Women Are Missing From Economics. Here’s Why That Matters For All Of Us

Women make up only 14 percent of full professors in U.S. economics departments. In stark contrast to other social sciences where women typically receive over 60 percent of doctoral degrees, women in economics receive only 35 percent of doctorates.

Women have made significant progress in certain STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields, traditionally dominated by men. But economics is not one of them. Startlingly, evidence suggests little progress in bringing women into economics since 2000.

So why does the gender makeup of economists really matter? Would we have more information on the global social impacts of climate change, the root causes of income inequality, and solutions to the gender wage gap if economics were more gender balanced? Might policy questions have been asked or answered differently if more women were economists?

Source: Huffingtonpost