Living in the tensions: Investigations of gender performativity in STEM

TL;DR

This study explores how women in STEM perceive and perform gender, highlighting stereotypes, pressures to conform to masculine norms, and the impact on their sense of belonging and identity.

Contribution

It provides qualitative insights into gender performativity in STEM, emphasizing the importance of viewing gender as a performance to understand gendered experiences.

Findings

Women perceive gender as performative in STEM.

Stereotypes and masculine norms pressure women to conform.

Gender perceptions influence women's sense of belonging.

Abstract

In this work, we present the results of semi-structured interviews with four women to explore how they perceive themselves with respect to three gender constructs (femininity, masculinity, androgyny), and how they believe others perceive them. All the women highlighted the performative nature of gender in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), citing (1) stereotypes that women are not analytical thinkers, or femininity being associated with "being stupid"; (2) the pressure to conform to the masculine norms of STEM, and (3) a pressure to perform to prove that they belong in STEM. Some of these women aligned their own perceptions of their gender with these norms, while others expressed frustration with the tension between their gender and how that is perceived by peers in STEM. This work suggests that conceptualizing gender as performance is a useful lens for understanding the oppression and underrepresentation of women and gender minorities in STEM.