2018
How female scientists can confront gender bias in the workplace
Six researchers offer tips for navigating through and beyond gender barriers.
Gender and international diversity improves equity in peer review
The robustness of scholarly peer review has been challenged by evidence of disparities in publication outcomes based on author’s gender and nationality.
Gender quotas and targets would speed up progress on gender equity in academia
Men outnumber women in top-paying academic jobs and university leadership
Gender and international diversity improves equity in peer review
The robustness of scholarly peer review has been challenged by evidence of disparities in publication outcomes based on author’s gender and nationality.
Gender quotas and targets would speed up progress on gender equity in academia
Men outnumber women in top-paying academic jobs and university leadership
Talent isn’t keeping women away from science. Sexism, stereotypes and bad science are
Girls are equally able at STEM-related subjects at school, but are reluctant to choose them for a career. That is linked to a lack of confidence. We’re only just starting to tackle the problem
What does it take to make an institution more diverse?
Six researchers share their ideas for improving representation.
Women scientists don’t need fixing!
The suggestion that women need ‘fixing’ via upskilling or behaviour modification to address workplace inequity fails to consider the workplace and social structures in which women exercise their choices. Here I debunk three of the most pervasive myths about women in STEM.
Why it’s hard to prove gender discrimination in science
Lack of transparency and unconscious biases make it hard to spot inequality.
Training Programs and Reporting Systems Won’t End Sexual Harassment. Promoting More Women Will
We already know how to reduce sexual harassment at work, and the answer is actually pretty simple: Hire and promote more women. Research suggests that this solution addresses two root causes of harassment.
You’ll be a feminist, my son
How do you raise your little boy with equality between men and women? The question haunts even the most committed mothers, who must fight against their unconscious biases
Digits of PI: Barriers and Enablers for Women in Engineering
Sheila Widnall was the first woman to head a branch of the American military (air force). She is a professor in aeronautics and astronautics and first woman to serve as chair of the MIT faculty.
The gender gap in science: How long until women are equally represented?
Women comprise a minority of the Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, and Medicine (STEMM) workforce. Quantifying the gender gap may identify fields that will not reach parity without intervention, reveal underappreciated biases, and inform benchmarks for gender balance among conference speakers, editors, and hiring committees. (download pdf)
Women still less likely to be active in the labour market than men in most of the world
Despite notable progress over the past 20 years, updated ILO figures show persistent inequalities between women and men on access to the labour market, unemployment and conditions at work.
Is a girl allowed to enrol in an enhanced mathematics curriculum?
This was the surprising question asked a few years ago by a mother whose daughter wanted to enrol in the Euler course at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) for children with an early gift for maths.
What does a scientist look like? Children are drawing women more than ever before
When asked to draw a scientist, school-age kids in the United States are increasingly sketching women. That’s the main conclusion of a new study that compiled information about 20,860 pictures drawn by students age 5 to 18 over 5 decades.
Picture a Leader. Is She a Woman?
Most people will draw a man. Researchers investigate the consequences.
How to tackle the childcare – 2013conference conundrum
Parent–researchers face a conundrum as they struggle to attend key conferences and further their careers while finding care for the children.
I Spent Two Years Trying to Fix the Gender Imbalance in My Stories
Here’s what I’ve learned, and why I did it.
Gender bias goes away when grant reviewers focus on the science
But female scientists suffer when their research proposals are judged primarily on the strength of their CVs.
US science agency will require universities to report sexual harassment
The National Science Foundation says institutions it supports must disclose when researchers are found to have violated policies or are put on leave pending investigation.
The impact of implicit bias for women in academia and what to do about it
This paper looks at the role of implicit bias as a mechanism behind the gender gap and a potential threat to academic meritocracy. It focuses on implicit gender bias, examining how it plays a role in working conditions for women at universities, in recruitment and career advancement processes, and in research funding situations.
2017
Women Are Invited to Give Fewer Talks Than Men at Top U.S. Universities
And it’s not because they turn down talks more often, or because there aren’t enough women to invite.
The Jobs You’re Most Likely to Inherit From Your Mother and Father
When children choose what to be when they grow up, they often follow in their fathers’ footsteps. But mothers are powerful, too.
