Gender Gap Exists Among Economists and It’s Bigger Than You Think

September 14, 2012 by Susan Gunelius
News and Insights

NEWS AND INSIGHTS UPDATE:

In a study that surveyed hundreds of members of the American Economic Association, one thing stood out — there is a significant gender gap in male and female economists’ views on economic policy issues.

Ann Mari May of Innovations Report (and one of the authors of the study, which will appear in the Journal of Contemporary Economic Policy) cites some of the biggest discrepancies identified in the study report:

  • Role of government
  • Size of government
  • Regulation
  • Taxes
  • U.S. income distribution
  • Redistribution policies
  • Gender inequality and status of job opportunities
  • Gender wage gap
  • Health insurance
  • Vouchers in education
  • Drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

That’s a lot of topics that male and female economists differ significantly on and demonstrates how important it is to have diverse teams, even in economics.

“If demographic differences such as sex help shape our views of policy related questions, it is important that women be included on boards and in policy-making circles at all levels of decision-making,” said Mary McGarvey, UNL associate professor of economics and one of the study’s co-authors. “While including women in policy-making circles does not prevent the selection of only those individuals with shared beliefs, it nonetheless may increase the possibility that diverse viewpoints will be represented.”

Get the details: National survey of economists uncovers vast gender gap in policy views via www.innovations-report.com

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Susan Gunelius

Susan Gunelius is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Women on Business. She is a 20-year veteran of the marketing field and has authored ten books about marketing, branding, and social media, including the highly popular 30-Minute Social Media Marketing, Content Marketing for Dummies, Blogging All-in-One for Dummies and Kick-ass Copywriting in 10 Easy Steps. Susan’s marketing-related content can be found on Entrepreneur.com, Forbes.com, MSNBC.com, BusinessWeek.com, and more. Susan is President & CEO of KeySplash Creative, Inc., a marketing communications company. She has worked in corporate marketing roles and through client relationships with AT&T, HSBC, Citibank, Intuit, The New York Times, Cox Communications, and many more large and small companies around the world. Susan also speaks about marketing, branding and social media at events around the world and is frequently interviewed by television, online, radio, and print media organizations about these topics.

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