Words can be powerful, especially when those words are spoken by the president of a top university. In a 2005 speech by Lawrence Summers, he put forth the hypothesis that there are more men than women in the most high end positions due to a different set of measurable attributes, rather than it being caused by pervasive sexism or discrimination. To make it to the top of highly demanding fields, one has to be of exceptional quality and these are “people who are three and a half, four standard deviations above the mean in the one in 5,000, one in 10,000 class” (Summers, 2005). Summers is making the point that we should analyze the dataset that produces this type of result, rather than saying it’s all because of discrimination. Summers does not deny that discrimination exists, but he argues it cannot explain every difference. While there are more women in science and math based majors than ever before, fewer of them are in the top research positions that require the most demanding work and longest hours. Summers was strongly criticized and forced to resign as president of Harvard. The forced resignation of Summers was unjust. It’s easy to say that Summers is being sexist in his remarks, because his comments can be construed as promoting inequality among the sexes. But he prefaced his marks by saying that he was making observations based on data and not trying to be political. Summers points to other examples, such as white men being underrepresented in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and Jews not having enough representation in farming and agriculture. Does that mean those groups are discriminated against, or is it that they don’t possess the characteristics, or even a natural desire, to excel in those fields? Summers h... ... middle of paper ... ...ly be a bad thing. The final conclusion of the hypothesis put forth by Summers is still up in the air. While he has not presented mountains of data, he has made an empirical case through his own observations that seem to support what scientists already believe. That there is a different mental capacity between men and women, but the exact influences on those capacities are unknown. Summers was definitely unfairly criticized for talking about his observations. The outrage sparked by his speech speaks to a socially constructed view that the ways in which men and women are different should not be discussed in the open. Works Cited Summers, L. H. (2005, January 14). Remarks at NBER Conference on Diversifying the Science & Engineering Workforce. In The Office of the President. Retrieved July 17, 2011, from http://president.harvard.edu/speeches/summers_2005/nber.php
“Women! What do they want?” John Oliver exclaims sarcastically as he begins his segment on the wage gap. John Oliver always begins his segments with sarcastic and witty comments in order to initially engage his audience which is largely young adults. His use of a news station background is what grabs the attention of news watchers. While he does discuss serious issues he does it with wit in order for his audience to come to the same conclusion as him. Knowing that the majority of his audience holds some college experience, “Last night tonight” expects the audience to be able to differentiate between the actual news and the host’s sarcasm. In his segment “Wage Gap”, host John Oliver uses statistics from the U.S Bureau of Labor, contradicting
In the article, “Confronting Inequality” by Paul Krugman compares income inequality from the 1960s to the inequality that America society face today. Most commonly is seen the wealth gap between the rich and the poor are difference between their incomes. He gives the reason why he and America should care about the rising inequality. One of his arguments is the economic need to progress for lower or middle class families and the need for seeking more equal of income. Krugman has many quotes from people have a big impact on America help argue his point about inequality. “High inequality, which has turned us into a nation with a much weakened middle class, has a corrosive effect on social relations and politics, one that has become ever more
In today’s world, diversity is the highest point and people of many different backgrounds, races, gender, or religion. This diversity can provide better performance in real world situations. In the article, “Diversity in STEM: What It Is and Why It Matters,” Kenneth Gibbs, Jr., an author who has a Ph.D. in immunology and trains the next generation of scientists, discusses why he believes diversity is important in the real world and how a lack of it may result in some issues. Gibbs, Jr. proposes how diversity influences and benefits the STEM fields and other fields by providing testimonial evidence. The author argues that diversity will enrich the STEM field and provide it with a great deal of problem solving. Gibbs, Jr. discusses the meaning
Today’s college students have the opportunity and freedom to choose their major and their career path. Many factors influence the decision of a college student’s career paths including background, general interests, personal strengths, time commitment, and job outlook. Although many important decisions are made in college, one of the most important is the choice of major and career track. Out of hundreds of majors the science and engineering fields are under-represented by women. Although the numbers of women in science technology, engineering, and mathematics, STEM, majors has been increasing in the past years, women still are in the minority in the STEM fields. In her study, Lona Whitmarsh concluded, “that career opportunities for women have widened,” but “not enough change has occurred to show significant differences between the overall population” (49). It is good that more women are entering these fields, but there are still not enough young women aspiring to fill the gaps. Further statistics show that female representation in engineering continues to be low, “in 2008 only 19 percent of bachelor’s degrees, 22.9 percent of masters, and 14.8 percent of PhDs in engineering were awarded to women” (Bystydzienski 2). Although there has been a general increase of women entering the fields of science and mathematics, overall the numbers are still low, showing that women struggle in pursuing a degree within these fields, and that many factors can lead to a female not choosing to begin or complete college in a STEM major. Women are in the minority of STEM fields.
