4 Kinds of Gender Bias Women Face at Work

Despite decades of progress, gender bias remains a powerful force shaping women’s experiences in the workplace. It’s not always overt — in fact, it often hides behind good intentions, unconscious habits, and outdated assumptions.

In her groundbreaking research, Professor Joan Williams, along with her daughter Rachel Dempsey, identified four recurring patterns of gender bias that women encounter at work. These insights, drawn from interviews with 127 professional women and hundreds of academic studies, reveal how subtle biases limit opportunity — and how awareness and strategy can help women navigate them effectively.

Why Understanding Gender Bias Matters

At the current pace of change, it would take more than 250 years before women achieve equal representation among Fortune 500 CEOs. The same stagnation exists across law, tech, finance, academia, and other sectors. Women made steady gains through the 1980s and early 1990s — but progress has since flatlined.

Part of the reason is that while gender bias is well-documented, the research can feel abstract. Williams’ work simplifies it into four recognizable patterns that women experience every day — patterns that explain why equality has stalled, and how individuals and organizations can move forward.

The Four Patterns of Gender Bias

These patterns don’t affect every woman in the same way, but they appear consistently across industries, seniority levels, and backgrounds. Recognizing them is the first step toward change.

1. The Prove-It-Again Bias

The first bias is the Prove-It-Again pattern.

Women often find they must demonstrate their competence repeatedly to earn the same credibility automatically granted to men. Their mistakes are remembered longer, while their successes are more easily questioned or forgotten.

A woman might be told she’s “not ready yet” for a promotion, even after performing at a high level for years. Or she might notice that her ideas gain traction only after being repeated by a male colleague.

This bias makes women’s professional journeys more exhausting — forcing them to overprepare, overdeliver, and overperform just to receive equal recognition.

2. The Tightrope Bias

The Tightrope Bias captures the narrow path women must walk between being “too feminine” and “too masculine.”

If a woman is warm and accommodating, she risks not being taken seriously. But if she’s assertive and decisive, she risks being labeled “abrasive” or “unlikable.”

Men are often rewarded for confidence and directness, while women are expected to be both competent and nice, balancing traits that are rarely demanded simultaneously from men.

This double bind can make leadership especially tricky. Women leaders may find themselves second-guessed for being “too soft” or criticized for being “too tough,” no matter how they lead.

3. The Maternal Wall Bias

The Maternal Wall is one of the most pervasive and damaging forms of gender bias.

Once a woman becomes a mother, she often faces assumptions that she’s less committed to her job or less competent overall. Colleagues or managers may assume she doesn’t want challenging assignments or won’t be available for travel.

What’s worse, this bias often affects all women, not just mothers. Women without children — or even those who don’t plan to have them — can still be judged through the lens of potential motherhood.

The result? Lost opportunities, stalled advancement, and a culture that subtly discourages women from balancing family and career — even when they’re doing both successfully.

4. The Tug-of-War Bias

Finally, the Tug-of-War bias describes how systemic gender bias can cause conflict among women themselves.

In workplaces where opportunities for women are limited, competition can replace collaboration. Senior women who had to work hard to succeed in male-dominated environments may hold newer women to higher standards — or unconsciously distance themselves to maintain credibility.

This isn’t about personal rivalry; it’s about scarcity and survival. When bias limits women’s advancement, it creates a situation where women feel they’re competing for a limited number of “spots at the table.”

Understanding this dynamic helps build empathy and encourages solidarity. When women support one another, they push back against the system that created the tension in the first place.

Strategies to Overcome Gender Bias

Recognizing these four patterns is only half the battle — the next step is learning how to respond. Williams’ research emphasizes practical, actionable strategies that women (and allies) can use to counter bias in real time.

1. Identify the Pattern Early

Learn to spot bias when it’s happening. Naming it (“This feels like a prove-it-again moment”) helps you respond rationally instead of internalizing it.

2. Use Evidence and Data

When your performance is questioned, rely on metrics, outcomes, and documentation. Data can help cut through subjective bias.

3. Support Other Women

Mentorship and sponsorship are powerful antidotes to the Tug-of-War dynamic. Sharing opportunities and offering public support strengthens the collective.

4. Advocate for Fair Systems

Bias thrives in ambiguity. Push for transparent criteria in hiring, promotion, and evaluation processes so that performance is measured objectively.