Gender barriers to communication can incite problems at home and in the workplace. Societal stereotypes, assumed gender roles, and interpersonal differences can contribute to a communication gap between the sexes. Men and women have assigned roles in society that exacerbate to the gender divide; it is important to remember, however, that not all men and women fit into a labelled category. Recognizing the common differences and similarities is a first step toward creating understanding. Women are focused on relationships and men are focused on tasks. Generally, women prefer to first develop a relationship and then to use that relationships to work collaboratively, but men experience frustration with this method. Generally, men use tasks as a means to connect with others. The differences between the two approaches effectively establishes a gender barrier between men and women in how they communicate.
Style differences during decision making is a common gender barrier to communication. Women are process-oriented and prefer to gather information, whereas men rely on a product-driven communication style. When an issue arises in the workplace, a female leader is likely to seek the advice of other colleagues. A male leader may view this as a weakness and may believe that a leader should be able to make the decision on his own, without consultation. Similarly, women prefer to discuss issues verbally, whereas men tend to process internally. A woman may interpret silence from a man as disinterest in the issue or as disengagement from the group. Men provide information; they rarely seek information. Women seek to understand and listen to others in mixed gender groups. They are focused on giving everyone an opportunity to contribute to a conversation. Dominating the conversation and interrupting women are behaviours commonly exhibited by men. Men may consider it their responsibility to lead a conversation or to demonstrate competence. When this occurs, women are often silenced or choose to opt out of the conversation.