Unique support from identity-based groups: Professional networks of women and LGBTQ+ physicists analyzed and compared by career sector

TL;DR

This study analyzes and compares the professional support networks of women and LGBTQ+ physicists across academia, industry, and government sectors, revealing sector-specific differences in support types and network composition.

Contribution

It introduces novel methods for constructing and analyzing ego networks in social network analysis of physicists' support systems, with a comparative sector-based approach.

Findings

Affinity groups provide more identity-based and community support.

Academia has fewer personal friends and less material support.

Industry participants have more personal friends.

Abstract

This paper presents a social network analysis of the professional support networks of 100 LGBTQ+ and/or women PhD physicists, comparing the networks based on the career sectors of academia, industry, and government/nonprofit. The methods for constructing and analyzing the ego networks, which are novel in many ways, are explained in greater detail in an earlier publication (Hatcher et. al., 2025). We use statistical tests of independence to explore differences between sectors in terms of whole network metrics, network composition based on alter characteristics, and support types. We find that alters associated with groups (like affinity groups and personal and professional interest groups) are more likely to provide identity-based and community building support, participants in Academia have fewer personal friends in their networks while those in Industry have more, participants in Government report less instrumental support, and those in Academia report less material support. These results and others lead to suggestions for employers in these sectors on how to better support these physicists, including continuing to promote participation in affinity and interest groups, providing more material support and/or personal time in the academic sector, and more instrumental support in the form of professional development or training in the government sector.