A research team made up three philosophy majors and three faculty members of the philosophy department presented their findings on the underrepresentation of women in their field.
An Elon University student-faculty research partnership presented on the underrepresentation of women in the discipline of philosophy this past weekend. The research team – made up of students Helen Meskhidze (’16), Claire Lockard (’16), and Sean Wilson (’16), and faculty members Dr. Stephen Bloch-Schulman, Dr. Ann J. Cahill, and Dr. Nim Batchelor – traveled to Villanova University to present their research at a joint Hypatia/American Philosophical Association Conference (May 28-30) focused on diversifying their discipline. All researchers are members of Elon University’s Philosophy Department. The research group shared their strategies for investigating the underrepresentation of women in their department and discussed potential strategies for achieving a more equitable gender ratio. This led to a robust conversation with other conference attendees who are working on similar projects at their own institutions.
Through a variety of research methods, the team has been trying to understand the causes behind the underrepresentation of women in philosophy. From introductory courses to tenured professorships, women are underrepresented at every level of the discipline. Prior research has shown, however, that this problem might be best addressed by focusing on women’s undergraduate experience. For this reason, the group has conducted research at Elon in order see what factors go into students’ choices and attitudes surrounding philosophy at the undergraduate level.
The issue of women’s underrepresentation has come to the forefront recently in many philosophy departments that acknowledge the unjustified, overwhelming maleness of philosophy as well as the educational benefits to increasing women’s representation in their field. Their work has been supported for the past year by the Elon University Center for the Advancement of Teaching andLearning (CATL) through a Diversity Infusion Project grant. The students of the research team were also able to receive funding for travel expenses to the conference from CATL and Hypatia. The research group is grateful for the continued support from Elon University.
The team invites you to review their findings.
