Women in Academic Sociology, 1925–75

Abstract

Abstract The career patterns of two distinguished sociologists, Arnold and Caroline Rose, exemplify male-female differentials in academic career patterns in sociology. Arnold's career was a straight and steep line of progression; Caroline's, despite her record of scholarly productivity, existed on the fringes of academia—night school, correspondence courses, and extension and part-time teaching. Examination of the authors and reviews in the American Journal of Sociology and the American Sociological Review confirms this model of women at the academic margins: over the years, women have written a far greater proportion of the book reviews than of the articles. This pattern parallels that women in academic life generally, although not all of it can be attributed to discriminatory factors. While the participation of women in mainstream academic life has increased in very recent years, these historic patterns indicate the possible need for different formal models of male and female academic careers.