uk resource centre for women in science, engineering and technology

UKRC research

Our research projects encompass a wide range of projects which aim to show where the shortages are and promote women in SET. Current research projects include:
 
 
(In)visible Witnesses How do children view scientists?
Liz Whitelegg, Senior Lecturer in Science Education at The Open University, talks about how scientists are presented on TV and how children perceive them.
Watch the film on You tube
 
(In)visible Witnesses Investigating Gendered Representations of Scientists, Technologists, Engineers and Mathematicians on UK Children
The principle aims of the (In)visible Witnesses Project were to:
1) Study the (re)construction of gendered representations of STEM on UK television, i.e. to investigate the continuing portrayal of established stereotypes of STEM and document the emergence of new images.
2) Investigate the extent to which these images might affect children and young people’s perceptions of STEM.
Report 5 download (pdf)
Research Briefing 8 download (pdf)
 
(In)visible Witnesses. Drawing on young people’s media literacy skills to explore gendered representations of science, technology,engineering and mathematics
This report describes further work on the (In)visible Witnesses project and so continues the work described in the first report (In)visible witnesses: Investigating gendered representations of scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians on UK children’s television (Whitelegg et. al, 2008). It should therefore be read alongside this earlier report where the background and rationale for the project as a whole is described as the detail of this is not repeated here.
The aims of the work described in the report, however, remain the same as those of the original study:
1. Study the (re)construction of gendered representations of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) on UK television, i.e. to investigate the continuing portrayal of established stereotypes of STEM and document the emergence of new images.
2. Investigate the extent to which these images might affect children and young people’s perceptions of STEM.
Date: April 2009
Report 9 download (pdf)
 
Research Briefing 12: The case for increasing gender diversity of company Boards in SET
Download the briefing here
 
Women in science, engineering and technology: three decades of UK initiatives
Dr Alison Phipps, Director of Gender Studies at the University of Sussex, charts the recent history of initiatives to encourage girls and women into SET. Her research pieces together the largely unwritten story of a significant period of grassroots activity around women's participation in 'non-traditional' fields, focusing on initiatives like girls and science projects at school, training for women in manual trades, activist groups for students and women professionals as well as Government-sponsored initiatives, including the UKRC itself. The book was published in 2008 by Trentham Books Ltd is a useful analysis and learning tool for current practitioners in the field.
The book is available here or download the order form.
 
Yorkshire and Humber survey of doctorate students in SET.
The study investigated differences and similarities in career aspirations, attitudes to enterprise, and experiences / opinions regarding setting up a business, among women and men studying towards a doctorate in the male-dominated SET disciplines. The initial results (and contacts) were used to set up a regional support network linking female graduates with interest in starting up their own business and women entrepreneurs.
More information (download PDF)
View presentation (download PPS)
Final Report (download PDF)
 
Presence and representation of women scientists, engineers and technologists in the UK media
A research team led by Professor Jenny Kitzinger from the Cardiff School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies has analysed how TV, film and newspapers portray women scientists, engineers and technologists and whether the media impacts on the under-recruitment of and failure to retain women in SET. The researchers have also conducted interviews with programme makers, scientists, science representatives and journalists to further explore representations and profiles of scientists in the media.
More information. (download PDF)
Annotated Bibliography. (download PDF)
Research Briefing (download PDF)
Research Briefing (download PDF)
Research Briefing (download PDF)
Research Briefing (download PDF)
 
Gender cultures in SET boardrooms: implications for women
Despite 30 years of equal opportunities, women are still virtually invisible in boardrooms. This research project explored the cultures of private and public boardrooms in SET companies and organisations and the barriers to women's progression. The research was led by Dr Val Singh, Deputy Director of the International Centre for Women Leaders at Cranfield School of Management. The project focused on exploring different types of boardroom cultures prevalent in the SET sectors and indentifying which cultures are least and most amenable to the progression of qualified women. A practical output of the project was the production of guidelines for public and private boards indicating measures for organisations to take to create cultural change at board level.
More information. (download PDF)
View presentation. (download PPS)
Good Practice Guide (download PDF)
Summary of Final Report (download PDF)
Final Report (download PDF 1.7MB)
 
Researching cultures in science, engineering and technology: an analysis of current and past literature
A research team at Loughborough University, led by Professor Barbara Bagilhole, has explored the existing literature on cultures in science, engineering and technology from a gendered perspective. The project aimed to establish better understanding of structures, processes and systems that form the cultures of SET within workplaces in order to understand continued vertical and horizontal segregation and gender inequality within these occupations. The aim of the project was to collate, review and put into a wider theoretical context the available body of evidence addressing the structures, behaviours and systems within different SET occupations and sectors, and their possible impact on the exclusion of women.
More information. (download PDF)
Final Report (download PDF)
 
Production of European database of research literature about women in SET
An online database of research literature about women in SET, available on the UKRC website. Click here to access the database.
 
Attrition rates after year 9
Anna Zaelvski of the UKRC. A statistical guide to secondary education. Statistics from March 2006 available.
More information. (download PDF)
 
Mathematical Images and Gender Identities
This project, undertaken by Dr. Heather Mendick at London Metropolitan University, is an extension to an Economic and Social Research Council funded project; Mathematical Images and Identities: education, entertainment and social justice. The ESRC funded project explored the representations of mathematics and mathematicians in popular culture and the ways that they influenced learners. The UKRC project has built on this and developed an analysis of the role of gender in representations of mathematics and mathematicians in popular cultures and the processes of identification around these. The project sought to learn how are representations of mathematics and mathematicians in popular culture gendered and how are the effects of these representations of mathematics and mathematicians in popular culture on learners gendered?
Final Report (download PDF)
 
Exploring the impact of the doctoral study experience on Chemistry and Molecular Bioscience PhD students’ career intentions, by gender
Recent research by the Royal Society of Chemistry indicated a link between the divergence of women and men scientists’ career paths and the doctoral study experience; it revealed women are deterred from pursuing a research career during doctoral study, particularly when the honeymoon period (i.e. the first year) of their doctoral research is over. By contrast, men’s intentions to pursue research in chemistry are strengthened over the course of their PhD journey. The UKRC has commissioned two projects, running in conjunction with each other and both undertaken by Jessica Lober with guidance from the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Biochemical Society. The Royal Society of Chemistry investigation aims to further the previous research, by finding out what factors are causing the divergence of women’s and men’s career aspiration at PhD level. The Biochemical Society investigation aims to find out whether the divergence is unique to Chemistry or is also an issue within Biochemistry.
They can be also be downloaded from the Royal Society of Chemistry website by selecting this link: www.rsc.org\diversity
 
Getting In, Getting On In Construction
The research was commissioned by ConstructionSkills and their Equality Adviser in Scotland helped steer it. The study explored factors affecting the progression of undergraduates at five Scottish universities from built environment programmes into the construction industry. The main sources of data were (a) an online survey of students, (b) a survey of employers representing the diversity of the construction sector in Scotland, and (c) interviews with employers. The interviews and surveys were conducted in early 2008.
Final Report (Download PDF)
 
 



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