🔗 Share this article

Do your professional networking followers recognizing you as a thought leader? Do numerous respondents praising your advice on growing your business? Do recruiters making contact to explore opportunities?

Should that not be the case, the reason might be that you're not male.

The Experiment: Modifying Gender Identity for Increased Reach

Dozens of women participated in an organized LinkedIn experiment this week after viral posts indicated that switching their gender to "man" boosted their network presence.

Other testers modified their professional summaries to include what they termed "bro-coded" terminology - adding action-focused professional jargon like "drive", "revolutionize" and "expedite". Anecdotally, their visibility similarly increased.

Algorithmic Bias Questions Brought Up

The improved metrics has caused some to wonder whether a built-in sexism in LinkedIn's algorithm prioritizes male users who use professional networking terminology.

Like most major networking sites, LinkedIn utilizes a computerized system to determine which posts are shown to which users - promoting some while suppressing others.

Platform Response

Through a blog post, LinkedIn recognized the trend but stated it does not consider "demographic information" when determining content distribution. Rather, the company mentioned that "numerous factors" influence how posts perform.

Modifying profile gender on your profile does not influence how your posts appears in search or feed.

Individual Results

Simone Bonnett, who modified her gender identifiers to "male pronouns" and her name to "Simon E", reported extraordinary outcomes.

"The statistics I'm observing indicate a 1,600% increase in profile views and a thirteen-fold jump in content views," she commented.

Another professional, a communications strategist, began experimenting after observing her audience decline substantially.

The Process

• First, she modified her gender to "man"
• Then, she used artificial intelligence to rephrase her professional summary using "masculine-oriented" language
• Lastly, she recycled previous content with comparable "assertive" language

The outcome was immediate: a more than fourfold rise in visibility within seven days.

The Negative Aspect

Despite the success, Cornish voiced dissatisfaction with the approach.

"Previously, my posts were more personal - concise and clever, but also warm and relatable," she stated. "Currently, the bro-coded version was assertive and confident - like a Caucasian man being overly confident."

She discontinued the test after one week, stating "Each day I persisted, and results got better, I became angrier."

Mixed Results

Some participants experienced favorable results. One writer who changed both her gender to "male" and her ethnicity to "Caucasian" reported a reduction in visibility and interaction.

"We know there's systemic preference, but it's extremely difficult to comprehend how it functions in particular situations or the reasons behind it," she remarked.

Broader Implications

These experiments occur alongside continuing conversations about LinkedIn's unique role as both a business platform and social space.

Platform modifications in the past few months have apparently resulted in female creators experiencing significantly reduced exposure, leading to unofficial tests where the same posts by male and female users received vastly different audience engagement.

System Details

According to LinkedIn, the network uses AI systems to classify and distribute content based on various elements, including post content and the member's career profile.

The company claims it regularly evaluates its algorithms, including "examinations of inequalities based on gender."

Company representative suggested that recent declines in certain members' visibility might originate from increased competition due to more content on the platform.

Changing Landscape

According to a tester noted, "bro-coding" appears to be increasing on the platform.

"People often view LinkedIn as more businesslike and polished," she remarked. "This is evolving. It's becoming increasingly competitive and less controlled."