As we$$ve seen, Cuddy has observed $$a gender grade gap$$ in her MBA classes at Harvard, in which class$-$room participation accounts for a significant portion of students$$ grades. $$It$$s competitive$$you really have to get in there,$$ she says, and women aren$$t quite as successful at contributing to discussions as men. Men, she reports, volunteer to answer questions by shooting their arms in the air while women tend toward a polite bent$-$elbow wave. Women often touch their faces and necks while talking and tend to sit with tightly crossed ankles. $$These postures,$$ says Cuddy, $$are associated with powerlessness and intimidation and keep people from expressing who they really are.$$