What Is Gender Equality in Science?

Katherine R O'Brien; Milena Holmgren; Terrance Fitzsimmons; Margaret E Crane; Paul Maxwell; Brian Head

doi:10.1016/j.tree.2019.02.009

What Is Gender Equality in Science?

Trends Ecol Evol. 2019 May;34(5):395-399. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2019.02.009. Epub 2019 Mar 28.

Authors

Katherine R O'Brien¹, Milena Holmgren², Terrance Fitzsimmons³, Margaret E Crane⁴, Paul Maxwell⁵, Brian Head⁶

Affiliations

¹ School of Chemical Engineering, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; https://researchers.uq.edu.au/researcher/1162. Electronic address: k.obrien@uq.edu.au.
² Resource Ecology Group, Department of Environmental Sciences, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
³ Business School, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.
⁴ Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA.
⁵ Healthy Land and Water, PO Box 13204, George St, Brisbane, Queensland 4003, Australia.
⁶ School of Political Science, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.

PMID: 30929751
DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2019.02.009

Abstract

Why do inequalities persist between male and female scientists, when the causes are well-researched and widely condemned? In part, because equality has many dimensions. Presenting eight definitions of gender equality, we show each is important but incomplete. Rigid application of any single equality indicator can therefore have perverse outcomes.

MeSH terms

Female
Male
Sexism*
Socioeconomic Factors