Gendered Coping in Rejection of Work: Structural Constraints, Emotional Resilience, and Antifragility in Scientists

• In Event: 30260 - Joint Roundtables: Section on Social Psychology and Section on Sociology of Emotions
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): Table 8: Social Psychology of Work

Abstract

We argue that differences between men’s and women’s ability to cope with rejection of their work is best understood using the concept of antifragility, i.e., having increased capacity to thrive as a result of stressors. While direct effects of gender on work rejection coping disadvantage women, we utilize multinomial logistic regression in an international sample of career scientists to show that being a primary caregiver makes men more likely to not cope (agree that they struggle in the face of rejection) and less likely to cope (disagree that they struggle in the face of rejection), while among women, ability or inability to cope does not vary according to primary caregiver status. This persists despite women's greater likelihood of being primary caregivers and much greater likelihood that any given primary caregiver is a woman, in a sample where parenthood status and gender are uncorrelated. Thus, while the main effect of gender in our data fits historical stereotypes—women are more likely to have difficulty coping with rejection than men—the interaction effects between gender and caregiving tell a story of reversal: men's sensitivity to rejection increases when carrying double burden, whereas women's does not. This empirical evidence suggests that this difference is socially constructed and resides in the structurally-imposed possession of (for women) and lack of (for men) antifragility.

Authors

• Chelsea Rae Kelly, The Catholic University of America

• Laurie F. DeRose, Catholic University of America