Tackling Gender Disparities in Energy Research: A Diagnostic Tool for Equality in Research Centres

Abstract

Abstract Background The unequal proportion of men and women in research organizations in the energy field is severe, and so are the dynamics long established that might determine differences in access to leadership positions and inequalities between men and women in research careers. The gender gap in historically masculinized fields such as energy engineering transcends beyond the number of men and women. This study aims to explore the gender gap in Energy Research Centres and to identify barriers that potentially hinder the research careers of women. We propose the development of a diagnostic tool based on indicators to monitor and evaluate gender roles and inequalities in the activity of research centres to identify and address the dynamics and obstacles that hinder women progress in the energy sector and their potential contribution to the field. This DEMATEL-ANP based tool prioritizes these indicators by their influence and importance in the context of energy research and is applied to the monitoring of a specific Spanish Energy Research Centre. Results The analysis of the main indicators shows that the insufficient representation of women within the organization remains a prominent issue. There is a prevailing belief within the research centre that only meritocracy drives success, dismissing other factors—especially gender—as irrelevant. Furthermore, there are a number of dynamics and conditions inherent to the Spanish Research and Innovation context that contribute to the drop out of women working in energy research. The lack of women in organisational leadership positions is pronounced in the case of the study and other particular dynamics are detected such as head positions being occupied only by men, or men not using work-life balance measures. However, the results suggest that, no gender gap is recognized by part of the staff and thus, no measures are being taken to improve the situation. Conclusions Comprehensive data and contextualized monitoring are necessary to effectively study and enhance the presence and participation of women in the energy science field. Our methodology, combining quantitative and qualitative techniques, is suitable for any research centre that would like to monitor its gender gap, identify potential sources of inequity and thus, address them. This methodology serves a dual purpose: it's both a diagnostic tool and a conversation starter driven by data that can be used to demonstrate the persistent existence of the gender gap that demands attention and resolution.