I think we can all agree that female leaders and role models should act as mentors to other women and girls. But we don't live in a perfect world.

You would think women would be their own biggest fans until you meet a woman with "queen bee" syndrome.

Women have been on a mission to conquer a male-dominated world for ages now.

However, studies show that some successful women seem to be pulling other women down because they see them as competition. This scenario is known as the queen bee syndrome.

While this woman may be critical to everyone beneath her, she will be especially hard on female subordinates. This woman wants to enjoy the privilege of being the only female in the highest echelons of leadership. For that reason, she won't let any other woman get close.

Famous women like Margaret Thatcher, the first female UK prime minister, have been accused of having a queen bee trait for not promoting female politicians.

Research has also shown that male leaders are more considerate of their lower-ranking colleagues than women in leadership.

Women, it seems, have a really hard time competing with other women. That is why many female leaders won't entertain women who could threaten their positions and influence.

What Is A Queen Bee Personality?

A classic definition of a queen bee is this: a woman who takes a traditionally male-dominated role and then uses her authority to promote bias against women under her.

A queen bee girl wants to go as high as possible up the corporate ladder. Ironically, she doesn't seem very keen on having another woman follow in her footsteps.

Quite simply, this is a classic case of women undermining each other. And it's strongly believed this phenomenon is more common in places with an all-female staff, where women dread competition from other women.

But how does someone turn into a queen bee girl knowing how hard women have to work to compete fairly against their male counterparts?

Many experts believe this is caused by the gender discrimination they themselves faced.

Apparently, when women struggle against so much discrimination as they pursue their careers, they get something of an identity crisis.

For this reason, once they make it and conquer a male-dominated world, they adapt the discriminative behaviors found in men occupying similar positions of power. In short, a woman who suffers from the queen bee syndrome gradually takes on male leaders' traits who oppress women.

Queen bee behavior is similar to the behavior of men who think less of women in similar circumstances.

But other theories argue that the queen bee syndrome starts early in life, especially during adolescence. At this age, girls form groups, and others get left out.

These scared little girls start to feel that other females are against them, and this builds aggression and resentment that persists into adulthood. The condition is likely to be worse in girls who suffered humiliation from their peers.

How Can I Handle A Female Bully At Work?

Whichever way you look at it, a queen bee is essentially a bully, although she might be a victim of the system she has been fighting against.

Queen bees turn into tyrants and despotic individuals who revel in making other people feel uncomfortable, miserable, and worthless.

Women in authority who are incredibly intimidating can make workplace environments hell for everyone. That can lead to lots of emotional damage because these people feel helpless.

However, you should not feel like trash.

First of all, you can start by not being such an easy target for the queen bee. Also, you can confront the bullying without getting aggressive by using factual arguments.

Another trick is to avoid having emotional reactions, which are what bullies count on when they use their aggressive behavior on others. Putting more distance between you and the bully can also help if that's a possibility.

Finally, have a good attitude and don't let the queen bee's behavior ruin your day.

What's The Lesson Here?

Although queen bees victimize other women with their aggression and power, they hurt themselves even more. People with many queen bee traits tend to have deep insecurities and self-hate, both of which are reinforced as they try to hurt and degrade other women.

Deep down, these women are trying to show the world how different they are from other women. They, therefore, distance themselves from them and adapt traits that chauvinistic males have.

Queen bee personality traits are very common among top corporate executives, and the list of those to blame for the queen been phenomenon is quite long. Some people don't even believe the personality flaw is real, and they call it the myth of the queen bee.

However, the truth is that there are women who put others down. They do this to deny them the very opportunities they themselves needed to excel in their careers. But you don't have to let these bullies walk all over you and ruin your life and career prospects.