Much has been made lately of Harvard President Larry Summers' comments about women in science. I don't know the background, except that I know some studies have been done on various biological factors in the past suggesting that women in general have a disadvantage in some areas based on specific abilities (which will not likely be good indicators at the level Summers is talking about: in academics). I can't really comment on this, or even Summer's comments, which I am not familiar with in detail. But, being a numbers kind of guy (person?), I decided to be a good reductionist and look up some of those numbers.
The NSF has a report (Science and Engineering Degrees: 1966-2001) on degrees offered by subject area and sex of recipient for the years 1965 to 2001. Here are some excerpts:
| Degrees awarded in all fields, by degree level and sex of recipient | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's | Master's | Doctoral | |||||||
| Men | Women | Percent women | Men | Women | Percent women | Men | Women | Percent women | |
| 2001 | 536,023 | 721,625 | 57.4% | 193,006 | 273,639 | 58.6 % | 22,786 | 17,935 | 44.0% |
| Science and engineering degrees awarded, by degree level | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's | Master's | Doctoral | |||||||
| Men | Women | Percent women | Men | Women | Percent women | Men | Women | Percent women | |
| 2001 | 197,623 | 202,583 | 50.6 | 55,593 | 43,393 | 43.8 | 16,167 | 9,319 | 36.6 |
| Percentage of Bachelor's degrees awarded to women, by field | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | All fields | All science and engineering | Engineering | Physical sciences | Earth, atmos., and ocean sciences | Mathematical and computer sciences | Biological and agricultural sciences | Psychology | Social sciences | All non-S&E |
| 1966 | 42.6% | 24.8% | 0.4% | 14.0% | 9.4% | 33.2% | 25.0% | 40.8% | 34.3% | 52.2% |
| 1967 | 42.3% | 25.4% | .5% | 13.9% | 10.2% | 34.1% | 24.5% | 40.0% | 34.7% | 51.7% |
| 1968 | 43.5% | 27.1% | .6% | 14.3% | 10.0% | 36.7% | 24.8% | 42.3% | 35.8% | 52.6% |
| 1969 | 43.8% | 27.8% | .8% | 14.3% | 10.0% | 36.6% | 24.4% | 43.1% | 36.5% | 52.6% |
| 1970 | 43.2% | 28.0% | .8% | 14.5% | 10.2% | 36.1% | 24.1% | 43.6% | 36.6% | 51.5% |
| 1971 | 43.5% | 28.9% | .8% | 14.7% | 10.8% | 36.0% | 24.1% | 44.7% | 37.6% | 51.2% |
| 1972 | 43.7% | 29.4% | 1.1% | 15.8% | 12.2% | 35.9% | 24.4% | 46.4% | 37.0% | 51.1% |
| 1973 | 43.9% | 29.9% | 1.2% | 15.8% | 12.2% | 36.3% | 25.2% | 47.8% | 37.0% | 51.3% |
| 1974 | 44.4% | 31.4% | 1.6% | 16.8% | 15.9% | 36.6% | 27.0% | 50.5% | 37.6% | 51.1% |
| 1975 | 45.4% | 32.8% | 2.1% | 18.8% | 17.0% | 37.0% | 29.2% | 52.7% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| 1976 | 45.6% | 33.6% | 3.4% | 19.5% | 18.3% | 35.3% | 31.2% | 54.4% | 38.8% | 51.5% |
| 1977 | 46.2% | 34.6% | 4.9% | 19.9% | 20.8% | 36.1% | 32.9% | 56.7% | 40.3% | 51.9% |
| 1978 | 47.2% | 35.5% | 7.4% | 21.5% | 21.6% | 35.7% | 35.2% | 58.9% | 41.6% | 52.9% |
| 1979 | 48.3% | 36.3% | 9.1% | 22.6% | 22.8% | 35.9% | 37.1% | 61.3% | 42.9% | 54.1% |
