Economics research finds men from high socioeconomic backgrounds are more competitive than women from affluent backgrounds as well as men and women from poor backgrounds.

The study identifies that this happens because rich men are rewarded for this behaviour while women are socially conditioned against competitive behaviour, while poor people get no monetary or social incentives to maintain competition.

“A revolution is required in the business sector in order to recruit more female leaders. We have to crack that code.”

This is not necessarily about women having to become more competitive. The experiment with the pupils from Bergen showed that boys tend to compete too much, and not necessarily according to their actual performances.

“The studies indicate that a lack of competitiveness may be a reason why women don’t become top leaders. This does not necessarily mean that they ought to compete more. Perhaps we need to think differently about the way we recruit top leaders. The most competitive candidate is not necessarily the best leader.”