Pathways, Potholes, and the Persistence of Women in Science
Reconsidering the Pipeline
Contributions by Sharla Alegria, Mindy Anderson-Knott, Catherine White Berheide, Enobong Hannah Branch, Mary Frank Fox, Lisa Frehill, Rachel Gordon, Patricia Wonch Hill, Laura Hirshfield, Apriel K. Hodari, Mary Anne Holmes, Kathryn Kline, Lily Ko, Julia McQuillan, Maria Ong, Cassaundra Rodriguez, Timothy Sacco, Laurel Smith-Doerr, Angela Stoutenburgh, Margaret Usdansky, Kathrin Zippel Edited by Enobong Hannah Branch
Publication date:
16 May 2016Length of book:
278 pagesPublisher
Lexington BooksISBN-13: 9781498516365
Training for and pursuing a career in science can be treacherous for women; many more begin than ultimately complete at every stage. Characterizing this as a pipeline problem, however, leads to a focus on individual women instead of structural conditions. The goal of the book is to offer an alternative model that better articulates the ideas of agency, constraint, and variability along the path to scientific careers for women. The chapters in this volume apply the metaphor of the road to a variety of fields and moments that are characterized as exits, pathways, and potholes.
The scholars featured in this volume engaged purposefully in translation of sociological scholarship on gender, work, and organizations. They focus on the themes that emerge from their scholarship that add to or build on our existing knowledge of scientific work, while identifying tools as well as challenges to diversifying science. This book contains a multitude of insights about navigating the road while training for and building a career in science.
Collectively, the chapters exemplify the utility of this approach, provide useful tools, and suggest areas of exploration for those aiming to broaden the participation of women and minorities. Although this book focuses on gendered constraints, we are attentive to fact that gender intersects with other identities, such as race/ethnicity and nativity, both of which influence participation in science. Several chapters in the volume speak clearly to the experience of underrepresented minorities in science and others consider the circumstances and integration of non-U.S. born scientists, referred to in this volume as international scientists. Disaggregating gender deepens our understanding and illustrates how identity shapes the contours of the scientific road.
The scholars featured in this volume engaged purposefully in translation of sociological scholarship on gender, work, and organizations. They focus on the themes that emerge from their scholarship that add to or build on our existing knowledge of scientific work, while identifying tools as well as challenges to diversifying science. This book contains a multitude of insights about navigating the road while training for and building a career in science.
Collectively, the chapters exemplify the utility of this approach, provide useful tools, and suggest areas of exploration for those aiming to broaden the participation of women and minorities. Although this book focuses on gendered constraints, we are attentive to fact that gender intersects with other identities, such as race/ethnicity and nativity, both of which influence participation in science. Several chapters in the volume speak clearly to the experience of underrepresented minorities in science and others consider the circumstances and integration of non-U.S. born scientists, referred to in this volume as international scientists. Disaggregating gender deepens our understanding and illustrates how identity shapes the contours of the scientific road.
This work offers an analysis of the under representation of women in science through a compilation of 12 chapters submitted by distinguished researchers in the areas of sociology, public policy, gender studies, and STEM education. Despite increases in the number of women in the 'pipeline' toward many STEM fields, women appear to significantly disappear from the workforce at various stages in their careers. Some factors discussed include obstacles to faculty positions, tenure, and expectations for post-tenure promotions. The book is organized into five parts: 'Navigating the Scientific Path,' 'Detours, Off-Ramps, and Gendered Roadblocks in Scientific Careers,' 'What the Pipeline Misses: Gender Performance at Work,' 'Differential On-Ramps? Historical Forces Shaping the Scientific Workforce,' and 'Creating a Road Map: Strategies for Persistence.' A few chapters examine employment profiles of scientists of color and/or immigrants. This work is highly recommended for courses in gender studies or those that focus on diversity in the workforce.Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers.