Gender Differences in Scientific Communication and Their Impact on Grant Funding Decisions

Why are women underrepresented in the fields of science, technology, and innovation? Using a sample of Gates and NIH grant applications submitted by a common pool of US-based academic researchers, we implement a range of text analysis methods associated with gendered language. We find that despite s...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Kolev, Julian, Fuentes-Medel, Yuly, Murray, Fiona E
Other Authors: Sloan School of Management
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: American Economic Association 2022
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/135234.2
Description
Summary:Why are women underrepresented in the fields of science, technology, and innovation? Using a sample of Gates and NIH grant applications submitted by a common pool of US-based academic researchers, we implement a range of text analysis methods associated with gendered language. We find that despite significant institutional differences, there are consistent gender differences in scientific communication. By contrast, we find starkly differing impacts of these text characteristics on funding outcomes across our institutional settings. Our findings suggest that institutional reform is likely to be a viable strategy for increasing gender inclusion in science and technology.