Questions au féminin 2017
Les modèles donnent aux femmes le courage de suivre leur propre voie, sans se laisser rebuter par les résistances ni enfermer dans les conventions et les stéréotypes réducteurs. Dans cette revue, nous présentons des femmes avec de telles qualités de modèle. Elles sont militantes et pionnières de l’ancienne et de la nouvelle génération. En particulier Iris von Roten, qui est née il y a 100 ans. Déjà en 1958, elle demandait l’autodétermination sexuelle pour les femmes, l’égalité des chances dans l’éducation et la vie professionnelle, l’égalité salariale et la pleine participation à la vie sociale et politique. (pdf complet)
I’m not your mother
I love being a mom and all of the joy and chaos that comes with balancing the tenure track with soccer games and Girl Scouts. However, I am a mom to two amazing girls—not an endless number of graduate and undergraduate students. I love being there for students, coaching them through their first presentation at a professional meeting or seeing the look on their face when their first-author paper is finally published after months or years of hard work. But I can only help them reach their full potential as their mentor—not their mother.
University systems allow sexual harassers to thrive
It’s time for academic institutions to take responsibility for protecting students and staff, says Laurel Issen.
Championing the Success of Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths, and Medicine
This report explores the role of women in STEM and the challenges they face, looking at areas of gender inequality, exploring potential causes of this inequality and offering solutions.
19 Women Leading Math and Physics
The pipeline of women pursuing mathematics and physics is still dreadfully leaky. Because there are so few women in senior positions, aspiring researchers lack female mentors, perpetuating a sense of not belonging.
Medical Students’ Association Changes Sex
In order to promote gender equality and to force it into disrupting mentalities, the Medical Students’ Association decides to use the feminine by default.
Why didn’t you ask?
The comics questioning the sharing of domestic tasks
Research junior female scientists aren’t getting the credit they deserve
According to the U.S. National Science Foundation, women earn about half of the doctoral degrees in science, yet they represent a mere 21% of the faculty at the full professor level at research institutions in the United States.
Science remains male-dominated
But a new report says females are catching up.
Why Is Silicon Valley So Awful to Women?
Tech companies are spending hundreds of millions of dollars to improve conditions for female employees. Here’s why not much has changed—and what might actually work.
Ordinary sexism also present in academic circles
Harassment towards women comes in sometimes extremely violent forms. Far from being limited to the street or terraces, the phenomenon also affects the high spheres
The secret to making family life compatible with an academic career
Starting a family has less influence than before on the pursuit of an academic career for researchers
Gender diversity leads to better science
When it comes to science collaborations, there’s ample data to suggest that gender diversity pays a substantial research and productivity dividend
Journals invite too few women to referee
Jory Lerback and Brooks Hanson present an analysis that reveals evidence of gender bias in peer review for scholarly publications
Why So Few? Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
In an era when women are increasingly prominent in medicine, law, and business, why are there so few women scientists and engineers?
Gender equality: universities are still all talk and too many trousers
Female academics’ feedback on issues such as ‘acceptable’ norms reveals a sector far from its ideals, say Laurie Cohen and Jo Duberley. Anyone who sincerely believes that academia is a meritocracy must be either deluded or in denial.
The impact of implicit bias for women in academia \u2013 and what to do about it
This paper looks at the role of implicit bias as a mechanism behind the gender gap and a potential threat to academic meritocracy. It focuses on implicit gender bias, examining how it plays a role in working conditions for women at universities, in recruitment and career advancement processes, and in research funding situations.
2016
There are historical reasons for the lack of women in leadership positions in large Swiss companies
24.11.2016 Long excluded from political life in Switzerland, women have only recently gained positions of power in the economy and are still very much in the minority when it comes to boardrooms and executive positions in large companies. For the seventh issue of the series Social Change in Switzerland, Stéphanie Ginalski looks back over history and describes how the current inequality has been socially constructed. (full article HERE).
Becoming parents means becoming unequal, a long interdisciplinary research project concludes
08.11.2016 When a child arrives, many couples manifest incoherence between their values regarding equality and their actual behaviour. This paradox is explained by the “gendered master statuses” concept, which is the common thread of a book by a group of sociologists, psychologists, social psychologists and demographers directed by Jean-Marie Le Goff and René Levy. Based on data gathered from young parents in the Lake Geneva area, this study also features in another new publication, which presents a comparison between several European countries, in which Switzerland appears particularly traditionalist. (Full article HERE).
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Médias – représentations de genres – politique Revue spécialisée «Questions au féminin» 2016
23.12.2016 On trouvera dans ce numéro les résultats d’une étude, lancée conjointement par la CFQF, l’OFCOM et la SRG SSR, qui montrent comment les médias – tant imprimés qu’en ligne – ont parlé des candidates et des candidats aux élections fédérales de 2015. Des entretiens et portraits réalisés avec des chercheuses, des syndicalistes et des professionnelles des médias montrent où en sont les efforts en vue de l’égalité dans les médias. (Full article HERE). |
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The Power of Realistic Expectations. Research shows a way to close a key achievement gap.
