A recent study exploring gender equity and discrimination in academia -- purportedly the largest qualitative study of its kind --finds "quiet desperation" among academic women:
Interviews with 80 female faculty members at a research university — the largest qualitative study of its kind — have found that many women in careers are deeply frustrated by a system that they believe undervalues their work and denies them opportunities for a balanced life. While the study found some overt discrimination in the form of harassment or explicitly sexist remarks, many of the concerns involved more subtle “deeply entrenched inequities.”Of course, finding evidence of sex/gender discrimination in academia is hardly revelatory, but the specific themes through which the respondents experienced (or perceived) inequities may indeed offer new insights, providing what the author calls "a more nuanced perspective on discrimination and gender equity". They are:
- Subtle institutional and cultural patterns of discrimination
- Gender devaluation and holding positions of power
- Service is for women
- Perceptions of overt discrimination
- Career, family, and need for alternative models of professional success
Asked for a reaction to the study, Irvine released a statement criticizing it. “Professor Monroe’s article draws attention to the persistence and toll of sex discrimination on women faculty. Unfortunately, the article cannot to be said to offer original insight into the promise and challenge of gender equity in higher education. The formulation of the problem overlooks research in a host of related issues, such as gender schemas, work-life balance, and leadership development among others,” the statement said.However, Monroe notes that "many of the concerns expressed in the study didn’t have to do with official policies or programs, but with more subtle questions."
2 comments:
Okay, I didn't read the study (the link didn't work and I'm too lazy to track down the original at the moment), but did they talk to any men? How many male faculty members experience at least some of these factors? I'm not saying women don't have the same challenges, but on behalf of the involved dads on the board, I gotta say, I feel huge pressure over balance, family commitments, needs of my kids, etc. I frequently put my professional ambitions in check to allow my wife to pursue her career. I'm pretty new in my career, but have a lot of seniority in my unit. I've held department administrative posts for 4 of my 8 years. I'm not asking for medals, cookies, or validation. Just saying, others are in similar circumstances.
Wouldn't the experiences of male faculty help place the female experience in proper context? Perhaps the divide is far less prominent today than it was in the past. Isn't it possible men and women experience different pressures, though both face stress and tension in their professional lives? Might early career faculty face similar pressures in many departments (i.e., trying to push a stagnant department to be more scholarly, being cast as "young upstarts" in tension w/the "old timers", etc.)?
I just wonder if focusing heavily on gender ignores a lot of other sources of stress, such as generational tensions.
Then again, I've been wrong before (twice before I even got out of bed this morning).
Great insights, Cranks. I think a lot of you what you said has merit, including the generational issue. (For example, I can imagine "service is for junior scholars" being true in some departments, rather than -- or, more likely, in addition to -- "service is for women".) To access the full text you have to be on a computer at a university that subscribes to that particular journal, so I included a link to the freely-available abstract as well.
Thoughts from others?
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