Angry women lose influence

New York: While expressing anger may help men influence others, women actually lose influence over others when they allow anger into an argument, says a new study.

The findings demonstrate a distinct gender bias when it comes to expressing anger and influencing people.

"Our results have implications for any woman who is trying to exert influence on a decision in their workplace and everyday lives, including governing bodies, task forces and committees," said co-author of the study Jessica Salerno from Arizona State University in the US.

The researchers looked at how anger expressions affect group deliberations. "We found that when men expressed their opinion with anger, participants rated them as more credible,” Salerno said.

But when women expressed identical arguments and anger, they were perceived as more emotional," Salerno noted.