Are professors of human nutrition faculty at Canadian universities representative with respect to common social constructs of gender and race?

Abstract

Attributes such as sex and race/ethnicity are associated with inequities in representation. The objective of this study was to assess representation of 2 social constructs, gender and race, of professors of human nutrition in Canada. Using information publicly available October 2021, individuals with the title of assistant, associate, or full professor were identified on websites of 20 Canadian universities offering undergraduate and/or graduate degrees in human nutrition. Individuals were subjectively stratified to social constructs, i.e., white, racialized, or Indigenous, based on photographs, ethnic origin of a surname, and regional and ethnic origin disclosures on university websites, LinkedIn, social media, etc. Gender was assigned based on publicly available photographs and self-disclosed pronouns (when available). Of the 190 individuals, 80% were white, 16.4% were racialized, and 2.6% were Indigenous peoples. The majority (65.3%) were women. In a subset with established doctoral thesis dates and dates of hire at their current institution (n = 153), racialized and Indigenous professors, especially assistant and associate, had earned their doctorate and been hired more recently than their white peers. This study is limited because only individuals with professorial titles were included and the assignment of social constructs for race and gender was subjective. Nevertheless, it establishes an understanding of the proportions of professors of human nutrition who are white, racialized, Indigenous, women, and men. Novelty: Canadian universities strive to be equitable, diverse, and inclusive. One hundred and ninety professors of human nutrition were stratified using social constructs for race and gender. Findings: 65% Women, 80% white, 16.4% racialized, and 2.6% Indigenous