| 1980 | 49.2% | 37.2% | 10.1% | 24.0% | 23.8% | 36.4% | 39.1% | 63.3% | 44.8% | 54.9% |
| 1981 | 49.9% | 37.8% | 11.1% | 24.7% | 24.9% | 36.9% | 41.1% | 65.1% | 45.4% | 55.7% |
| 1982 | 50.5% | 38.5% | 12.3% | 26.2% | 25.6% | 37.9% | 42.3% | 66.9% | 46.2% | 56.3% |
| 1983 | 50.7% | 38.8% | 13.3% | 28.5% | 25.3% | 38.9% | 43.8% | 67.6% | 46.3% | 56.4% |
| 1984 | 50.7% | 38.6% | 14.1% | 29.4% | 24.4% | 39.3% | 44.4% | 67.9% | 45.6% | 56.6% |
| 1985 | 50.9% | 38.8% | 14.5% | 29.7% | 24.6% | 39.5% | 45.1% | 68.2% | 45.8% | 57.0% |
| 1986 | 51.0% | 39.0% | 14.5% | 29.8% | 22.3% | 38.8% | 45.5% | 69.0% | 45.6% | 57.1% |
| 1987 | 51.7% | 39.7% | 15.3% | 30.2% | 22.6% | 38.2% | 46.1% | 69.0% | 45.8% | 57.6% |
| 1988 | 52.2% | 40.6% | 15.4% | 32.1% | 23.8% | 36.9% | 47.7% | 70.1% | 45.8% | 57.6% |
| 1989 | 52.7% | 41.3% | 15.2% | 30.9% | 25.2% | 35.9% | 47.6% | 70.8% | 46.2% | 57.8% |
| 1990 | 53.3% | 42.5% | 15.4% | 32.2% | 27.9% | 35.8% | 48.2% | 71.5% | 46.3% | 58.1% |
| 1991 | 54.1% | 43.9% | 15.5% | 32.4% | 28.7% | 36.1% | 48.7% | 72.6% | 47.2% | 58.5% |
| 1992 | 54.3% | 44.9% | 15.6% | 33.1% | 32.0% | 35.6% | 49.3% | 73.2% | 47.8% | 58.5% |
| 1993 | 54.4% | 45.3% | 15.9% | 33.6% | 30.0% | 35.4% | 48.9% | 73.2% | 48.2% | 58.5% |
| 1994 | 54.6% | 45.8% | 16.5% | 34.6% | 31.1% | 35.2% | 48.9% | 73.1% | 49.0% | 58.7% |
| 1995 | 54.8% | 46.5% | 17.3% | 35.5% | 34.0% | 35.1% | 49.7% | 73.0% | 49.8% | 58.7% |
| 1996 | 55.2% | 47.1% | 17.9% | 37.0% | 33.3% | 33.9% | 50.2% | 73.0% | 50.8% | 59.2% |
| 1997 | 55.7% | 48.1% | 18.4% | 38.5% | 34.5% | 33.6% | 51.6% | 73.9% | 51.8% | 59.4% |
| 1998 | 56.2% | 48.7% | 18.6% | 39.2% | 37.0% | 32.9% | 52.7% | 74.4% | 52.5% | 59.8% |
| 1999 | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% |
| 2000 | 57.2% | 50.4% | 20.5% | 41.1% | 40.0% | 32.7% | 55.8% | 76.5% | 54.2% | 60.4% |
| 2001 | 57.4% | 50.6% | 20.1% | 41.7% | 40.9% | 31.8% | 57.3% | 77.5% | 54.8% | 60.5% |
(From table 11. Tabulated by National Science Foundation/Division of Science Resources Statistics; data from Department of Education/National Center for Education Statistics: Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System Completions Survey.)
At the undergraduate level, women do pretty well in most fields except engineering and "mathematical and computer sciences" (and that is mostly from the computer side, not the math side, which is much more even, as I recall from past investigations into this subject). Note that women outnumber men in biological sciences. The data includes psychology and social sciences. The latter does not really belong with the rest of these fields, but note that there too women outnumber men. Psychology is a slight stretch too, though it is definitely a science of some sort, but note that there women drastically outnumber men. Note especially, however, that in all fields the ratio of women to men has continuously increased. Some fields show signs of slowdown (i.e. the second derivative of the ratio is negative) but women are stil gaining ground in all areas. So, if there is any imbalance in a field currently, that will not be the final word.