05.12.2016 While many students experience difficulty acclimating to college, first-generation, low-income, and minority students are the hardest hit and most at risk of dropping out. (Full article HERE). |
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Halte au sexisme au travail!
29.11.2016 Qu’il s’exprime par le biais de l’humour ou directement, qu’il semble bienveillant ou hostile, le sexisme a de lourdes conséquences: il dévalorise les femmes et limite leur progression professionnelle montre une étude de I’Universite de Genève. (Full article HERE).
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The engineering gap08.11.2016 Only 8% of engineers in the UK are women. Why are efforts to get more girls to choose it as a career failing?. (Full article HERE). |
Women need to be seen and heard at conferences28.10.2016 A neuroscience initiative is boosting the number of female invited speakers at meetings. Other disciplines should do the same. (Full article HERE). |
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Women Nobel science prize04.10.2016 Following Marie Curie, double winner, only sixteen women received the prestigious Nobel science prize. (Emission CQFD de la RTS à écouter ICI). The destiny of these passionate researchers is told in the book “17 femmes prix Nobel de sciences“. |
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CMU’s Proportion of Undergraduate Women in Computer Science and Engineering Soars Above National AveragesCulture, Personal Approach Makes the Difference in Attracting More Women. Full article HERE |
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GMA: Gender Mainstreaming in AcademiaThe Swedish Secretariat for Gender Research has been commissioned by the Swedish government to support all state-funded higher education institutions as well as Chalmers University of Technology and Jönköping University in their gender mainstreaming efforts 2016–2019. Full article HERE |
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Moving My Brain to Canada: Motherhood and International Mobility as an Academic Career Requirement This article highlights the challenges encountered by mothers in academe who face the demand of international mobility as a career requirement. Full article HERE |
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Understanding unconscious biasThis animation introduces the key concepts of unconscious bias. It forms part of the Royal Society’s efforts to ensure that all those who serve on Royal Society selection and appointment panels are aware of differences in how candidates may present themselves, how to recognise bias in yourself and others, how to recognise inappropriate advocacy or unreasoned judgement. You can find out more about unconscious bias and download a briefing which includes current academic research at www.royalsociety.org/diversity. |
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Facebook Managing unconscious biasAt Facebook, we believe that understanding and managing unconscious bias can help us build stronger, more diverse and inclusive organizations. These videos are designed to help us recognize our biases so we can reduce their negative effects in the workplace. Surfacing and countering unconscious bias is an essential step towards becoming the people and companies we want to be. |
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Math for Girls, Math for Boys18.04.2016 Why don’t females compete in international math olympiads at the same rate as their male classmates? Full article HERE. (The Atlantic) |
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Pour comprendre la discrimination envers les femmes, il faut remonter à la charrue 10.03.2016 La discrimination envers les femmes n’a pas toujours été la norme. Comme beaucoup d’autres différences de genre, elle est socialement et culturellement construite. Pour en comprendre l’origine, il nous faut remonter le temps. L’outil agricole a marqué une rupture Article complet ICI. (Le Temps) |
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Women considered better coders – but only if they hide their gender12.02.2016 Researchers find software repository GitHub approved code written by women at a higher rate than code written by men, but only if the gender was not disclosed Article complet ICI. (The Guardian) |
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Le système suisse décourage le travail féminin08.03.2016 Le marché du travail Suisse est le plus discriminatoire d’Europe concernant l’égalité homme-femme, selon une étude du journal britannique The Economist. En cause, le traditionalisme des représentations, et la difficile conciliation entre charges familiales et vie professionnelle. Article complet ICI. (Bilan édition numérique) |
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Women under-represented in world’s science academies29.02.2016 Fewer than half of academies have policies in place to boost gender equality in membership. Article complet ICI. (In Nature) |
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Le langage épicène, un pas vers l’égalité femme-homme?12.02.2016 À l’heure où les femmes gagnent toujours moins que les hommes à fonction égale, sont sous-représentées dans les médias et en politique, la féminisation du langage est envisagée comme un vecteur d’égalité des genres. Interview de Pascal Gygay à écouter ICI. (RTS, On en Parle) |
Blogs
Anais Rassat: Dark Universe
I am a science researcher and science communicator interested in technology, innovation and science policy. I am passionate about communicating the economic, business and social relevance of science and its importance for all of society.