Effects of Inferred Gender on Patterns of Co‐Authorship in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Publications

Abstract

Senior positions in academia such as tenured faculty and editorial positions often exhibit large gender imbalances across a broad range of research disciplines. The forces driving these imbalances have been the subject of extensive speculation and a more modest body of research. Given the central role publications play in determining individual outcomes and progress in academic settings, unequal patterns of authorship across gender could be a potent driver of observed gender imbalance in academia. Here, we investigate patterns of co-authorship across four journals in ecology and evolutionary biology at four time-points spanning four decades. Co-authorship patterns are of interest because collaborations are important in scientific research, affecting individual researcher productivity, and increasingly, funding opportunities. Based on inferred gender from set criteria, we found significant differences between male and female researchers in their tendency to publish with female co-authors. Specifically, compared to women, male researchers in the last author position were more likely to co-author papers with other males. While we did find that the proportion of female coauthors has increased modestly over the last thirty years, this is strongly correlated with an increase in the average number of authors per paper over time. Additionally, the proportion of female coauthors on papers remains well below the proportion of PhDs awarded to females in biology.

Collaboration enhances career progression in academic science, especially for female researchers

“…If the author position on papers in our dataset varied by gender [ 45 ], then it could bias interpretations about collaboration behaviour and career progression. Therefore, we checked whether female and male focal authors differed in their proportion of either first or last author papers, after accounting for the first publication year, given that number of authors on publications has increased with time [ 15 ].…”

Challenging male homophily and bias in academic research and practice

“…The effects of gender or inferred gender with respect to male bias and privilege can also be observed in relation to the coauthoring of academic research, with the study by Frances et al (2020) finding that within the field of biology, male researchers in the last author position were more likely to co-author with other males, whereas women first and last authors were more likely to publish with men. Furthermore they found that the proportion of women co-authors on papers remained well below the proportion of PhDs awarded to women in biology over the same time period for their research.…”

A critical analysis of plant science literature reveals ongoing inequities

“…Systems of patriarchy vary in their manifestation and severity globally, but are pervasive and have infiltrated all levels of society including scientific research (Haghighat-Sordellini 2010; Golash-Boza et al 2019; Uchendu and Edeagu 2021; Kocabıçak 2022). While self-identified women are not excluded from the field of biology as a whole, they are often excluded from prestigious tenured and editorial positions as well as collaboration networks (West et al 2013; Frances et al 2020; Madzima and MacIntosh 2021; Lerman et al 2022). Studies suggest that gender biases exist in hiring, publication, and funding decisions (Larivière et al 2013; Fox et al 2016; Bonham and Stefan 2017; Holman et al 2018; Witteman et al 2019; Frances et al 2020; Wapman et al 2022).…”

“…While self-identified women are not excluded from the field of biology as a whole, they are often excluded from prestigious tenured and editorial positions as well as collaboration networks (West et al 2013; Frances et al 2020; Madzima and MacIntosh 2021; Lerman et al 2022). Studies suggest that gender biases exist in hiring, publication, and funding decisions (Larivière et al 2013; Fox et al 2016; Bonham and Stefan 2017; Holman et al 2018; Witteman et al 2019; Frances et al 2020; Wapman et al 2022). These inequities impact academic currency on job and funding markets and further exacerbate gender imbalances in academia.…”