Interestingly, giving the rate of increase in most of these areas, I would be more worried women are going to take over vast protions of the sciences. (Women already dominate higher education at all but the doctoral level; as you can see in the first table. It turns our that more than 57% of degree recipients at the undergrad level are women. That number rises to 58% for the master's level, before dropping to 44% at the doctoral level. But again, those ratios are still increasing.)
Now, for higher degrees:
| Percentage of Master's degrees awarded to women, by field | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | All fields | All science and engineering | Engineering | Physical sciences | Earth, atmos., and ocean sciences | Mathematical and computer sciences | Biological and agricultural sciences | Psychology | Social sciences | All non-S&E |
| 1966 | 33.8% | 13.3% | 0.6% | 11.5% | 5.9% | 20.3% | 20.8% | 32.9% | 20.2% | 42.2% |
| 1967 | 34.7% | 14.0% | .6% | 11.3% | 5.7% | 22.9% | 20.2% | 32.0% | 20.1% | 42.9% |
| 1968 | 35.8% | 14.8% | .6% | 12.7% | 7.0% | 22.4% | 22.3% | 31.2% | 21.6% | 43.8% |
| 1969 | 37.3% | 15.7% | .7% | 12.2% | 7.9% | 23.3% | 22.6% | 30.9% | 22.6% | 45.3% |
| 1970 | 39.8% | 18.1% | 1.1% | 15.1% | 11.1% | 25.5% | 25.8% | 37.3% | 25.6% | 47.2% |
| 1971 | 40.1% | 18.3% | 1.1% | 14.4% | 9.5% | 24.9% | 27.1% | 37.2% | 26.2% | 47.2% |
| 1972 | 40.6% | 18.9% | 1.6% | 15.1% | 10.8% | 24.7% | 26.7% | 38.4% | 25.5% | 47.4% |
| 1973 | 41.4% | 19.0% | 1.7% | 14.0% | 12.0% | 24.2% | 24.8% | 40.2% | 25.3% | 48.3% |
| 1974 | 43.1% | 20.4% | 2.3% | 15.8% | 11.7% | 25.2% | 25.2% | 39.8% | 26.2% | 49.6% |
| 1975 | 44.8% | 21.8% | 2.5% | 15.2% | 12.9% | 26.6% | 25.2% | 42.9% | 28.2% | 51.1% |
| 1976 | 46.4% | 23.1% | 3.5% | 15.6% | 13.9% | 26.1% | 26.8% | 46.7% | 29.0% | 52.5% |
| 1977 | 47.1% | 24.5% | 4.4% | 18.1% | 13.6% | 27.2% | 28.2% | 48.1% | 29.7% | 53.2% |
| 1978 | 48.3% | 25.6% | 5.2% | 17.6% | 15.8% | 26.7% | 30.2% | 52.0% | 30.7% | 54.5% |
| 1979 | 49.1% | 27.4% | 6.1% | 18.6% | 17.4% | 26.7% | 32.3% | 54.1% | 33.5% | 54.9% |
| 1980 | 49.5% | 28.2% | 7.0% | 18.7% | 18.7% | 27.6% | 32.5% | 56.8% | 34.8% | 55.3% |
