Kayla Stajković
Lecturer, Organizational Behavior
Graduate School of Management
University of California, Davis | Email: kstajkovic@ucdavis.edu
Co-Founder
Research Paradigms Applied, LLC
Madison, WI
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My research focuses on gender and leadership, confidence, and goals – areas of inquiry in Organizational Behavior. I have used a multitude of designs and analyses (e.g., laboratory and field experiments, ANOVA, ANCOVA, Structural Equation Modeling, and Meta-Analysis). My program of research has been reported in 10 publications (6 journal articles, 2 books, 1 chapter, 1 AoM proceeding). I have co-authored with leading researchers in the world, including Albert Bandura of Stanford and Edwin Locke and Gary Latham, the co-founders of goal-setting theory. In addition to my research, I am a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).
Announcements
CNBC: When Women Lead
In this CNBC episode, Julia Boorstin discusses successful tactics of women leaders. In doing so, she references our 2020 JAP study on women governors: “There’s some really interesting data around the financial crisis, but also around the pandemic about how female governors outperformed their male counterparts in very similar states. Even if they had the same policies, the female-led states minimized death to a greater degree.”
Ms. Magazine: The Reality of Running for Governor as a Woman
More women are running for governors in the 2022 election cycle than ever before. This article discusses the critical role that governors play in creating long lasting change at the state level. In doing so, it references our 2020 JAP article: “The recent crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic is a great illustration of the necessity of women governors. A study conducted by the Wisconsin School of Business found states with women governors had fewer COVID-19 deaths than states with men governors, due to early stay-at-home orders coupled with women governors expressing greater empathy and confidence in the future.”
Harvard Business Review: We Can’t Fight Climate Change Without Fighting for Gender Equity
Our research on women’s leadership during the COVID-19 crisis in the United States was referenced in conjunction with research published in Nature on women’s leadership during COVID-19 that examined effectiveness across 91 countries confirmed our findings: “Women have been demonstrated to be more effective leaders both in normal times and during crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic (in the U.S. and across 91 countries), and the data suggests this advantage extends to the climate crisis as well.”
#48 on 100 Best Organizational Psychology Books of All Time
World Economic Forum: Why female leadership is crucial to tackle climate change and other crises
Our research was referenced in this article on leadership published by the World Economic Forum. The article discusses how female leadership differs from male leadership in core competencies – making women better equipped to deal with certain challenges.
The Boston Globe: The ‘Empathy Advantage’ of Great Women Leaders
This article discusses how vulnerability can be a strength when women lead. It references our 2020 JAP article: “Leadership style can even make a lifesaving difference. A 2020 paper on female governors, also in The Journal of Applied Psychology, found that women’s leadership during COVID-19 was associated with fewer deaths. “States with women governors had fewer COVID-19 deaths than states with men governors, and when governors issued an early stay-at-home order, states with women governors were more responsive, as borne out by fewer COVID-19 deaths,” the authors wrote. “The qualitative analysis indicated a potential mechanism for that effect may be that women governors were more empathetic and confident, as shown in their briefings.”
Forbes: Women Leaders Have Shone During the Pandemic: Men, Take Note
EDThis article summarizes research to suggest that women leaders have generally handled the pandemic differently than male leaders. It cites our 2020 JAP article on women governors, “A US analysis even indicated States with female governors had fewer Covid-related deaths than those with male governors. “
Now Available on Amazon: Women’s Leadership Quotes
Counter to prevailing notions of “think-manager, think-male” in which a preferred leadership style is one more often associated with masculinity, research shows that in a crisis, women seem to be more effective leaders. In our 2020 article in the Journal of Applied Psychology, we found that states with a woman governor were associated with fewer COVID-19 deaths during early stages of the pandemic than states with a male governor. A text analysis of governors’ briefings revealed that women governors displayed greater empathy and confidence. These strong women leaders spoke about issues relevant to their followers, and they embodied compassion for how their people might be feeling during the unprecedented times. Studies continue to emerge supporting a female leadership advantage in a crisis. This book is dedicated to this emerging research stream, providing practical qualitative illustrations of effective women leaders throughout history. By summarizing and presenting quotes in one place, this book represents a modest attempt to contribute meaningfully toward building an architecture of leadership through the lenses of women leaders.
