You’ve heard it, I’ve heard it… be a girl boss! Go into STEM! Take over this male-dominated world! And while it is, of course, true that we still lack female representation in some of the biggest industries and fields today (think robotics, engineering, government), the intentions behind encouraging young girls to venture into STEM fields has gone from push to shove. It seems we’ve also forgotten (at times) that equality stems from choice, not
Pushing for equality in our fields has tons of benefits, of course. Think: more stable economy, faster progress and advancements and a lot more overall representation. Plus, it’s the new age! We need engineers, scientists and programmers more than ever, and it seems that we have to enter these fields just to keep up with our fast-paced society.
At the same time, research suggests that when women are given choice and the encouragement to pursue passion, they don’t actually go into STEM fields. This could explain why only 19% of all engineering majors are female in the U.S, while the number rises to 40% in Jordan.
Girls who do enter these fields end up dropping out at scary rates. Data from Harvard Business Review shows that over 52% of highly-qualified females in STEM roles quit their jobs, either to leave the field completely or to drop to a lower position. Two questions are immediately raised: why is this happening, and what does it mean? The same research pointed out that women felt as if they were unqualified for their jobs, the work-life balance was unjust and achievable, or hostile workplace cultures.
Another issue that women face, specifically in STEM, is feeling like just another statistic. Hey! Go study this because, did you know, only this percentage of women go into this field?
Many girls feel extreme pressure to represent ALL females, which could explain why women are dropping out at such alarming rates: they go in out of a sense of obligation, and once they realize the field is not for them, it’s often too late. As well, girls who are alienated in a large group of males can be anxious to never mess up or make mistakes because they see it as a reflection of all females.
So, what does this mean? With women dropping out at these rates, workplace culture isn’t likely to improve or become more inviting of new workers. If this habit persists in our cultures, girls will continue to lose confidence in their academic or social skills at younger ages because of the lack of representation or motivation.
The culture is a vicious cycle, but it’s not here to stay. Tons of research shows that representation is really what matters, and not just for young girls. Seeing is believing, and this stays true in the workplace. A study testing the effects of social environments on stereotypical beliefs of women found that when women are exposed to welcoming and diverse environments, they are less likely to adopt stereotypical opinions on themselves over a long period of time.
There are tons of ways to increase representation of women in our cultures, and it all starts with the small things, such as encouraging more female high school students to pursue STEM studies or participate in science and math workshops or competitions. On a larger scale, many companies have started initiatives to increase female representation and participation. Johnson and Johnson, a medical devices and consumer goods manufacturing company has adopted a program called “Crossing the Finish Line” to connect young, multicultural women to senior managers that could be potential sponsors. Microsoft has done a similar thing, creating “mentoring rings” for the women interested in working at their company.
No matter where we are currently, there’s still a ton of work to be done, but it’s also important to celebrate how much progress we’ve made so far. There’s no doubt that pressuring girls into STEM has ended up backfiring so far, but the process has proven to be trial and error. Instead, we should focus on giving girls the platform for speaking up and giving them mentors to look up for. True equality, after all, comes from everyone being able to succeed at their own pace and by their own standards.
Featured image: https://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2017/03/23/girls-in-stem-culture-is-failing-both-girls-and-stem.html
Sources used: https://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2017/03/23/girls-in-stem-culture-is-failing-both-girls-and-stem.html
https://hbr.org/2008/06/stopping-the-exodus-of-women-in-science
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022103104000253?via%3Dihub