| 1981 | 50.3% | 29.3% | 8.1% | 20.1% | 21.6% | 27.2% | 33.4% | 58.1% | 36.8% | 56.1% |
| 1982 | 50.8% | 30.1% | 9.0% | 21.4% | 22.5% | 29.0% | 35.9% | 58.9% | 37.7% | 56.8% |
| 1983 | 50.1% | 31.0% | 9.3% | 20.9% | 22.7% | 30.5% | 37.6% | 61.4% | 39.2% | 55.9% |
| 1984 | 49.6% | 31.4% | 10.4% | 23.9% | 23.5% | 31.0% | 39.1% | 63.1% | 39.9% | 55.3% |
| 1985 | 50.0% | 31.6% | 10.7% | 23.0% | 24.1% | 30.5% | 40.5% | 63.9% | 40.5% | 55.9% |
| 1986 | 50.3% | 32.3% | 11.4% | 25.0% | 23.1% | 31.4% | 41.7% | 64.9% | 41.2% | 56.3% |
| 1987 | 51.2% | 32.8% | 12.6% | 24.9% | 25.4% | 32.2% | 42.9% | 65.2% | 42.0% | 57.4% |
| 1988 | 51.5% | 32.4% | 12.4% | 24.0% | 25.4% | 30.5% | 42.9% | 67.2% | 42.0% | 57.8% |
| 1989 | 52.0% | 33.5% | 13.0% | 26.8% | 26.5% | 31.1% | 44.0% | 67.5% | 43.5% | 58.0% |
| 1990 | 52.6% | 34.1% | 13.6% | 27.6% | 23.7% | 31.1% | 45.8% | 67.5% | 43.8% | 58.4% |
| 1991 | 53.6% | 35.6% | 14.0% | 28.4% | 25.6% | 32.8% | 46.3% | 69.5% | 45.6% | 59.1% |
| 1992 | 54.2% | 35.7% | 14.7% | 27.7% | 25.8% | 30.9% | 46.4% | 70.3% | 46.3% | 59.7% |
| 1993 | 54.2% | 35.8% | 14.8% | 29.5% | 28.0% | 30.7% | 46.0% | 71.9% | 47.0% | 59.8% |
| 1994 | 54.6% | 36.6% | 15.4% | 28.9% | 29.9% | 29.4% | 48.0% | 71.6% | 47.7% | 60.1% |
| 1995 | 55.1% | 38.0% | 16.2% | 30.3% | 30.4% | 30.1% | 47.7% | 71.6% | 48.7% | 60.4% |
| 1996 | 55.9% | 39.3% | 17.1% | 33.2% | 29.3% | 30.3% | 49.0% | 71.9% | 50.2% | 60.9% |
| 1997 | 56.9% | 40.9% | 18.1% | 32.2% | 33.9% | 31.7% | 49.5% | 72.7% | 51.1% | 61.5% |
| 1998 | 57.1% | 41.1% | 19.8% | 36.3% | 34.6% | 32.0% | 49.5% | 72.6% | 50.6% | 61.6% |
| 1999 | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% | --% |
| 2000 | 58.1% | 43.3% | 20.7% | 34.6% | 38.1% | 35.7% | 52.3% | 75.1% | 53.1% | 62.0% |
| 2001 | 58.6% | 43.8% | 21.2% | 34.8% | 41.4% | 35.2% | 54.6% | 75.7% | 54.2% | 62.6% |
(From table 18. Tabulated by National Science Foundation/Division of Science Resources Statistics; data from Department of Education/National Center for Education Statistics: Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System Completions Survey.)
