Stereotypes About Gender and Science

Abstract

We conducted two studies and our primary goal was to assess the similarity between stereotypes about women and men and stereotypes about successful scientists. In addition, we examined the degree to which scientists, men, and women are seen as agentic or communal. Results revealed greater similarity between stereotypes about men and stereotypes about scientists than between stereotypes about women and scientists. Men and scientists were seen as highly agentic, women as highly communal, and scientists as less communal than either men or women. The higher the proportion of women in a scientific field, the more similar the stereotypes of scientists in that field were to stereotypes about women. Female participants perceived more similarity between women and scientists and judged women to be more agentic than male participants did. The results are consistent with role-congruity and lack-of-fit theories that report incompatibility of female gender stereotypes with stereotypes about high-status occupational roles. The results demonstrate that women are perceived to lack the qualities needed to be successful scientists, which may contribute to discrimination and prejudice against female scientists. A podcast conversation with the author of this article is available to PWQ subscribers on PWQ's website at http://pwq.sagepub.com/supplemental