Beyond Bias and Barriers
Encyclopedia
Beyond Bias and Barriers: Fulfilling the Potential of Women in Academic Science and Engineering (ISBN 0309100429) is a major report about the status of women in science
from the United States National Academy of Sciences
. Published in 2006, the report closely examines the data, proposed explanations, and possible responses to the relative dearth of women in science and engineering higher education
in the United States.
. The Committee was chaired by Donna E. Shalala, and included college presidents, provosts, professors, scientists, and policy analysts. Committee members included: Alice M. Agogino, Lotte Bailyn, Robert J. Birgeneau, Ana Mari Cauce, Catherine D. DeAngelis
, Denice Denton
(who committed suicide before the release of the report), Barbara Grosz, Jo Handeslman, Nan Keohane, Shirley Malcom, Geraldine Richmond, Alice M. Rivlin, Ruth Simmons, Elizabeth Spelke
, Joan Steitz, Elaine Weyuker
, and Maria T. Zuber.
As is typical with NAS reports, after the Committee drafted the report, it underwent a peer review
process within the NAS, in this case reviewed by another Committee of nineteen members.
The report then goes on to review ideas about the sources of the gender gaps, ultimately finding that the problem is "unconscious but pervasive bias", "arbitrary and subjective" evaluation processes, and a historic system which bases childrearing and family responsibilities on the concept of a professional spouse with a stay-at-home "wife
". Specifically the report found significant evidence of bias: women are paid less, promoted more slowly, receive fewer honors, and hold fewer leadership positions. Although progress has been made in some areas—women are nearly at gender parity with men in entering graduate school in biology; when women are considered for initial promotion to associate professor they succeed at the same rates as men—there are still significant gaps.
The report found that widespread ideas about women's and men's differences were largely irrelevant, including theories advanced such as cognitive abilities or preferences, career aspirations and ambition, or productivity and work ethic
issues.
Finally, the report reviews a number of potential solutions and makes a variety of recommendations to level the playing field and "stop the leaks" in the leaky pipeline. These steps include
and other efforts.
, a New York Times opinion columnist, suggested that the report must have been biased because its committee was largely made up of women. In response, Donna Shalala
denied that the gender of the scientists biased their scientific findings, and pointed out that while the committee itself was largely made up of women, the committee's work was peer-reviewed by a National Academy of Sciences
committee of 19 that included 10 men.
A number of educational institutions held meetings or established committees to implement recommendations from the report, including Harvard University
, M.I.T., University of Texas, Iowa State University
, University of Wisconsin–Madison
, Boston University
, Stanford University
, and the National Science Foundation
,
The American Council on Education
(ACE), a higher education umbrella organization
, took the recommendation from the report to monitor hiring practices, and agreed to convene its member organizations to examine ways to do so. The American Association for the Advancement of Science
(AAAS) also convened a meeting at its annual conference.
Critics have pointed out that in comparing the representation of women in the hiring pool (recent PhD recipients) versus among recent hires (assistant professors), approximations were used as mentioned in Notes on page 17 of the report; these overestimated both the representation and the utilization of women. One was taking the representation of women among professors from the Survey of Earned Doctorates; as noted in the report, this ignored all professors who received their PhDs abroad. Also data from the Survey of Earned Doctorates represent samples of those surveyed. A third approximation is introduced by combining disciplines which show opposite trends in the utilization of their hiring pools, such as chemistry and chemical engineering. More accurate data and comparisons are available from the Nelson Diversity Surveys (Table 11), which give more accurate comparisons by including all professors regardless of national origin, by getting populations instead of samples, and by treating the disciplines separately.
Women in science
Women have made contributions and sacrifices to science from the earliest times. Like many men in science, women have received little or no distinction for their work during their lifetimes. Science is generally and historically a male-dominated field, and evidence suggests that this is due to...
from the United States National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
. Published in 2006, the report closely examines the data, proposed explanations, and possible responses to the relative dearth of women in science and engineering higher education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
in the United States.
History
The report was written by the "Committee on Maximizing the Potential of Women in Academic Science and Engineering", a panel at the National Academy of SciencesUnited States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
. The Committee was chaired by Donna E. Shalala, and included college presidents, provosts, professors, scientists, and policy analysts. Committee members included: Alice M. Agogino, Lotte Bailyn, Robert J. Birgeneau, Ana Mari Cauce, Catherine D. DeAngelis
Catherine D. DeAngelis
Catherine D. DeAngelis, MD, is the first woman and the first pediatrician to become editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association . She has also edited several additional medical journals...
, Denice Denton
Denice Denton
Denice Dee Denton was an American professor of electrical engineering and academic administrator. She was the ninth chancellor of the University of California, Santa Cruz until her suicide in June 2006.-Early years :...
(who committed suicide before the release of the report), Barbara Grosz, Jo Handeslman, Nan Keohane, Shirley Malcom, Geraldine Richmond, Alice M. Rivlin, Ruth Simmons, Elizabeth Spelke
Elizabeth Spelke
Elizabeth Shilin Spelke is an American cognitive psychologist at the Department of Psychology of Harvard University and director of the Laboratory for Developmental Studies....
, Joan Steitz, Elaine Weyuker
Elaine Weyuker
Elaine J. Weyuker is an ACM Fellow, an IEEE Fellow , and an AT&T Fellow at Bell Labs for research in software metrics and testing as well as elected to the National Academy of Engineering. She is the author of over 130 papers in journals and refereed conference proceedings.Weyuker received a Ph.D....
, and Maria T. Zuber.