| Percentage of Doctoral degrees awarded to women, by field | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | All fields | All science and engineering | Engineering | Physical sciences | Earth, atmos., and ocean sciences | Mathematical and computer sciences | Biological and agricultural sciences | Psychology | Social sciences | All non-S&E |
| 1966 | 11.6% | 8.0% | 0.3% | 4.5% | 3.0% | 6.1% | 12.0% | 21.5% | 10.5% | 18.2% |
| 1967 | 12.0% | 8.4% | .3% | 5.0% | 1.4% | 5.8% | 13.5% | 20.5% | 11.1% | 18.5% |
| 1968 | 12.8% | 9.0% | .4% | 5.4% | 2.5% | 4.8% | 13.8% | 22.7% | 11.8% | 19.5% |
| 1969 | 13.2% | 9.3% | .3% | 5.4% | 4.0% | 5.2% | 14.1% | 23.6% | 11.5% | 19.9% |
| 1970 | 13.5% | 9.1% | .5% | 5.8% | 3.0% | 6.3% | 12.9% | 23.5% | 11.3% | 20.3% |
| 1971 | 14.4% | 10.3% | .5% | 5.8% | 2.4% | 7.8% | 14.5% | 24.7% | 13.1% | 20.8% |
| 1972 | 16.0% | 11.1% | .6% | 6.8% | 3.7% | 7.5% | 15.1% | 26.7% | 13.5% | 22.9% |
| 1973 | 18.0% | 13.0% | 1.4% | 6.8% | 4.3% | 9.7% | 17.5% | 29.2% | 15.7% | 24.8% |
| 1974 | 19.5% | 14.3% | 1.1% | 7.5% | 5.5% | 9.5% | 18.1% | 30.8% | 18.2% | 26.4% |
| 1975 | 21.9% | 15.6% | 1.7% | 8.6% | 4.8% | 9.5% | 19.3% | 31.7% | 19.9% | 30.2% |
| 1976 | 23.3% | 16.8% | 1.9% | 8.5% | 9.7% | 11.3% | 19.6% | 32.8% | 21.2% | 31.7% |
| 1977 | 24.8% | 18.0% | 2.8% | 9.0% | 8.6% | 13.2% | 19.8% | 36.4% | 21.4% | 33.7% |
| 1978 | 27.0% | 19.6% | 2.2% | 9.5% | 9.8% | 13.7% | 21.9% | 36.9% | 24.3% | 36.8% |
| 1979 | 28.6% | 20.9% | 2.5% | 10.9% | 9.0% | 14.9% | 22.9% | 40.8% | 25.6% | 38.8% |
| 1980 | 30.3% | 22.3% | 3.6% | 12.8% | 10.2% | 12.1% | 24.4% | 42.3% | 26.9% | 41.1% |
| 1981 | 31.5% | 23.0% | 3.9% | 11.8% | 9.6% | 14.4% | 25.5% | 43.9% | 26.5% | 43.4% |
| 1982 | 32.4% | 23.8% | 4.7% | 13.3% | 15.7% | 12.3% | 26.7% | 45.5% | 27.6% | 44.7% |
| 1983 | 33.7% | 25.3% | 4.5% | 13.3% | 15.2% | 15.1% | 28.7% | 47.7% | 30.4% | 46.0% |
| 1984 | 34.1% | 25.6% | 5.2% | 14.0% | 17.4% | 15.3% | 27.6% | 50.1% | 30.9% | 46.9% |
| 1985 | 34.3% | 25.8% | 6.3% | 15.9% | 18.0% | 13.9% | 28.7% | 49.4% | 32.0% | 47.3% |
| 1986 | 35.4% | 26.6% | 6.7% | 16.3% | 17.0% | 15.0% | 30.2% | 51.2% | 33.6% | 49.3% |
| 1987 | 35.3% | 26.7% | 6.5% | 16.3% | 18.6% | 16.0% | 31.8% | 53.5% | 32.0% | 49.1% |
| 1988 | 35.3% | 27.1% | 6.8% | 16.9% | 19.4% | 14.0% | 33.0% | 54.7% | 34.8% | 49.0% |
| 1989 | 36.5% | 28.1% | 8.3% | 19.0% | 20.5% | 17.9% | 34.0% | 56.1% | 34.1% | 50.8% |
| 1990 | 36.3% | 27.9% | 8.5% | 18.8% | 19.1% | 16.8% | 33.8% | 58.3% | 33.3% | 51.0% |
| 1991 | 37.1% | 29.0% | 9.0% | 18.8% | 22.1% | 17.3% | 34.7% | 61.5% | 37.1% | 51.5% |
| 1992 | 37.3% | 28.9% | 9.4% | 20.5% | 23.9% | 17.0% | 35.3% | 59.2% | 36.3% | 51.9% |
| 1993 | 38.3% | 30.3% | 9.3% | 21.3% | 21.0% | 20.1% | 37.8% | 61.2% | 38.1% | 52.3% |
| 1994 | 38.7% | 30.4% | 11.0% | 20.9% | 22.4% | 18.5% | 37.7% | 62.3% | 37.2% | 53.4% |
| 1995 | 39.5% | 31.4% | 11.7% | 23.0% | 21.9% | 20.7% | 38.3% | 63.7% | 38.0% | 53.6% |
| 1996 | 40.1% | 31.9% | 12.4% | 22.1% | 21.9% | 18.3% | 40.0% | 66.7% | 36.7% | 54.9% |
| 1997 | 40.9% | 33.1% | 12.4% | 22.8% | 24.0% | 20.6% | 40.9% | 67.0% | 39.1% | 54.8% |
| 1998 | 42.0% | 34.4% | 13.1% | 24.3% | 27.0% | 21.8% | 41.3% | 67.0% | 41.7% | 55.5% |
| 1999 | 42.7% | 35.2% | 14.9% | 23.3% | 26.2% | 22.5% | 41.0% | 67.0% | 41.9% | 55.6% |
| 2000 | 43.9% | 36.2% | 15.8% | 24.5% | 30.5% | 21.0% | 42.6% | 66.7% | 43.0% | 56.8% |
| 2001 | 44.0% | 36.6% | 16.9% | 24.6% | 31.6% | 23.5% | 43.5% | 67.1% | 43.0% | 56.6% |
(From table 25. Tabulated by National Science Foundation/Division of Science Resources Statistics; data from NSF/SRS: Survey of Earned Doctorates.)