Forbes: Data Shows Women Make Better Leaders
Our paper on women governor’s exemplary leadership during the COVID-19 crisis was referred to in this Forbes article: “You can try and debunk the claim…. But a more recent study adds ammunition. American states ran by women governors lost fewer of their people to Covid.”
The Washington Post: Research Mentioned
Our study on women governors was described in this Washington Post article on gender differences in organizations. “And researchers have found that in the early months of the pandemic, covid mortality rates were lower in countries with female leaders and U.S. states with female governors. Of course, there are exceptions, but on average women introduced lockdowns sooner and faced less resistance — in part because they were more likely to acknowledge people’s fears and express compassion for their pain.”
Bloomberg: Study on Women’s Leadership Cited
This Bloomberg Business article referenced our study on women’s leadership for United States Governors. “Within the U.S., research further showed that states with female governors had fewer Covid-related deaths than states with male governors. What was the difference? Using a computer program to qualitatively analyze the content of 251 briefings between April 1, 2020 and May 5, 2020 the authors found that women showed greater empathy and support for followers’ welfare. When people feel that leaders are taking care of them, they become more willing to comply with requests to social distance and wear masks. It is basically the norm of reciprocity.”
Covid Monologues: Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State
Our 2020 study published in Journal of Applied Psychology on women’s leadership was one of seven monologues selected by researchers at Johns Hopkins University to be included in their project: Covid Monologues. This project received a grant from the U.S. Citizen’s Diplomacy Action Fund, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The project brings together theater artists and scientists to translate, humanize and disseminate scientific findings from academic research on COVID-19 to lay audiences and policymakers. For each study chosen, a summary of major themes, key messages, and qualitative interview scripts is provided to the playwrights who create the monologues. The virtual performance is on February 26th, tickets (free) click here.
BBC News: Research on Women’s Leadership Featured
Our study on United States Governors leadership during early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic was featured in this BBC News article. In the section on the “COVID-19 effect” the article discusses our findings and provides a link to our article. “Women heads of government have won plaudits for decisive leadership during the pandemic, including New Zealand’s Ardern and Taiwan’s Tsai Ing-wen. And in the US, states with women governors initially had fewer deaths from Covid-19 than states with male governors.”
Harvard Business Review: Women Are Better Leaders During a Crisis
Our study on women’s leadership during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic was highlighted in a recent Harvard Business Review article about women’s leadership in a crisis. “During the Covid-19 crisis, we’ve heard anecdotally about women leaders doing a better job and new research backs that up. One studyfound that outcomes related to Covid-19, including number of cases and deaths, were systematically better in countries led by women. Anotherlooked at governors in the U.S. and similarly found that states with female leaders had lower fatality rates.”
I/O At Work: The Benefits of Female Leadership During the COVID-19 Pandemic
“The COVID-19 pandemic has shocked the United States and has tragically led to thousands of deaths across the country. Additionally, COVID-19 has drastically affected the country’s economy and left many people without work. Several public officials have compared the nation’s fight with COVID-19 to a war. Clearly, there is a need for effective leadership during this crisis. New research (Sergent & Stajkovic, 2020) examines if and why the gender of a state’s governor may be associated with that state’s amount of reported deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors argue that the female tendency to display more empathy and confidence compared to males may be associated with greater voluntary compliance of orders among followers, and in turn, fewer deaths.”
Character & Context Blog: Society for Personality and Social Psychology
SPSP invited Prof. Stajkvoic and I to write a blog describing our latest paper in Journal of Applied Psychology on Women’s Leadership in a Crisis. “Rapid escalation of COVID-19 created unprecedented levels of uncertainty. As the crisis unfolded, governors across the United States were forced to make drastic decisions that carried rare personal costs to their residents. This included social distancing measures, mandated use of face masks, business shutdowns, and school closures. In research conducted between April and May 2020, we found that the gender of governors in the United States was associated with the most important consequence of COVID-19—death rates: States with female governors had fewer COVID-19 deaths than states with male governors.”