As is typical with NAS reports, after the Committee drafted the report, it underwent a peer review
Peer review
Peer review is a process of self-regulation by a profession or a process of evaluation involving qualified individuals within the relevant field. Peer review methods are employed to maintain standards, improve performance and provide credibility...
process within the NAS, in this case reviewed by another Committee of nineteen members.
Conclusions
The report first notes and documents significant gender gaps throughout the academic pipeline in the sciences, finding that the numbers of women in the sciences decrease "at every educational transition" from high school through fully tenured faculty positions. For instance, over the past 30 years women have earned more than 30% of the doctorates in the social and behavioral sciences and more than 20% in the life sciences; but they hold only 15% of the full professorships in those fields. Minority women are "all but absent from professorships".The report then goes on to review ideas about the sources of the gender gaps, ultimately finding that the problem is "unconscious but pervasive bias", "arbitrary and subjective" evaluation processes, and a historic system which bases childrearing and family responsibilities on the concept of a professional spouse with a stay-at-home "wife
Wife
A wife is a female partner in a marriage. The rights and obligations of the wife regarding her spouse and others, and her status in the community and in law, varies between cultures and has varied over time.-Origin and etymology:...
". Specifically the report found significant evidence of bias: women are paid less, promoted more slowly, receive fewer honors, and hold fewer leadership positions. Although progress has been made in some areas—women are nearly at gender parity with men in entering graduate school in biology; when women are considered for initial promotion to associate professor they succeed at the same rates as men—there are still significant gaps.
The report found that widespread ideas about women's and men's differences were largely irrelevant, including theories advanced such as cognitive abilities or preferences, career aspirations and ambition, or productivity and work ethic
Work ethic
Work ethic is a set of values based on hard work and diligence. It is also a belief in the moral benefit of work and its ability to enhance character. An example would be the Protestant work ethic...
issues.
Finally, the report reviews a number of potential solutions and makes a variety of recommendations to level the playing field and "stop the leaks" in the leaky pipeline. These steps include
- alteration of academic procedures for hiring and evaluation ("promotion and tenureTenureTenure commonly refers to life tenure in a job and specifically to a senior academic's contractual right not to have his or her position terminated without just cause.-19th century:...
"), at the institutional level; - additional support for working parents at the institutional level;
- efforts across the field to monitor hiring practices
- efforts to institute blind-review in peer reviewPeer reviewPeer review is a process of self-regulation by a profession or a process of evaluation involving qualified individuals within the relevant field. Peer review methods are employed to maintain standards, improve performance and provide credibility...
processes to eliminate gender bias;
and other efforts.
Reception and influence
The report was widely well-received, received significant media coverage, and sparked a number of institutional-level meetings in the months after its release. In general its even-handed and data-rich approach was lauded, although John TierneyJohn Tierney (journalist)
John Marion Tierney is a journalist and author who has worked for the New York Times since 1990.-Career and background:...
, a New York Times opinion columnist, suggested that the report must have been biased because its committee was largely made up of women. In response, Donna Shalala
Donna Shalala
Donna Edna Shalala served for eight years as Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Bill Clinton and has been president of the University of Miami, a private university in Coral Gables, Florida, since 2001. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest...
denied that the gender of the scientists biased their scientific findings, and pointed out that while the committee itself was largely made up of women, the committee's work was peer-reviewed by a National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
committee of 19 that included 10 men.
A number of educational institutions held meetings or established committees to implement recommendations from the report, including Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, M.I.T., University of Texas, Iowa State University
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of...
, University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
, Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
, Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, and the National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
,
The American Council on Education
American Council on Education
The American Council on Education is a United States organization, established in 1918, comprising over 1,800 accredited, degree-granting colleges and universities and higher education-related associations, organizations, and corporations....
(ACE), a higher education umbrella organization
Umbrella organization
An umbrella organization is an association of institutions, who work together formally to coordinate activities or pool resources. In business, political, or other environments, one group, the umbrella organization, provides resources and often an identity to the smaller organizations...
, took the recommendation from the report to monitor hiring practices, and agreed to convene its member organizations to examine ways to do so. The American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Association for the Advancement of Science
The American Association for the Advancement of Science is an international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsibility, and supporting scientific education and science outreach for the...
(AAAS) also convened a meeting at its annual conference.
Critics have pointed out that in comparing the representation of women in the hiring pool (recent PhD recipients) versus among recent hires (assistant professors), approximations were used as mentioned in Notes on page 17 of the report; these overestimated both the representation and the utilization of women. One was taking the representation of women among professors from the Survey of Earned Doctorates; as noted in the report, this ignored all professors who received their PhDs abroad. Also data from the Survey of Earned Doctorates represent samples of those surveyed. A third approximation is introduced by combining disciplines which show opposite trends in the utilization of their hiring pools, such as chemistry and chemical engineering. More accurate data and comparisons are available from the Nelson Diversity Surveys (Table 11), which give more accurate comparisons by including all professors regardless of national origin, by getting populations instead of samples, and by treating the disciplines separately.
Further research
- Powerpoint presentation used for NAS press conference
See also
- Association for Women in ScienceAssociation for Women in ScienceThe Association for Women in Science is a national advocacy organization championing the interests of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics across all disciplines and employment sectors.-History:...
(AWIS) - Women in scienceWomen in scienceWomen have made contributions and sacrifices to science from the earliest times. Like many men in science, women have received little or no distinction for their work during their lifetimes. Science is generally and historically a male-dominated field, and evidence suggests that this is due to...
- Women in medicineWomen in medicineHistorically and in many parts of the world, women's participation in the profession of medicine has been significantly restricted, although women's practice of medicine, informally, in the role of caregivers, or in the allied health professions, has been widespread...
- United States National Academy of SciencesUnited States National Academy of SciencesThe National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
- Institute for Women in Trades, Technology and Science (IWITTS)