Women’s scarcity in academic governance. Gendered identity or gendered processes?

Iris Laudith Solano Cahuana

doi:10.14267/veztud.2021.05.03

Abstract

This article contributes to the empirical evidence for women’s scarcity in academic governance. The study evaluates to what extend women lean towards non-management careers and dismiss opportunities to attain executive roles in Colombian public universities, as well as the support received when they break the paradigm. The purpose was to determine whether gendered practices are ingrained in the designation process or whether women’s scarcity is the outcome of individual attributes/choices and collective perceptions of inadequacy. Data was collected from universities’ proceedings, opinion polls of rectors’ designations, and candidates’ curricula. Findings show low female candidacy rate but high public support for female candidates to the rector’s seat among all universities examined. Also, curricula’s in-depth analyses display women’s preference for male-dominated careers and analogous academic/administrative experience to that of male candidates. Hence, the results challenge explanations presented by human capital and congruity prejudice theories, while leaning towards gendered processes and identities.

Highlights

This article contributes to the empirical evidence for women’s scarcity in academic governance
Funding/Finanszírozás: The present publication is the outcome of the project „From Talent to Young Researcher” project aimed at activities supporting the research career model in higher education, identifier EFOP-3.6.3-VEKOP-16-2017-00007 co-supported by the European Union, Hungary, and the European Social Fund
Empirical data is elicited to determine 1) whether institutional designation procedures and requirements foster the exclusion of female candidates, 2) whether recent female application rates for leadership roles reflects a voluntary exclusion from high responsibility roles, 3) whether the professional profile of female applicants is deficient in terms of academic background and administrative experience when compared to men’s profiles, and 4) how these assumed differences influence the community’s support

Summary

Introduction

This article contributes to the empirical evidence for women’s scarcity in academic governance. When asked about influential factors behind this underrepresentation, one of these female rectors claimed that due to the stigma surrounding women’s leadership skills, it is harder for women to attain directive roles, good academic preparation would be the only path to guarantee women’s access to executive seats. Another female rector pointed out the passive resistance of some directive boards to promote women to executive roles as a stronger influential factor (Guía académica, 2019) To address this information gap, the present research evaluates women’s limited professional promotion to the highest echelons of academic governance from different theoretical frameworks that take into account individual and organizational notions of gendered beliefs, identities, choices, and practices. Empirical data is elicited to determine 1) whether institutional designation procedures and requirements foster the exclusion of female candidates, 2) whether recent female application rates for leadership roles reflects a voluntary exclusion from high responsibility roles, 3) whether the professional profile of female applicants is deficient in terms of academic background and administrative experience when compared to men’s profiles, and 4) how these assumed differences influence the community’s support

Methods

Results

Conclusion