Research Featured by WebMD News Briefs
My study on women’s leadership was featured by WebMD New Briefs. “The researchers analyzed public data on U.S. governors and COVID-19 deaths. . . . The researchers took into account factors such as the governor’s age, state population, face mask mandates, travel bans and ventilator numbers. Even among states with early stay-at-home orders, those with a female governor still had fewer deaths. This could suggest that “residents perhaps responded differently depending on whether a man or woman governor issued this order,” they wrote.”
PsyPost News Interview
PsyPost interviewed me about my latest research paper published in Journal of Applied Psychology on women’s leadership during the COVID-19 crisis. “The authors of the study, Kayla Sergent of Edgewood College and Alex Stajkovic of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, were inspired by previous research that had indicated women tend to be favored for leadership roles during periods of crisis . . . The findings underscore the need to value different leadership voices and build a culture of inclusion in which varied voices are heard and valued. In the absence of women governors or women organizational leaders during a crisis, effort can be put forth to diversify leadership teams with individuals who show empathy and confidence.”
Interview with Wisconsin Public Radio
Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR) aired a story covering our latest research findings published in Journal of Applied Psychology on women’s leadership during the COVID-19 crisis. “Existing literature in the field of applied psychology suggests women tend to be more successful than men at managing crises, said Dr. Alexander Stajkovic of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He and Dr. Kayla Sergent of Edgewood College decided to look at how states led by men and women stacked up in terms of coronavirus response, which has largely been managed by governors. Not only did they find states led by women had fewer coronavirus deaths, but also that women governors showed more optimism and empathy during the pandemic.”
Research Featured by the University of Wisconsin – Madison
Together with my co-author, Alex Stajkovic, we used the COVID-19 life-and-death pandemic to examine a growing question in the literature—whether women are more effective leaders than men in a crisis. We found that states with women governors had fewer COVID-19 related deaths compared to states with male governors. In addition, there was a significant interaction between governor gender and issuance of an early stay-at-home order: states with women governors who issued an early stay-at-home order had fewer COVID-19 deaths compared to states with men governors who issued the same order. To investigate why this might be, we next analyzed over 250 of the governors’ COVID-19 related briefings (about 1.2 million words). Compared to men governors, we found that women governors displayed greater empathy by relating to their followers’ feelings and concerns and expressed more confidence to get through the crisis.
Research Featured by The Ohio State University
My recent publication in Journal of Applied Psychology, “Women’s Leadership Is Associated With Fewer Deaths During the COVID-19 Crisis: Quantitative and Qualitative Analyses of United States Governors” was featured by the Fisher College of Business Leadership Initiative. You can read a short-summary of the findings at the Lead Read Today.
Available at Amazon
The authors canvas a broad range of knowledge concerning the problem of employee cognitive overload in contemporary organizations and rely on multidisciplinary research to propose cognitive automation as a solution that can address it directly. This book is a deep well of valuable information for those interested in solving real work problems with application of science of organizational behavior (SOB). Stajković and Sergent introduce four models to explain how subconscious goals are primed in organizations:
Auto-motive model: Repeated practice with a goal makes cognitive automation possible.
Goal contagion: Observing and inferring goals of others creates cognitive automation.
Means-goal priming: Confidence in your goal pursuit enhances cognitive automation.
A history of reinforcement: Money, feedback, and social recognition used to reinforce goal achievement become associated with the goal, resulting in cognitive automation.
Available at Amazon
This pocketbook is a straight-forward, easy-to-read reference guide to classic theories in work motivation. Making business choices based on fiery proclamations, flimsy data, and equivocal recommendations leads to questionable results. Evidence-based answers are needed.
“”Management and Leadership: What Can MBA Do in My Workday?” is a straight-forward, easy-to-read, pocketbook formatted reference guide to classic theories in work motivation. Making business choices based n fiery proclamations, flimsy data, and equivocal recommendations leads to questionable results. Evidence-based answers are needed for career and corporate success. Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, “Management and Leadership” should be considered a ‘must read’ reference for all MBA students and graduates as they seek to establish themselves in the corporate world.” – Midwest Book Review
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