In/visible: The intersectional experiences of women of color in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine in Australia
Autor/in:
Nash, Meredith; Moore, Robyn
Quelle: Gend Work Organ (Gender, Work and Organization), (2022)
Inhalt: It is now well-established that science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) institutions globally should invest in building diverse and inclusive workforces. However, women of color remain underrepresented in STEMM in Australia and their organizational experiences are under-researched. To address this gap, we used a qualitative approach to explore the complex intersections of race/ethnicity and gender that may contribute to women's underrepresentation in Australian STEMM. Primary data encompassed interviews with 30 self-identified women of color working in academia, industry, and government STEMM organizations. We drew on intersectionality theory to explore participants' experiences of their working environments and grounded theory in our analysis. This article focuses on an understudied area related to the maintenance of white male power in STEMM and everyday experiences of “in/visibility”—the paradoxical space of invisibility and hypervisibility that women of color occupy within STEMM fields. For example, various features of women of color's identities, such as physical appearance, cultural background, accent, and name, led to participants feeling “different” and hypervisible in STEMM workplaces in Australia, in which the stereotype of a white male scientist predominates. Women also felt hypervisible as race/gender tokens when they were expected to do the diversity work of the institution. In contrast, participants felt invisible when they were professionally and socially excluded from networking events, such as after-work drinks. Women of color's experiences of having to work much harder than white colleagues to gain recognition of their organizational value also contributed to feelings of invisibility. The study findings provide deep insight into Australian STEMM cultures by foregrounding how in/visibility shows up in the experiences of women of color. This study builds on our understanding of women's STEMM careers as inextricably linked to intersectional features of social identity and white masculine power dynamics in organizations and society more broadly. We conclude by advocating for a more nuanced understanding of “women in STEMM” in Australia (e.g., via more sophisticated data collection and analysis) to ensure that national policies and initiatives benefit all women.
“That's bang out of order, mate!” : Gendered and racialized micro‐practices of disadvantage and privilege in UK business schools
Autor/in:
Śliwa, Martyna; Gordon, Lisi; Mason, Katy; Beech, Nic
Quelle: Gend Work Organ (Gender, Work and Organization), (2022)
Inhalt: The existence of gendered and racialized inequalities in academia has been well documented. To date, research has primarily addressed the intersectional disadvantages faced by members of minority groups with much less attention paid to the privileges experienced by dominant group members. This paper draws on 21 interviews and 36 audio-diary entries completed by a diverse group of senior higher education leaders who have successfully navigated the career ladder in UK business schools. By juxtaposing minority with dominant group members' narratives, the study advances intersectionality research, offering a contextualized analysis of the micro-practices of both disadvantage and privilege in academia. Through a focus on how micro-practices perform differently for members of different groups, it foregrounds “obvious” as well as nuanced differences that contribute to the accumulation of disadvantage and privilege throughout an individual's career and emphasizes simultaneity as crucial to understanding the workings of gendered and racialized disadvantage and privilege.
“It's wicked hard to fight covert racism”: The case of microaggressions in science research organizations
Autor/in:
Salmon, Udeni
Quelle: Gend Work Organ (Gender, Work and Organization), (2022)
Inhalt: The intersection of race and gender discrimination has resulted in the pervasive under-representation of women of color (WOC) in science careers, with research identifying that microaggressions are a key contributory factor to the imbalance. This study aims to compare individual experiences of microassaults, microinsults, and microinvalidations with institutional responses, thereby outlining the disconnects between the perspectives of minoritized scientists and those in positions of power. This paper draws on a constructivist paradigm to compare the experiences of women of color scientists with organizational representatives through 31 interviews conducted in science research organizations in the United Kingdom. The results find that organizational understandings of microaggressions differ substantially from those of WOC scientists. Furthermore, organizational responses favor policy-based solutions that fail to address the slippery and deniable nature of microaggressions. The paper concludes that, contrary to the more prevalent popular diversity initiatives, a greater belief in the testimony of WOC scientists amplified by institutional responses that empower their identity as scientists would be more effective strategies to reduce the sense of shame and isolation caused by subtle forms of discrimination.
Quelle: High Educ Policy (Higher Education Policy), 35 (2022) 2, S 542–560
Inhalt: Diversity policies have become an indispensable part of higher education institutions (HEIs) of the Global North. The increased monitoring by the European Commission has led to changes in Belgian HEI policy especially regarding gender. While research shows that the implementation of diversity policies has a positive effect on redistributing power, critics point out how the initial aim of these policies has been answered by empty promises. This research is based on 50 in-depth interviews of the perceptions and experiences of female academics with diversity policies in five Belgian HEIs. Results show that women perceive these policies as ways to window-dress equality externally, but do not have the expected effects internally. Women were divided on the utilisation of positive action. In addition, the policies lacked an intersectional perspective regarding ethnic minority backgrounds as well as family status for faculty. Studying their experiences and perceptions will allow staff equality agenda in HEIs to progress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Understanding nonbinary college students' experiences on college campuses: : An exploratory study of mental health campus involvement, victimization, and safety
Autor/in:
Marx, Robert; Maffini, Cara; Pena, Frank
Quelle: Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, (2022) Advance online publication
Inhalt: Limited research has explored the experiences of nonbinary college students. Using a national sample of college students from the American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment (ACHA-NCHA), we compared experiences of college students in terms of their campus safety, mental health, and involvement in extracurricular activities. Results reveal complexities of nonbinary students’ experiences. Nonbinary students reported feeling less safe on and around campus and were more likely to be verbally threatened, stalked, and sexually assaulted than their peers. In terms of mental health indicators, nonbinary students reported significantly worse outcomes than their peers. Nonbinary students were also significantly less likely to be involved in extracurricular activities. Among nonbinary students, Black nonbinary students reported less safety, higher stress, and greater suicidality than White nonbinary students, and multiracial nonbinary students were more likely to be stalked than their White nonbinary peers. In terms of campus involvement, multiracial nonbinary students were more likely to volunteer than White nonbinary students. On the whole, this study suggests that nonbinary college students’ experiences differ from their peers’ in terms of greater reports of victimization, poorer mental health, and less involvement on campus, with important racial differences. Those who work with college students should ensure that their services support and affirm nonbinary identities and should work to push back on superficial changes that do not address the racist, cis-heteropatriarchal conditions that give rise to such outcomes.
