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Author: search.filters.author.Ceci, Stephen J.Language: search.filters.language.English

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  • Item type:Publication,
    Women's underrepresentation in science: Sociocultural and biological considerations Open PDF 
    (American Psychological Association, 2009)
    Ceci, Stephen J.
    ;
    Williams, Wendy M.
    ;
    Barnett, Susan M.
    The underrepresentation of women at the top of math-intensive fields is controversial, with competing claims of biological and sociocultural causation. The authors develop a framework to delineate possible causal pathways and evaluate evidence for each. Biological evidence is contradictory and inconclusive. Although cross-cultural and cross-cohort differences suggest a powerful effect of sociocultural context, evidence for specific factors is inconsistent and contradictory. Factors unique to underrepresentation in math-intensive fields include the following: (a) Math-proficient women disproportionately prefer careers in non–math-intensive fields and are more likely to leave math-intensive careers as they advance; (b) more men than women score in the extreme math-proficient range on gatekeeper tests, such as the SAT Mathematics and the Graduate Record Examinations Quantitative Reasoning sections; (c) women with high math competence are disproportionately more likely to have high verbal competence, allowing greater choice of professions; and (d) in some math-intensive fields, women with children are penalized in promotion rates. The evidence indicates that women's preferences, potentially representing both free and constrained choices, constitute the most powerful explanatory factor; a secondary factor is performance on gatekeeper tests, most likely resulting from sociocultural rather than biological causes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)
  • Item type:Publication,
    Sex Differences in Math-Intensive Fields Open PDF 
    (SAGE Publications Inc, 2010)
    Ceci, Stephen J.
    ;
    Williams, Wendy M.
    Despite impressive employment gains in many fields of science, women remain underrepresented in fields requiring intensive use of mathematics. Here we discuss three potential explanations for women’s underrepresentation: (a) male–female mathematical and spatial ability gaps, (b) sex discrimination, and (c) sex differences in career preferences and lifestyle choices. Synthesizing findings from psychology, endocrinology, sociology, economics, and education leads to the conclusion that, among a combination of interrelated factors, preferences and choices—both freely made and constrained—are the most significant cause of women’s underrepresentation.