Sexism in academia
Sexism in academia is the experience of sexism in an academic setting, usually higher education. There is controversy over the extent to which women being statistically under-represented in any specific academic field is the result of gender discrimination or other factors such as personal inclination.[1][2]
Statistics
- "Half of all M.D. degrees are awarded to women (and an astounding 77 percent of veterinary medicine degrees); slightly more than half of the doctorates in the life sciences go to women today – that figure was 13 percent in 1970. But still (pace Larry Summers ) women lag in the math-based sciences such as engineering."[3] - Emily Yoffe - posted February 8, 2011
Controversy
Charges of discrimination against women
Kim Gandy, then-president of the National Organization for Women, said:[4]
Summers' suggestion that women are inferior to men in their ability to excel at math and science is more than an example of personal sexism, it is a clue to why women have not been more fully accepted and integrated into the tenured faculty at Harvard since he has been president.
Rebuttal to discrimination charges
Stephen J. Ceci and Wendy M. Williams, of the Department of Human Development, Cornell University, wrote:[5]
Women’s current underrepresentation in math-intensive fields is not caused by discrimination in these domains, but rather to sex differences in resources, abilities, and choices (whether free or constrained).
See also
References
- ↑ Bird, Sharon (March 2011). "Unsettling Universities’ Incongruous, Gendered Bureaucratic Structures: A Case-study Approach". Gender, Work & Organization. Vol. 18 (No. 2): 202–230. doi:10.1111/j.1468-0432.2009.00510.x.
- ↑ Pinker, Steven (2002). The blank slate : the denial of human nature in modern intellectual life. New York: Viking. pp. ch 18. ISBN 978-0-670-03151-1.
- ↑ Yoffe, Emily (2011-02-08). "Sexism in Academia". Slate. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
- ↑ "NOW Calls for Resignation of Harvard University's President". Now.org. 2005-01-20. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
- ↑ "Understanding current causes of women's underrepresentation in science". Pnas.org. 2011-02-07. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
Further reading
- Patton, Tracey (2004). "Reflections of a Black Woman Professor: Racism and Sexism in Academia". Howard Journal of Communications 15 (3): 185–203. doi:10.1080/10646170490483629.
- "Gender bias alive and well in academia." Practical Neurology Feb. 2013: 66. Academic OneFile. Web. 10 May 2014.
- Ratliff, Jacklyn M (31 May 2012). A chilly conference climate: The influence of sexist conference climate perceptions on women's academic career intentions (Ph.D.). University of Kansas. Retrieved 20 November 2013.