Despite increased participation in the workforce, women remain underrepresented in leadership positions. This paper introduces the Gendered Leadership Identity hypothesis, proposing that gender differences in influence processes shape leadership dynamics during team interactions. To test this hypothesis, we conducted two online studies: a correlational study (N = 695), and an experimental study (N = 573). Our findings reveal that men and women differ in their influence attempts during team settings at work. Women were less likely than men to claim leadership, both spontaneously and in response to others’ influence attempts. Instead they more often supported others’ influence efforts. Men, by contrast, employed more competitive tactics, such as seizing leadership for themselves. While behaviours of men and women differed, responses from others to their influence attempts did not. Men and women received similar levels of support or resistance to their leadership claims, and positive responses significantly reinforced future claiming behaviours. These findings underscore the importance of social interactions in shaping leader and follower identities. If men claim leadership while women support others, men may develop leader identities more readily, while women are more likely to form follower identities. Addressing these processes is essential for understanding the gender gap in leadership.
