Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP15034
Authors: Almudena Sevilla; Sarah Smith
Abstract: The status of women in economics in the US has come increasingly under the spotlight. We exploit high quality administrative data to paint the first comprehensive picture of the status of women in UK academic economics departments in research-intensive universities. Our evidence indicates that, as in the US, women in economics are under-represented and are paid less than men. The issues facing women in economics in the UK are similar to other disciplines particularly STEM but have received less national policy attention to date. We conclude with a discussion of interventions that might improve the status of women in academia and we present new evidence that a UK academic diversity programme (Athena Swan) has narrowed the gender pay gap at a senior level.
Keywords: gender; academia; women in economics; gender wage gap
JEL Codes: A14
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| gender (J16) | pay disparities (J31) |
| Athena Swan accreditation program (I23) | gender pay gap (J31) |
| gender pay gap in economics (J16) | gender pay gap in STEM and other social sciences (J79) |
| gender representation (J16) | promotion rates (M51) |