Gender/sex diversity beliefs: Scale construction, validation, and links to prejudice
Autor/in:
Schudson, Zach C.; van Anders, Sari M.
Quelle: Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 25 (2022) 4, S 1011–1036
Inhalt: Prejudice against or affirmation of gender/sex minorities is often framed in terms of beliefs about the ontology of gender/sex (i.e., what gender/sex is), or gender/sex diversity beliefs. We constructed the Gender/Sex Diversity Beliefs Scale (GSDB) to assess ontological beliefs about the nature of gender/sex, including essentialist and social constructionist beliefs, and validated the GSDB across a series of studies. In Study 1 (N = 304), we explored the factor structure of the GSDB and found evidence of associations with prejudice against transgender and/or nonbinary people. In Study 2 (N = 300), we assessed the stability of the factor structure of the GSDB and examined its criterion-related validity, including its relationship to feelings toward multiple gender/sex groups. In Studies 3a (N = 48) and 3b (N = 500), we established test–retest reliability. We conclude that gender/sex diversity beliefs are important for understanding contemporary attitudes about gender/sex, including prejudice against gender/sex minorities, and that the GSDB is a reliable and valid way to measure them
Who is publishing journal articles during graduate school? Racial and gender inequalities in biological sciences over time
Autor/in:
Roksa, Josipa; Wang, Yapeng; Feldon, David; Ericson, Matthew
Quelle: Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 15 (2022) 1, S 47–57
Inhalt: Despite increased enrolment of women and students from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups in doctoral programs, notable inequalities in academic careers persist. We investigate one potential source of these inequalities: publication rates during graduate school. Results, based on a sample of doctoral students in biological sciences across 53 institutions, indicate that both white women and students from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups (African American and Latinx) have lower publication rates than white men. Notably, these gaps grow over time and are not explained by background factors, socialization experiences, or family obligations. The same patterns persist for first-authored publications for African American and Latinx students, but not white women, suggesting potentially differential mechanisms of exclusion. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
Trans faculty and queer battle fatigue: : poetic (re)presentations of navigating identity politics in the academy
Autor/in:
Robinson, Sean
Quelle: International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 35 (2022) 9, S 911–927
Inhalt: Research on the experiences of trans* employees show that trans* individuals face disproportionate levels of harassment, discrimination, violence, and forms of aggression in the workplace. While broader organizational and workplace research exploring issues of trans* employees may be transferrable to higher education settings, higher education nevertheless has specific needs that make it distinctly different from non-higher education work environments. Although organizational scholars writing on workplace discrimination issues have offered recommendations for increasing trans-affirmation in workplace environments, little research has focused exclusively on trans* faculty on college and university campuses. Responding to calls for a nuanced understanding of trans* educators in more creative ways, this article (re)presents the experiences of six trans* identified post-secondary faculty in the format of a found poem that weaves together the voices of the participants into a collective narrative. When read through the lens of queer battle fatigue, the poem highlights the violence, marginalization, and forms of aggression experienced by trans* individuals that lead to feelings of exhaustion.
What is intersectional equality? A definition and goal of equality for organizations
Autor/in:
Woods, Dorian R.; Benschop, Yvonne; van den Brink, Marieke
Quelle: Gend Work Organ (Gender, Work and Organization), 29 (2022) 1, S 92–109
Inhalt: Organizational research has come a long way in understanding and dealing with inequalities in the workplace. Despite this, there has not been enough progress toward equality. The reason for the stymied progress, we argue, is in large part due to the conceptual gaps in our understanding of equality. This has not been clear enough to prevent previous imbalances in power, interests and domination from re-manifesting themselves in new ways. Because organizations are complex, there needs to be a clear definition and goal of equality that can account for these mechanisms. In this article, we present a conceptual approach we call intersectional equality. To develop this approach, we build on Kimberlé Crenshaw's intersectionality and Joan Acker's inequality regimes that are useful for understanding the presence and persistency of inequality in organizations, but these do not define solutions for equality. At this point, we turn to equality and justice theory and examine Amartya Sen's capabilities approach for incorporating organizations and organizational responsibilities to pursue equality. In light of the conceptual gaps in intersectionality, the inequality regimes, and the capabilities approach, we present intersectional equality as a conclusive alternative concept and approach. Intersectional equality sharpens the feminist definition and vision of equality for organizations and provides a practical path forward for building coalitions and capabilities across four dimensions of organizational disparities (procedural, discursive, material, and affective).
Schlagwörter:equality work; feminist approach; intersectionality; Organisation; power
CEWS Kategorie:Diversity, Netzwerke und Organisationen