Do women shy away from competition and thus hurt their careers? New research by Harvard's Kathleen L. McGinn, Iris Bohnet, and Pinar Fletcher suggests the answer is not black and white, and that employers need to understand the "genderness" of their work.

Everyone knows that on average women earn less than men for the same work. Social psychological research conducted in the 1970s and 1980s suggested that women even pay themselves less than men pay themselves. But that was then, right? John Jost decided to see if women's attitudes about their worth had changed since the advent of feminism. His research, which measures the "depressed-entitlement effect" among women, turned up worrisome results.

According to all the media headlines about a new White House report, there’s still a big pay gap between men and women in America. The report found that women earn 75 cents for every dollar men make. Sounds pretty conclusive, doesn’t it? Well, it’s not. It’s misleading.

According to highly acclaimed career expert and best-selling author, Marty Nemko, “The data is clear that for the same work men and women are paid roughly the same. The media need to look beyond the claims of feminist organizations.”

Editor's Note: for a rebuttal of this article, see "Face the Facts: Gender Pay Gap Is Real" (http://www.bnet.com/blog/management/face-the-facts-gender-pay-gap-is-real/3431)

INSEAD Professor Herminia Ibarra, co-author of a World Economic Forum report, sheds light on where different countries stand on the issue of gender equality in the corporate world and why women are still facing barriers to attain both the highest echelons and "mission critical" roles.

Deborah Gruenfeld of the Stanford Graduate School of Business had some sobering news to share with a group of high-level women executives and entrepreneurs. “When it comes to leadership,” Gruenfeld told the group, “there are very few differences in what men and women actually do and how they behave. But there are major differences in perception. Men and women doing the same things are perceived and evaluated differently.”

We believe that what women see—what they notice and value and how they perceive the world in operation—is a greatly under-exploited resource in organizations. In this manifesto, we explore what the female vision is, what it has to offer, and why it matters—to women, to organizations and to the world. In this manifesto, we explore what the female vision is, what it has to offer, and why it matters—to women, to organizations and to the world.

Although we might wish that the rules for attaining power were different, or different for women, they aren't. There's no question that women are as qualified as men to hold positions of power. I would argue that we need them to do so. The question is: when will they step up to the pursuit of power, vigorously and strategically?

Why aren’t women viewed as visionary?

The good news is that in a study of executives, women did better than men on several measures. The bad news is that women fell significantly behind in one key area: vision.

Research by INSEAD professor Herminia Ibarra and PhD candidate Otilia Obodaru shows that women leaders are not perceived to be as strong as men when it comes to articulating a vision of the future and translating that vision into a strategic direction for the organisation.

As a neuropsychiatrist who studies the differences between male and female brains, I’m often asked whether such differences play a role in professional achievement—and particularly, in men’s dominance of the highest ranks of many fields. Male and female brains are more alike than not, and business’s famous glass ceiling has nothing to do with raw intellect. Yet the distinct demands that are put on men’s and women’s brains at key career phases may help explain the gender inequality in top management.

Professional women face a common double standard: how the display of emotion can be perceived as an indicator of the incapacity for leadership; don't show emotion and be rejected as unfeminine. Communication and organization experts at Emory University and its Goizueta Business School explore the role of women and emotion in the workplace and note that for future generations, many of the stereotypes may no longer be a factor.

The evidence of women's success in the corporate world is plentiful. But two professors from the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis wondered whether women's evident prowess in business is something that most people generally recognize when making investment decisions. Their conclusion: perceptions of female business leaders aren't keeping up with reality.

New research shows that women managers outperform men in almost every management dimension. For women financial managers, this can translate into increased faith in their ability to climb to the top. The message for men is twofold: a call to develop their leadership skills and to recognize that their companies have a superior resource that is tremendously underutilized.

Gender is not a good predictor of negotiation performance, but ambiguous situations can trigger different behaviors by men and women. Here is how to neutralize the differences and reduce inequities.

At a recent Wharton presentation, a New Yorker cartoon flashed on the screen showing a group of women in what looked suspiciously like a faculty club dining room. The caption read: "I hear we're all getting Valentines from Lawrence Summers." The reference, of course, was to the Harvard University president's famous remark that the lack of women in science and engineering might be caused in part by gender differences in aptitude. Stanford University economist Muriel Niederle used the cartoon to highlight some of her research into other possible factors behind the scarcity of women in top engineering and science positions. She focused in particular on a paper titled, "Do Women Shy Away from Competition? Do Men Compete Too Much?" co-authored with economist Lise Vesterlund.

Recruiters hiring business-school grads see a clear difference between male and female candidates.

Workers' general notions about the effectiveness of male and female managers can be as important as their actual leadership abilities or business results, according to a recent Wharton Executive Development program entitled, "Women in Leadership: Legacies, Opportunities & Challenges." As a result, women executives need to be exceptionally aware of their own leadership styles and strengths -- as well as changes underway in their organizations -- in order to make an impact. Participants also discussed the role a strong corporate culture has played in the success of such companies as cosmetics giant Mary Kay Inc.

Women executives who leave the corporate world when they hit a glass ceiling, want to raise a family fulltime or decide to focus on other interests, encounter frustrating roadblocks in their attempts to re-enter the workforce, according to new Wharton research. To overcome the obstacles, women should confront the difficulties they face and prepare for their return to the labor force the moment they leave, says Monica McGrath, adjunct professor of management at Wharton, executive coach and co-author of the study entitled, "Back in the Game. Returning to Business after a Hiatus: Experiences and Recommendations for Women, Employers, and Universities."

Since the 1960s, have married women increased their participation in the labor force to compensate for the decline in employment and disappointing earnings growth of their husbands? Are married men working less today because their wives are working more?

In the workplace, employers need to take into account women who take a temporary "off-ramp" from their careers. Here is how to keep them connected to your company.

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It's one thing to aspire to please and play by the rules. It's another thing altogether to aspire to shake things up and be an agent of change. To effect change on a wide scale, women must leverage their resolve, their internal wisdom, their authentic voice

Six no-nonsense ways women can close the gender wage gap.

Are women still at a disadvantage when it comes to attaining career success? Yes and no, says a new study. Women across the board seem to be enjoying greater parity with men-except in "good-old-boy companies," where a woman's personal style and needs for work/family balance may clash with organizational expectations, values, and demands.

Many women who think they aren't good negotiators simply have never been taught how. Here are four typical mistakes women make when negotiating and how to correct them, so you can get what you want in business and in your personal life.

Women face plenty of obstacles on their way up the ladder, but those that are self-imposed may be among the most difficult to overcome.