‘Not to be stereotypical, but .’. Exclusive and inclusive gendered discourses about geology field experiences

ABSTRACT

Women continue to remain underrepresented in geoscience degree attainment. Several disciplines (specifically geology) require participation in ‘field experiences’ in which students and faculty engage for weeks in a remote location to study geologic processes. Although any student is welcome to participate, studies find evidence of these outdoor spaces embodying a masculine domain. In this exploratory study, we examine the exclusive and inclusive gendered discourses used by 15 faculty and 36 students in the US that describe their perception of women doing geology fieldwork. Using a STEMinism framework, we analyse the exclusive and inclusive gendered discourse as it falls into three categories: natural/essentialized differences, individual preferences, and socialization. Our findings reveal the persistence of an exclusive gendered discourse, yet also indicate that gendered assumptions are being challenged through an inclusive discourse.

KEYWORDS:

• Gender
• gendered discourse
• geology
• outdoors
• steminism

Acknowledgments

We sincerely thank the six departments who welcomed this study into their academic communities. We also thank our reviewers for their thoughtful comments and suggestions to improve our manuscript.

Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. Examples of interview questions include: Do you know of any examples in the department of students treating each other differently based on gender? Have you ever been treated differently by a professor/student in this department because of your gender?

Additional information

Funding

This study was partially supported by the National Science Foundation Gender in Science and Engineering program, grants HRD 1136233 and HRD 1136238

Notes on contributors

Ennea Fairchild

Dr. Ennea Fairchild is a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Department of Sociology at the University of Northern Colorado.

Harmony Newman

Dr. Harmony Newman is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and the Gender Studies Program at the University of Northern Colorado.

Julie Sexton

Dr. Julie Sexton is a Research Associate in the Environmental Studies Department at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Kevin Pugh

Dr. Kevin Pugh is a Professor in the School of Psychological Sciences at the University of Northern Colorado.

Eric Riggs

Dr. Eric Riggs is a Professor in the Department of Geology and Geophysics at Texas A & M.