Passion and pain in academia

Abstract

In discussions about the relatively slow inclusion of women into higher academic positions, questions have been raised whether the academic culture represents a barrier. In this article, Bourdieu's concepts of field and habitus are applied in an analysis of whether academia may still be perceived as male-dominated. The focus is on the scientific habitus as conceived by professors and female and male Ph.D. candidates in the social sciences in Norway. Three components of the scientific habitus: professional abilities, professional attitudes and personality are discussed as gender neutral and in relation to classifications of female and male doctoral candidates.