Nicola Crowden: Examining Gender Bias in Studies for Innovation Policy Making

Examining Gender Bias in Studies for Innovation Policy Making

 The Women’s Advisory Group on Innovation Studies (WAGIS) was established in 2002 with the intent of advocating gender equality in research methods. WAGIS: carries out research on the effects of gender in interactive research environments, analyses existing social research instruments to determine if there are inherent gender biases in the methodology and structure of the tools which could lead to gender-biased results; and researches the gender differences in the sources of and barriers to innovation in research and technological environments.  

Gender Sensitivity of Innovation and Cluster Research Instruments: The objective of this research proposal is to investigate whether interview-based research tools used in projects researching the new economy have an underlying gender bias.  This project will develop an innovative research methodology to verify the gender neutrality of surveys and questionnaires based on the OECD Oslo Manual model used in research projects on technological innovation. WAGIS will be using the Innovative Systems Research Network project (ISRN) as a case study to investigate whether the interview-based research tools being used are gender biased.  This will result in a better understanding of the consequences of gender differences in approaches to technological innovation and will inform policy makers on the need to be sensitive to gender issues in formulating innovation policies.  Status of Women Canada is supporting this initiative.  The expected outcomes will include: the development of gender-neutral methodologies for studying innovation, a reanalysis and normalization of results from existing survey instruments, and the sensitization of policy analysts, decision makers, and researchers working in the field.

The Innovation and Clusters Project: Researchers at the Centre for Policy Research on Science and Technology (CPROST) at Simon Fraser University are participating in a major national study on the role of local and regional industrial clusters in Canada.  This five-year study funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council that will examine the  impact and importance of cluster-driven innovation in Canada. This study will investigate how local networks of firms and supporting infrastructure of institutions, businesses and people in communities across Canada interact to spark economic growth. This is a national project with a regional focus.

Background:  Canada's ability to adapt its resource-based traditional economy to a more knowledge-driven technology-based economy will play a key role in the maintenance of our high living standard. Success in the new knowledge-based economy increasingly depends on the ability to apply the results of innovation - a new, or significantly improved, service, product, production technique, or management method. Recent studies of the innovation process point towards the interdependence of economic, political, social and cultural factors in determining the relative degree of success enjoyed by individual nations and regions in the global and knowledge-based economy. These studies point the way towards a better understanding of the complex interdependencies between internal firm dynamics around the innovationprocess and the broader institutional setting within which the firms operate.  

Theoretical approach: Based on the conventional division of labour between men and women in Canadian society, and the adopted socially prescribed characteristics that influence the way men and women behave in the workplace, it is likely the innovative process is structured to privilege men.  Is the diminution of the role of women in the process of innovation reflected and reinforced by the methodology and instruments used in the ISRN project?   Although literature discussing women’s roles in science and technology has acknowledged systemic barriers to their involvement in this field, this literature has neglected to consider the research tools used to represent women’s perceptions and attitudes towards processes of technological innovation.

The structured nature of the professional engineering licensing process provides a wealth of data acknowledging systemic barriers to women’s involvement in engineering.  Women comprise only 6% of the total population of registered professional engineers and comprise about 20% of the total bachelor level engineering graduates.  While the increase of women’s participation in professional engineering is, in part, a result of policies aimed at encouraging women to pursue science and engineering careers, there will be a ceiling effect and women’s involvement in the professions will plateau at around 25%.

While establishing themselves in these professions many women face sexism and gender biased work environments.  Technologies are generally developed in systems based on male-defined work ethics and professional norms.  For example, women in engineering have stated they leave the profession because the organizational structure is too rigid, there is a lack of flexible work options, and they experience harassment.  When participating in the public sphere women often continue to maintain family responsibilities and try to balance them with the demands of work.   It is argued family responsibilities prevent women from receiving job promotions, as work hours are too demanding, and from networking with other professionals outside of the office, such as at trade shows and conventions. Equally it is likely the high drop out rate of women from engineering positions is a result of unequal access to advancement and the difficulty of balancing work and family.  The social roles prescribed to women that effect their involvement in innovative processes must be taken into consideration by studies such as the ISRN project.    

Methodology: In order to determine whether the methodological tools used in the ISRN project (particularly the interview guide and its related coding techniques) are gender indifferent, there will be an analysis of the content of the specific questions in the interview guide.  This analysis will use focus group techniques to investigate gender biased assumptions on the sources of innovation, the barriers to innovation and their outcomes, and the necessary factors which influence the creation of innovative industrial clusters which could result in differences of interpretation between the men and women being interviewed.