about gender homophily and the social networks.

What we're saying is, look at network maintenance. A man or a woman may do differently, too. We found something really interesting. We found that during organizational restructuring events — for instance, merger and acquisition — men and women tend to react differently. We found that gender homophily is intensified. Men are making more friends, new friends with men. They focus on network formation. They try to expand their networks by making more new connections with other men. And women tend to focus on their existing networks with other women, so their networks are more dense but stronger.

This has consequences for net resources they acquire from these networks during merger and acquisition, because during these turbulent times, each woman actually provided more resources, referred more patients to each other. Women's networks actually provided a greater advantage to them during turbulent times. That's the big finding we have from this research.

Why Women Are Better at Maintaining Networks

Loney: Part of the story is the importance of women's networks sticking together.

Yang: Yes.

Loney: Do women's networks tend to be stronger than men's networks in general?

Yang: We don't find a general pattern that women tend to be better at maintaining networks. However, there are particular circumstances under which women become better at maintaining networks. For instance, during COVID, there is research showing that women tend to maintain networks better without face-to-face interaction. For some reason, men's networks, for them to maintain relationships, they have to do certain activities together. They have to see each other. So, women are better at kind of recording information, maintaining networks without in person, face-to-face interaction.

But what we found in this context, I think it's also explained by social psychological mechanisms. Because women feel like they need to support each other during difficult times. That's why they're leaning toward each other rather than looking for new connections.

Loney: That brings up the component of trust, when you're talking about continuing and strengthening these networks as well, correct?

Yang: Right. Yes. There is some indigeneity. Because if you think about existing networks and new networks, existing networks presumably are stronger, right? This network may be during difficult times or turbulent times, and there is a lot of uncertainty in who will be helping me. Women tend to lean on the relationships they already have. There is also a greater level of trust in those relationships. If you think about people helping each other when there is reciprocity, people support each other when it's mutual. It also reinforces the level of trust in the relationships.

Loney: I found it interesting, in looking at the research, that it seems like the belief is that women's networks tend to be more inward focused, whereas men's networks tend to be more outward focused. In many cases, the outward focus even goes beyond the walls of the company to other networks and other firms as well, correct?

Yang: Yeah. I think that might be an outcome or general pattern people observe. But I wouldn't attribute that, like what social media and conventional wisdom say, to individuals’ personalities. It's not just because women are more introverted, men are more extroverted. They are shaped by social structures and cultural norms. There are differentials like gender and expectations for how men and women should act in terms of building and maintain new relationships. Think about it. Women are prescribed to be more communal. That means the need to take care of their friends and support each other. Whereas men are more agentic and more assertive, so they're going out to making new connections with other people.

There’s also the impact of the positions, the impact of their current jobs. If they're at higher level positions, more powerful positions, that will help them to make more new connections. So, I think the general pattern you described is right. But the structural, cultural reasons that shape those patterns, I think, are beyond the individual personality.

How Networks Can Impact Organizations

Loney: Let me finish up with a two-parted question. First, in doing this research, what do you think you have learned and maybe is going to be passed on to others about the value of women's networks in the workplace and how they can have such a significant impact on the company?

Yang: Yeah. I think that's a question that my co-authors, Marissa King from Wharton and Yiftach Yarmar, who is a postdoc at INSEAD, all of us have thought a lot about. We want to really think hard about the implication of our research for men and women, for individuals, and for organizations. Our research focused on the short-term changes following restructuring events, so we don't know the long-term impact yet.

I think when mergers and acquisitions happen in organizations — if you think of this beyond the hospital organizations — organizations want people to build new connections. Because then the units, the existing organizations, and new organizations can be integrated better. I think in that process, what we observe is that because it creates some kind of uncertainty in relationships, women are actually leaning back. It's not necessarily helpful for the organization in the long term. However, in short term, women are able to kind of sustain their relationships and maintain the resources they acquired from networks. So, that would be one thing I would say. It is a double-edged sword. It's not universally good.

The other thing is, when people think about gender differences in networks, they tend to claim generally that networks are leading to disadvantages for women. That's a general notion or conventional wisdom people have. But I want people to think differently based on our research. Which is, there are circumstances where women can benefit from networks, and even the networks they have with other women. It's not like women shouldn't be making friends with each other, shouldn't spend time maintaining building relationships. Actually, the network can become an advantage for them during turbulent times. The question is more about how to build a more balanced relationship, which can provide a lot of resources in a stable environment. And also, the kind of network relationships that can help you weather through difficult or uncertain conditions.

Loney: Part of that also is not only having that network expand and grow, and it might even be outside of the borders of the company.

Yang: Yes.

Loney: But also to potentially help that person's longer term goals of where they want to take their career.

Yang: Exactly. And here, we have only looked at patient referrals. It's a kind of career-relevant outcome. But in real life, there are so many other outcomes that can be shaped among networks, like our well-being, the activities we do in our private life, and our work outcomes. Even more general career outcomes. Career mobility, moving to other firms and moving up in your organization. I think there are actions that individuals can take to help themselves.