Buying science and selling science: gender differences in the market for commercial science

Abstract

Growing opportunities for academic scientists to commercialize their science has led to a new commercial marketplace. Recent evidence suggests that "commercial science" participation is characterized by gender stratification. Using interviews with life science faculty at one high-status university we examine the mechanisms that instituted, reinforced, and reduced the gender gap in commercial science between 1975 and 2005. We find gender differences from processes on both the demand-(opportunity) and supply-(interest) sides; of deeper significance are the intersections between these sides of the market. Specifically, explicit early exclusion of women left them with fewer opportunities in the marketplace, weakening their socialization and skills in commercial science. This uneven opportunity structure left senior/mid-career women with fewer chances to confront the ambiguities of this new practice, resulting in their greater ambivalence. Gender differences remain significant among junior faculty but we find their decline prompted by greater gender-equality in advisor mentoring and the presence of institutional support which together have started to reshape the supply-side of commercial science. 1. The gender gap in commercial science 1.1 The rise of commercial science Many academic research projects are characterized by the production of dual-purpose knowledge-knowledge that is simultaneously valuable as a scientific discovery and as a useful, inventive construct (Stokes, 1997; Biagioli, 2000; Murray, 2002; Murray and Stern, 2006). Such knowledge offers opportunities in two distinct markets. The first is the traditional academic science marketplace in which individuals use their knowledge to garner priority and prestige through publication, peer-review and participation in scientific conferences (Merton, 1973; Dasgupta and David, 1994). The second is the pursuit of the practical and commercial aspects of their knowledge in the "commercial science" marketplace. While these dual options

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Network, Channel, and Geographical Proximity of Knowledge Transfer: The Case of University-Industry Collaboration in South Korea

“…), chemistry, bio-technology, engineering, medical science, and agricultural science. Thirdly, the gender of the academics based on the KRF data is encoded as a binary variable, as gender differences can be related to social factors such as the degree of networking with industry (Murray & Graham, 2007). Fourthly, the country of training may influence the academic activity.…”

Inventing and patenting activities of scientists: in the expectation of money or reputation?

“…Even when financially unsuccessful, commercial science provides additional scientific resources. For example, Murray and Graham (2007) show that participation in commercial science brings with it distinctive forms of status and resources and that patents have become an integral part of faculty strategies for the dissemination of ideas and for signaling interest in commercial activities. Patents can be used as a tool to trade with industry for access to funding, equipment, materials and other opportunities from industry (Stephan and Levin 1992;Owen-Smith and Powell 2001).…”

“…These findings are also important because it means that the despite patenting activities and traditional academic values seemed intact. Even when there are less or no financial expectations, commercial science provides additional scientific resources and participation in commercial science brings some kind of status and resources and that patents have become an integral part of faculty strategies for the dissemination of ideas and for signaling interest in commercial activities (see Murray and Graham 2007). However this does not mean that the design of intellectual property rights, other forms of incentives (e.g.…”