Study: Women might be better at meeting workplace deadlines, but that's not without consequence

ACCORDING to a study, women seem to be better at meeting deadlines than men in the workplace. However, this timeliness can be a source of stress and exhaustion for female employees.

Deadline. The word alone can lead to procrastination, according to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Otago (New Zealand). However, according to a study published in the journal PNAS, women are more inclined to meet deadlines set for completing tasks. And while that could be a good thing for employers, it's an additional source of stress for workers.

As part of their research, the specialists focused on "time stress." This is defined as "the feeling of having too many things to do and not enough time to do them." A modern scourge that the study describes as "a societal epidemic that compromises productivity, physical health, and emotional well-being."

Fear of being penalized

Time-related stress is experienced disproportionately by women, both in academic and professional settings. To come to these conclusions, the authors drew on the findings of nine previous studies. So why are women more affected? The study states that "women are less likely to ask for more time when working under adjustable deadlines."

This "discomfort in asking for more time" can have consequences on the health of workers, materializing in stress and exhaustion. If women do not venture to ask for more time, it is for fear of being penalized for these requests. In addition, the researchers emphasize the notion of team spirit, as women "worry more about burdening others."

Facilitating dialog

"We find no evidence that women are judged more harshly than men," say the researchers, who encourage "the implementation of formal policies to facilitate deadline extension requests." Indeed, the scientists say that "formal processes for requesting deadline extensions reduce gender differences in asking for more time."