Are Men Afraid to Mentor Women Amid #MeToo? Controversial Study Says Yes
An interesting poll published by LeanIn.org and SurveyMonkey titled #MentorHer revealed a disturbing reality: men in leadership roles feel reluctant to actively support women at the workplace amid the #MeToo and Time’s Up era.
One of the main reasons for their reluctance, according to the poll, is out of fear that their actions could be misconstrued as inappropriate.
The poll showed 60 percent of male managers feel uncomfortable interacting with women in “common workplace” activities, like mentoring, socializing, and having one-on-one meetings. (A 32 percent increase from last year.)
Furthermore, 36 percent of men literally “avoid” these activities with women because they “were nervous about how it would look.”
Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook COO, SurveyMonkey board member, and founder of LeanIn.Org, had strong opinions about the poll: “The vast majority of managers and senior leaders are men. If they are reluctant even to meet one-on-one with women, there’s no way women can get an equal shot at proving themselves.”
The results are quite controversial and raises a new question: Why are there so many men in leadership positions in the first place? Something tells us it’s time to start banning together and lifting each other up.
If men aren’t going to act as mentors for women, then women will do it for each other! See more of the poll HERE.