The Sexual Paradox: Extreme Men, Gifted Women and the Real Gender Gap

The Sexual Paradox takes a hard look at how fundamental sex differences play out in the workplace. By comparing fragile boys who later succeed, with high achieving women who opt out, Susan Pinker turns several assumptions upside down: that the sexes are biologically equivalent, that smarts are all it takes to succeed, and that men and women have identical interests and goals. After decades of women’s educational coups and rising through the ranks, men still outnumber women in business, physical science, law, engineering and politics. In explaining this ratio, Pinker’s stance is that discrimination plays just a bit part. Using stories from real men and women, combined with research evidence and examples from popular culture, Pinker examines how weaknesses can become strengths and why early achievements do not automatically translate into standard career triumphs.