And it occurs even when male and female speakers make an identical presentation. While not all studies support Lakoff's notion of women's speech, several show that women do express themselves with more diffidence and less assertion than men. Many researchers claim that tentative speech patterns do not characterize the speech of women so much as they characterize the speech of those who lack power. For example, one group of researchers analyzed communication in a police station. Both men and women who speak in a tentative, nonassertive style are less likely to be believed by a jury.
Men manage to capture more than their fair share of talk time.
Sometimes women actually help men gain this advantage because they are more likely to ask questions while men are more likely to give answers. However, men often take this advantage for themselves by interrupting women and by answering questions that are not addressed to them. Gender segregation may occur in more subtle ways, but it is widespread. Teachers, or students themselves, frequently form separate boy and girl lines, seating arrangements, work groups, play areas, and even science lab work teams. Even college classrooms display gender segregation in student seating arrangements.