Hi Audrey and others take a look at these Swedish studies on gender bias in science.....
Christine Wenneras, Agnes Wold. *Nepotism and sexism in peer-review*. Nature 387, 341 - 343 (22 May 1997) Christine Wenneras, Agnes Wold. A chair of one' s own. /Nature/ *408*, 647(7 December 2000). Best wishes, Leonard Audrey Mayer skrev: > It bothers me that a discussion on "gender bias" has skewed so quickly > to the maternity issue. Prior to a year ago, before I moved to Finland > (from the US) for an academic research position, I might have been > less bothered. I expected the "Scandinavian" stereotype of an > egalitarian society... what else from a country with a 2-term female > President, and where 70-80% of women of childbearing age work outside > the home? > > Finland's "Maternity Allowance Act" was passed in 1937; women get 9 > months of paid maternity leave and job security; they can opt for a > full two years (at less than full salary but with some job security) > if they choose. > > In 1978, legislation made it legal for parents to share paid parental > leave (fathers automatically get about a week of paid paternity leave). > > Municipal child care is free until the child enters school (7 years old). > > Given how long these parental leave policies have been in effect, I > was curious if female ecologists here had better "pipeline" statistics > than in the States or elsewhere. No, they don't. > > Looking at pooled numbers from three ecology departments at the > University of Helsinki: > Male:female professors (44 total) = 82%:18% > Male:female docents/fellows (15 total) = 67%:33% > Male:female lecturers (47 total) = 51%:49% > > From what I've seen (and this has been discussed elsewhere), women of > equal professional accomplishments receive less recognition from their > professional communities than their male counterparts. We are often > passed over for the unpaid but important positions on journal > editorial boards and governing bodies of professional societies. We > are rarely invited or keynote speakers, or winners of prestigious > awards. To cite one of the most egregious examples, all 26 volumes of > the series "Excellence in Ecology" have been written by men > (http://www.int-res.com/ecology-institute/eci-prize/). Authors are > elected by a self-selecting group of previous authors and ECI members. > I can think of 5 female ecologists off the top of my head who should > have authored a volume by now. All of these recognitions of course > become important for grant applications, faculty positions (and > tenure), and networking (which begets more recognition and service to > the community). Perhaps it is time to have a discussion about the > influence of networking and biases in these networks? > > Audrey > > ------------------------- > Audrey Mayer, Ph.D. > Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences > P.O. Box 27 (Latokartanonkaari 3) > 00014 University of Helsinki > Tel: (+358 3) 3551 8380 > Fax: (+358 3) 3551 8537 > Mobile: +358 40 818 3502 > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > -- Dr. Leonard Sandin Department of Environmental Assessment / Miljöanalys Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences / SLU P.O. Box 7050 SE-750 07 Uppsala Sweden Work phone +46-(0)18-673813 fax +46-(0)18-673156 http://www.ma.slu.se --
