Contents -- 1. The Elusive Truth About Women and Men -- Criteria for the Interpretation of Research Evidence -- Assessing the Research Literature -- Understanding Gender -- Overview of the Book -- 2. Task and Expressive Roles in Groups -- Overall Assessment of Gender Differences -- The Impact of the Social Context of Interaction on Gender Differences -- Assessment and Explanation of the Findings -- 3. Dominance and Leadership in Groups -- Emergent Leadership -- Comparison of Male and Female Leadership Behavior -- 4. The Function and Patterning of Interruptions in Conversation -- The Research Findings -- The Interpretation of Interruptions -- The Situational Context -- Assessment and Explanation of the Findings -- 5. Language Use and Conversation Management -- Robin Lakoff's Claims -- Methodological Considerations -- Individual Speech Features -- Topic Initiation and Change -- Female Language, or the Female Register -- The Setting and Topic of Discussion -- Status and Role -- Sex Composition of the Group -- Summary, Explanations, and Conclusions -- 6. The Content of Conversation -- Overall Gender Differences in Conversation Content -- Situational Factors Affecting Self-disclosure -- Characteristics of the Disclosing Person Affecting Self-disclosure -- Assessment and Explanation of the Findings -- 7. Gender Stereotypes and the Perception and Evaluation of Participants in Interaction -- Stereotypes of the Personality Traits and Interaction Styles of Men and Women -- The Impact of Stereotypes on the Perception of Speakers -- Isolation and Assessment of Stereotype Effects -- The Evaluation of Speakers Who Use Stereotypically Female Speech -- The Evaluation of Females Who Adopt Stereotypic Male Behavior -- Gender Stereotypes as Self-fulfilling Prophecies for Behavior -- Conclusions -- 8. Conclusions, Explanations, and Implications.

Limitations to Current Interpretations -- Explaining Gender Differences in Behavior -- The Search for Gender Differences and Its Implications -- Directions for the Future -- Notes -- References -- Author Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J -- K -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- Q -- R -- S -- T -- U -- V -- W -- Y -- Z -- Subject Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- Q -- R -- S -- T -- W.