Modeling gender evolution and gap in science and technology using ecological dynamics

Abstract

► Modeling the gender relationship, gap and HR evolution in science and technology. ► The model is based on analytical and simulation methods of population biology. ► The accuracy of the obtained results and forecasting is confirmed using real European data. ► Gender gap is continuously decreasing and tends to vanish. ► The proposed model is of great importance for decision and policy makers. In this paper a model based on population biology is proposed in order to investigate the evolution of human resources (men and women) in science and technology as a share of labor market as well as the dynamics of their gap. An analytical and a simulation method using the Artificial Bee Colony optimization algorithm are described and used for the determination of the proposed model parameters. The presented model is applied to three case studies; Greece, Portugal and Europe-27. 3 Economic and political union consisting of the following 27 member states (from 1 January 2007): Belgium (BE), Greece (EL), Luxembourg (LU), Denmark (DK), Spain (ES), Netherlands (NL), Germany (DE), France (FR), Portugal (PT), Ireland (IE), Italy (IT), United Kingdom (UK), Austria (AT), Finland (FI), Sweden (SE), Poland (PL), Czech Republic (CZ), Cyprus (CY), Latvia (LV), Lithuania (LT), Slovenia (SI), Estonia (EE), Slovakia (SK), Hungary (HU), Malta (MT), Bulgaria (BG), Romania (RO). 3 The accuracy of the obtained results is confirmed through comparison with actual data. In addition, the model can also be used to accurately forecast future trends. It is illustrated that the gender gap is continuously decreasing, while in the last years, women seem to outperform men in the field of science and technology. The estimation and forecasting ability of the model can be used as an extremely valuable tool for decision and policy makers.