Women in Physics: Scissors Effect from the Brazilian Olympiad of Physics to Professional Life

TL;DR

This study investigates the 'scissors effect' in physics careers, revealing that women's participation declines from early adolescence through professional levels, based on data from Brazilian physics competitions and fellowships.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of the age and stages at which the gender disparity begins and intensifies in the physics career pathway in Brazil.

Findings

The scissors effect starts as early as 13 years old.

Women’s participation decreases at higher academic and professional levels.

The effect is systematically observed throughout the entire studied data range.

Abstract

Despite the legislation in force in most countries and the discourse on gender equality, the observed reality, still today, shows a clear picture of inequality and restrictions for women, particularly when the issue is the choice of a career and the subsequent promotions. In many professions, although women represent the majority in the entrance to undergraduate courses, their participation is dramatically reduced as the career progresses to the highest levels. While the participation of men increases, that of women decreases as the academic levels move towards the top ranks. This kind of evolution of two groups in opposed directions is usually referred as the "scissors effect". This effect with respect to sexes also occurs in the area of physics, both in Brazil and in the rest of the world. But at what age does this effect begin? What is its intensity in the different stages of women's lives? In this article we aim to shed some light on these questions by analyzing data of the Brazilian Olympiad of Physics and of fellowships for physicists in Brazil. We observe the systematic occurrence of scissors effect throughout the full studied data, ranging from the first years of participation in the Olympiads (13 years old) to the highest stages of the scientific career.