Bias against women in academia is well-documented. Not only are female scientists underrepresented in academic institutions, particularly in higher ranks, but there are also certain studies that include only male participants, thereby producing biased knowledge. Magdalena Formanowicz, Aleksandra Cislak and Tamar Saguy have studied another form of gender bias among scientists: bias against research on gender bias. Research on gender […]
Category: Women in Academia
Book Review: A Lab of One’s Own: Science and Suffrage in the First World War by Patricia Fara
In A Lab of One’s Own: Science and Suffrage in the First World War, Patricia Fara follows the trajectories of women scientists during World War One, describing their struggles in academia and laboratories in tandem with the battle for the vote and the war unfolding across various fronts. Cléo Chassonnery-Zaïgouche praises the book for its complex and nuanced account of the changing status of […]
How are academic lives sustained? Gender and the ethics of care in the neoliberal accelerated academy
Intensifying work demands under “new managerial” practices are changing academics’ experiences. In this environment, how are academic lives sustained? Which model of science are we engaging in? And what part does gender play? Ester Conesa explores how existing gender biases in the academy are exacerbated by caring work – still mostly taken on by women – not being properly valued […]
The gendered impact agenda – how might more female academics’ research be submitted as REF impact case studies?
As the impact agenda increases in importance, appropriate consideration should be given to its effects on female academics. The REF has obviously gendered implications, with a number of different factors combining to exacerbate existing inequalities in the academy. Emily Yarrow and Julie Davies have examined impact case study submissions to the REF2014 business and management studies unit of assessment and […]
Women ask fewer questions than men in academic seminars
During academic seminars, any given question is 2.5 times more likely to be asked by a male than a female audience member. Alecia Carter reports on this research, which suggests that internalised gender stereotypes are at least partly responsible for the observed imbalance, both in men’s participation and women’s lack of it. The findings are important as having models one […]
Newly updated for International Women’s Day – Gender Bias in Academe bibliography
On this International Women’s Day, and the first anniversary of the post originally appearing on the Impact Blog, Danica Savonick and Cathy N. Davidson have updated the Gender Bias in Academe bibliography with 17 new studies. Here, they offer a brief insight into some of these additions and also appeal to readers and collaborators to continue to share details of new studies so the […]
Book Review: Unfinished Business: Women Men Work Family by Anne-Marie Slaughter
Is it really possible to ‘have it all’? In Unfinished Business: Women Men Work Family,Anne-Marie Slaughter unravels the ‘half truths’ that lie behind this claim, examining how the struggle to manage increasingly incompatible life and work pressures remains particularly potent for women due to the continued gendering of caregiving. Drawing upon her own experiences, Slaughter calls for us to forge a more […]
In a world in which ‘everyday sexism’ remains rife, progress on gender discrimination will require quotas
The UK continues to exhibit large disparities in power and representation between men and women. Gender inequality exists within the context of overlapping areas of social, political, professional and economic life. Only a systemic approach offers any hope of tackling the issue. Nicola Lacey of the LSE’s Commission on Gender, Inequality and Power shares findings from the final report, and recommends that […]
Disrupting implicit bias: Crowdsourced database highlights women experts in the social sciences #WomenAlsoKnowStuff
Women academics face inherent biases in the profession that limit career progression and influence. Emily Beaulieu and Kathleen Searles reflect on the extent of the gender gap in political science and how we might address this gap. One example is the #WomenAlsoKnowStuff website, a searchable database of women experts which has become a rallying cry, with hundreds of expert contributions […]
To fight the slow pace of gender equality in the workplace, attack the root cause: invisible, unconscious bias.
Gender diversity is correlated with better business results and enormous economic and business value. But unconscious bias continues to negatively affect women in the workplace in a number of ways, writes Caroline Turner. Those who manage teams must actively reveal and uproot these biases. This piece is part of a wider series on Women in Academia and coincides with LSE Women: making history […]