Why So Few Women in Mathematically Intensive Fields?
Title
Why So Few Women in Mathematically Intensive Fields?
Author
Ceci, Stephen J.
Williams, Wendy M.
Research Area
Class, Status and Power
Topic
Gender and Gender Inequality
Abstract
Women have made huge gains in all fields of science over the past four decades, greatly increasing their presence in PhD programs and in postdoctoral positions. But, their progress has been greater in some fields than others. Although women constitute a critical mass of faculty in fields such as biology, medicine, psychology, veterinary science, and sociology, they continue to be underrepresented in mathematically intensive fields such as engineering, physics, chemistry, economics, computer science, and mathematics. In this essay, we describe both data and argument pertinent to women's underrepresentation, organized around three alleged causes. After reviewing these three causes, we conclude that neither sex differences in mathematical and spatial ability, nor the often‐alleged bias against women in science, can explain their dearth, whereas choices and family formation plans go a long way toward doing so.