Gender equality: opportunities and challenges for the OR community

Abstract

There is a research gap on understanding gender equality issues in the OR discipline, and on the role of gender in OR participation and career progression. We apply a gender lens to the literature on the history of OR, reflecting on the origins of OR, the OR community, and the theory, methods and practice of OR. A gender lens aims to uncover hidden gender dimensions to bring gender issues into sharper focus. The review shows that women are largely invisible in the recorded history of OR. We use a survey instrument to capture the current OR community and extract insights on their careers by gender. Using a decision tree to understand factors that affect participation in OR, our findings are consistent with other studies: women perceive barriers to their participation and career progression, but the barriers are not as apparent to their male peers. Our paper offers novel contributions including a reflection on the history of OR through a gender lens, insights on the role of gender in OR careers, and a critical discussion of our findings. We aim to stimulate a conversation and encourage a discussion on the next steps toward innovative and cross-disciplinary research and applications at the gender/OR nexus.