According to a study by the University of Zurich published in January 2023, when women enter a profession, men leave it. The phenomenon is not new, as it has seen the professions of judge, teacher or certain specialties in medicine become more feminized to the point that the share of men is now reduced to the bare minimum.

According to the researchers who conducted this study, these dynamics of reversal of the weight of gender in the professions could be explained by reflexes of resistance to diversity. In the end, women and men alike would not like to work together so much? We talk about it!

Resistance to diversity

However, it seems that we are all in favour of diversity 

If we are asked about our position of principle on gender diversity, we constitute a huge majority to be in favour of it. Indeed , more than 80% of us consider that gender diversity brings something to the company.

We see in it the promise of a better otherness, a better balance, a better regulation of professional relations. And then, we think it is fair that both women and men have access to all professions, for similar levels of pay with equivalent levels of skill and experience.

The weight of social gender reference points in our concrete understanding of gender diversity

Yes, but when the principle falls into our reality and requires us to change our habits, to adapt our postures, to re-negotiate our position in the organization, we are immediately a little less motivated by the mix of genres.

This is because our education, strongly impregnated by gender differentiation, implies that we do not behave in the same way when we are " between girls "/" between guys " and when we are in the presence of the other gender. Let's add to this the comedy of heteronormativity to finish distorting the game : we have been told so many things about femininity and masculinity, men's perceptions and expectations of women (and vice-versa), seduction, impossible friendships, rivalries and jealousies within our own gender that the presence of the other gender would automatically arouse!

No matter how much we analyze and understand that our difficulties in " mixing " are the result of social constructions that are mostly a little absurd and in any case quite outdated, we resist. In spite of ourselves , we look for spaces of non-mixing that seem to us more protective, more comfortable, more conducive to the expression of our " being ourselves ".

Are men more embarrassed than women by diversity ?

Men, more reluctant to mix

But do women and men have the same level of reluctance with regard to gender diversity ? No, the rapporteurs of the University of Zurich study tell us: men are more reluctant than women...

Especially when gender diversity is gaining ground that is reputed to be male. They will therefore gladly " give up " jobs and sectors in which they used to work when women make their place. Teaching, dispensing justice, caring for children or psychotherapists, it's not what it used to be since women can do it too!

Is a profession that is becoming more feminized a profession that is being devalued ?

It is obviously a caricature to present things in this way, but we must nevertheless see in this " flight of men " an imprint of the differential valence of the sexes. Coined by Françoise Héritier, this concept indicates that what belongs to femininity is devalued (especially in terms of economic recognition) while, conversely, what is attributed to masculinity gains value.

An illustration of this phenomenon is often taken from the fact that if your daughter wants to become an engineer, it represents a success and a source of pride for the whole family ; But if your son wants to become a childcare worker, this is suspicious, even a little disappointing (he could have at least aimed for a pediatrician !). You tell yourself that it's because being an engineer pays better and it's more socially rewarding than childcare ?

You would be right, but who makes the chicken and who makes the egg ? If we go back to the basics of what is most precious to us, doesn't taking care of toddlers and making them grow up in their first years of life represent a huge creation of value ? Not paid at its fair size, indeed. And this is a legacy, Héritier tells us, of the transposition of women's free family functions into the professional space, which means that we are ready to compensate for the time spent at work but that we underconsider the contribution to the creation of economic and social value of this work. "Male " jobs are doing better, Arguing that the fruit of efforts creates wealth over an entire value chain. Is it a coincidence, then, that as a profession becomes more feminized, its value degrades ?

Women are more in demand for diversity, but...

Women are more in demand of diversity. They perceive the presence of men as a regulator of the " chick atmospheres" where it would seem that people are messing around and doing low blows (no more than in " guys' atmospheres ", in truth, but prejudices die hard).

They also expect diversity to enhance their professions, but without men taking all the power. The example of the midwifery profession, renamed maieutician when it was wanted to attract men to the profession, is interesting. The recognition of the profession has been growing with the awareness of male students to this beautiful profession. But among midwives, there is no question of seeing male colleagues treated as heroes or accepting that men are regularly mistaken for doctors by patients and their relatives, while they are still too often confused with nursing assistants. Another example : the SSE. It is women who make the social and solidarity economy work, but mostly men who govern and direct it. This is not exactly the ideal of gender diversity that gender mixing activists in all professions had in mind!

Making co-education more comfortable

A mix that is effective because it is disturbing

For the past fifteen years, gender diversity has been promoted in the name of its contributions to performance. This is very convincing for managers, but sometimes less so for employees in the field. Because precisely, the driving force behind the performance induced by gender diversity is the challenge. Gender diversity is a powerful vector for the transformation of organizations in that it forces us to confront points of view, to question ways of doing things, to question postures and even to renegotiate the criteria of competence or the quality of a job well done.

The challenge is exciting, but it's very energy-consuming, even frankly exhausting. Also, to maintain the desire for diversity at all levels of companies, we will have to find the right balance between the stimulation induced by change and the fundamental need for reference points and comfort.

Diversity, an opportunity ; Diversity, change !

In other words, gender diversity is a genuine matter of " change management " that calls for methods, allocated resources, indicators to be managed and above all... Time ! Not necessarily because gender diversity must be achieved over the long term (the current challenge is rather to work on its acceleration) but because it is necessary to devote to it, in the daily work, time useful to the proper understanding of the issues for the collectives and the needs of each one, time also to regulate the frustrations and tensions that it can generate, Time to celebrate victories and show gratitude to all those who make it happen.