Androgynous or not to be Androgynous

August 10, 2009
Blog Posting
E-mails and Collaboration -Gender Orientation

After reading all the e-mails and editing them, there seems to be a gender issue in that group. As a member of a group of two women and me, it could have been threatening if one perceived the situation in that frame of mind. Once one begins working in a group, the grounds rules laid down, and each one’s responsibilities noted then the group has a chance to be successful in their task.

I made the mistake of prejudging a team mate and it made for a slow start to our project. Not being able to communicate in a timely manner was another complication that we eventually overcame. The project was completed and it was successful.

I believe that groups that do not work together on an ongoing basis tend to have gender problems, as well as communication problems, and the drive to attain the purpose of the group’s conception. Being able to communicate through e-mails in a meaningful fashion is a necessary requirement for success.

The student e-mails were not well thought out or written on the level were they should have been. No matter how frustrated one is, the written text should be edited for mistakes in spelling and grammar. Apparently, there was no leader in that group and it seems that there was a communication breakdown in formatting the project. The purpose of the group was not defined by the group as a whole.

The gender differences did play an important role in the collaboration difficulties of the group. According to Mary Lay’s article most groups are set up in a patriarchal hierarchy. Men have the lead roles in such groups. In this group the dominance was control by the women in the group which was a reversal of normal roles or how collaboration groups are set up. This was a contributing factor to the failure of the group.

I think the groups that I have been involved in this class actually defied traditional group formations. Everyone in the group had the same purpose to complete the project in a timely manner, by working together to reach that goal, and each member contributed to the success of the project. Sometimes there may have been a slowdown in communication but that was quickly overcome. Each member was allowed to make suggestions; some were accepted, others were not.

We are androgynous collaborators. Androgynous is defined as male/female tendencies dictate how we react to the opposite gender. We are predictable by our gender in most cases and that defines the collaborative group.