Understanding Gender Differences in Job Dissatisfaction Among Science and Engineering Faculty

Document Type

Article

Journal/Book Title

Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering

Volume

15

Issue

3

Publisher

Begell House, Inc.

First Page

223

Last Page

243

Publication Date

2009

Abstract

Reflecting continuing gender inequality in academia, retention rates among male and female faculty continue to differ, especially within the prestigious fields of science and engineering (Xie & Shauman, 2003). To better understand this differential, this study examines the sources of job dissatisfaction among faculty. Interview data from 42 female and a matched set of 40 male faculty members in science and engineering fields who reported on sources of job dissatisfaction are analyzed. Female faculty members more often report dissatisfaction with colleagues, workload, work/personal life issues and promotion and tenure processes compared to males. Tenured females reported more dissatisfaction with promotion/tenure and evaluation than other faculty, especially tenured males. Implications and recommendations for improving the retention of female faculty in academic science and engineering are discussed.

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Originally published by Begell House, Inc. Abstract available through remote link. Subscription required to access article fulltext.

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