Again, the trend from the undergraduate degrees continues. The ratio of women to men earning degrees in scientific and engineering fields is increasing. In some fields they are already almost even, and likely to pass men. At the doctoral level, women are much less present (as they are in all fields, not just science and engineering), but still quite common. This drop at the doctoral level has been a subject of much debate, but is not relevant here. Clearly, the problem is not confined to the sciences. But still, the ratio of women is increasing there as well.
Though I have only done a cursory examination, I have to conclude that women are hardly the rarity they are portrayed to be, with the specific exceptions of engineering and computer-related fields, and even there they are still fairly common. In some fields women are more common than men. I am inclined to suspect that (1) women will overtake men in most fields given enough time and (2) the factors that prevent women from outnumbering men are changing with time (given that the percentage of women continues to change) and thus must be due in significant part to factors other than biological - though that certainly does not rule that out as a factor. However, I have little doubt that any sort of biological factor is insignificant in comparison to other causes, given the drastic changes in the percentage of women in these fields. More examination would certainly be useful. Ultimately, this is where the statisticians and the social scientists come in; I am just a hack looking at some numbers.
Interestingly, rather than the dismal state that has been implied by some, I find that women are doing quite well in teh sciences. Rather, I am surprised to learn that men are getting clobbered in higher education. As a male, I would be much more worried about that. In 50 years we may all be talking about (as some already are) the biological factors that prevent men from succeeding in academics. Then Larry Summers' speech - and all the discussion that followed - will seem oddly quaint, if not downright ironic.
[By the way, a quick extra data check - what exactly about the ratio of women in computer science vs. the ration of women in math? - led me to a slightly different take on the situation in computer fields and engineering, and the interesting piece of information that number of women in computer science has dropped since 1984, and is the only field where that is the case - which is more than a little interesting, not very encouraging, and somewhat threatening to my stated theory. The author does not mention his souces, though they should not be too hard to find, and his numbers sound correct for the most part (via comparison with the NSF's data).]
[Also by the way, the NSF has much more information available.]
[I was just now listening to yet another discussion on this - thanks, or rather no thanks, Tucker Carlson - when I realized I had forgotten to state an important point: I don't think there is much point arguing about biological differences, at least outside of the laboratory, until other factors have stopped dominating the picture and until the ratios have settled down. Can you imagine having this discussion 28 years ago when women represented less than 1% of engineering students? What would we be really able to tell about the overall picture? Not much. So let's just wait for now before we try to use this for any sort of politicking.
Though, of course, the real politicking being done here is regards to what one is and is not allowed to say. That's actually an uglier discussion, and I am afraid the conservatives have some point here, though not as much of one as they think.]
Want to comment? You'll need to create an account first.
