Females Less Likely Than Males To Possess Supervisory Skillset – Yet Equally Likely To Claim Leadership
Females in Malta are less likely than males to claim that they have supervisory skills and more likely to believe they are able to assist the public and clients. Both sexes are equally likely to claim to have leadership skills.
A preliminary report, published by the National Statistics Office, collected data to compile the latest Malta Skills Survey.
The survey is based on data collected in 2022, and it found that perhaps the most dominant skillset in our society, perhaps unsurprisingly, is basic computer literacy.
79% of female respondents, and 75% of male respondents, describe themselves as having basic computer skills.
In terms of supervising a team or group, the proportion of people who claim to have that skillset is generally lower, and males surveyed tended to have more belief in their ability to supervise than did female respondents.
Just below half – 49% – of males claimed to have supervisory skills, while 40% of females claimed the same.
Interestingly, though, while females tended to be slightly less likely to claim they have strong supervisory skills, 42% of female respondents said they were skilful in assisting the public and clients, while just 31% of males said they were skilful at rendering such assistance.
In light of the fact that females surveyed were so much less likely to claim to have supervisory skills – the finding that 36% of males, and 36% of females, claimed to be good at “leading and motivating” is somewhat perplexing.
The most common languages understood by the Maltese population, in descending order, are English, Maltese and Italian.
The survey found that 96% of respondents understand English, 90.4% understand Maltese, and 62% understand Italian – showing that despite our past, and though it is close, of our two national languages, English is your best bet when trying to communicate with the broadest possible audience.
This is consistent across age ranges.
These statistics, which reveal perceived differences between the traits expressed by people with different sex, bring into question whether there is anything inherent to sex which manifests in personalities and skillsets.
Traits such as helpfulness and dominance are often assumed to be a direct result of sex – which is often mistakenly associated with the performance of traditionally restrictive gender roles.
Some would argue that the results in this survey are signs of the immutability of sexual characteristics.
On the other hand, it could equally be argued that they continue to be prevalent in society so long as that society believes in their immutability – further reinforcing the likelihood that such traits will become manifest in future generations.
What do you make of these results?
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