A common belief at the time was that women did not have the same intellectual aptitude as men (Murray 176). Murray sets out to disprove the belief through the image of children; “Will it be said that the judgment of a male of two years old, is more sage than that of a female’s of the same age? I believe the reverse is generally observed to be true” (Murray 178). Murray makes her point. In general young children have the same intellectual level, regardless of gender. Therefore, why later in life are adult men smarter than adult women? Does age and time change aptitude and gifted ability? Continuing with her line of reasoning, Murray proposes that women are not as smart as men because they are not receiving an education; “Are we deficient in reason? We can only reason from what know, and if the opportunity of acquiring knowledge has been denied us, the inferiority of our sex cannot fairly be deduced from thence” (Murray 177-178). Murray suggests that an accurate scaling of mental prowess cannot be deduced because men and women do not have the same educational level; the very reason that women are being denied and education in the first place. Women’s education has become a paradox. Women cannot receive an education because they are not smart enough, but they are not smart enough because they are denied an education. Murray, having now established that women should have an education, then sets out to explain its
Since the late 1970s, the participation of women in the workforce has dramatically changed from women traditionally following their mother’s footsteps to obtaining an independent career of their own. According to Resident Scholar, Christina Hoff Sommers of the Huffington Post, "there are far more women than men in college, and they earn more than fifty-eight percent of [the] college degrees [in the year of 2013]." However, some women in the workforce do not receive the full compensation as men do, even though both genders have the same level of education. The book Lean In-Women, Work, and The Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg, suggests that there are several reasons why women are behind in the wage gap such as challenges, progressiveness, and character. On the contrary, I will also be researching women's work in my own field of study as a College Professor.
When analyzing gender differentials in pay, economists commonly focus on male-female differences in skills and on differences in the treatment of equally qualified men and women (i.e., discrimination) (Blau & Kahn, 1994). Women are a nurturing type so they often land jobs or careers in the “pink” collar field of teaching, nursing, and taking care of children to name a few. Most often the physical abilities and attributes that women possess is the driving factor in career choice. The differences in the male and female body involve more than just physical appearance such as height and weight; they also involve physical ability (White, B. www.ehow.com).
But sex-segregation does not really explain the overall gender wage gap. Women’s average educational attainment now exceeds that of men’s and as a result, women have been entering previously considered to be “masculine” occupational fields at growing rates. Even in the STEM fields, women are no longer underrepresented except for in computer sciences and engineering. However, gender wage gap is present at every level of the career ladder in every field. How and why does this
Also, the majority of women have been able to secure employment from traditionally female occupations such as teaching compared to male-dominated careers like engineering. Moreover, democratic country like the United States of America has recognized gender inequality as a fundamental issue and espouse equal right between men and women in contributing to social, economic and cultural life. Despite this improvement, gender inequality persists as women are not represented and treated equally in the workplace (Michialidis, Morphitou, & Theophylatou, 2012). The increasing number of women in the workplace has not provided equal opportunity for career advancement for females due to the way women are treated in an organization and the society. Also, attaining an executive position seem impossible for women due to the glass ceiling effects which defines the invisible and artificial barrier created by attitudinal and organizational prejudices, which inhibit women from attaining top executive positions (Wirth
Landis, Raymond B. Studying Engineering: A Road Map to a Rewarding Career. Los Angeles, CA: Discovery, 2013. Print.
Women are faced with extreme pressure and alienation in their career fields, and on average earn less than men. Men, on the other hand, face similar pressure, while underachieving compared to women academically, and facing more dangerous occupations. Clearly, this system benefits no one. Michael Kimmel illustrates this point in “A black woman took my job': Michael Kimmel argues that it is in men's interest to work for gender equality.” The title itself emphasizes how the fight for gender equality will benefit both genders. He discusses how sexism is harming men by narrowing their worldview (2). Slaughter, Ullman, Kaplan, Dorment, Knestaut, and Miller all agree with Kimmel to some extent. They all agree gender equality does not exist. When all these perspectives are brought together, it becomes clear that it is in the best interest of both genders that the fight for equality is still pursued. Hopefully, one day women will earn as much as their male counterparts and be equally represented in both careers and intentional unemployment, and men will be attaining higher education goals and employed in less dangerous occupations, and both genders will be relieved of some of the pressure to dedicate 100% of their time to both a career, and a
All across the career pool, whatever field it may be, there is a disparity in the proportion of men to women in leadership positions that hold power and respect. This is even truer for women of color. One would think that within fields such as biology, physics and psychology, which are known for being innovative fields set on progressing human life, this inequality would be less prevalent. However, this is not the case. Even in the STEM fields, there is a serious lack of women in leading positions and a gap in the salaries of men and women when controlling for factors such as age, experience and position. Why this is of such great interest and a serious issue is that it is hindering society at the lowest and highest levels. Change is imminent and necessary for the sake of every organization and for society’s wellbeing as a whole. In addition, despite numerous studies
Grover, G. (2002). Career information center eighth engineering, science, and technology. (8th ed.). Michigan: visual education corporation.
STEM is best known as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. STEM for many years has been primarily seen as and stereotyped into a masculine work field. But as of recent years, while it expands, more and more women have been rising in these fields. However, there is still a tremendous gender gap between men and women in these fields and areas of work. The gender gap between men and women in STEM is alive and well. There is no denying that the gender gap between men and women in STEM is immense. But there instead are many sufficient reasons as to why there is such a huge gap between men and women within in fields. Some probable causes for the lack of women seen in these areas are biased towards women, unconscious bias girls receive
Carol B. Muller, “The Underrepresentation of Women in Engineering and Related Sciences: Pursuing Two Complementary Paths to Parity.” National Academies Press (US); Web. 2003.