Women's work : gender equality vs. hierarchy in the life sciences / Laurel Smith-Doerr.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Smith-Doerr, Laurel, 1969- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Women life scientists.

Women in science.

Sex discrimination in employment.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (221 p.)

Place of Publication:

Boulder, Colorado ; London, [England] : Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2004.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Women scientists working in small, for-profit companies are eight times more likely than their university counterparts to head a research lab. Why? Laurel Smith-Doerr reveals that, contrary to widely held assumptions, strong career opportunities for women and minorities do not depend on the formal policies and long job ladders that large, hierarchical bureaucracies provide. In fact, highly internally linked biotechnology firms are far better workplaces for female scientists (when compared to university settings or established pharmaceutical companies), offering women richer opportunities for career advancement. Based on quantitative analyses of more than two-thousand life scientists' careers and qualitative studies of scientists in eight biotech and university settings, Smith-Doerr's work shows clearly that the network form of organization, rather than fostering "old boy networks," provides the organizational flexibility that not only stimulates innovation, but also aids women's success.

Contents:

""Book Title""; ""Table of Contents""; ""List of Figures and Tables""; ""Acknowledgments""; ""Introduction""; ""Outline of the Book""; ""Notes""; ""1-Explaining Sexual Apartheid in Science""; ""Understanding Gender Differences""; ""A New Approach: Organizational Form, Innovation, and Inequality""; ""Women�s Work Life Chances in the Life Sciences""; ""Notes""; ""2-A Brief Life Story of the Life Sciences""; ""Let�s Get Physical:The Origins of Molecular Biology""; ""The Development of Basic Differences Between Academic and Industrial Biology""

""Magic Bullets and Ivory Towers: Drug Development and Academic-Industry Relations""""Working in Biotech""; ""Notes""; ""3-Life in the Commercial Laboratory: Institutionalizing the Network Form""; ""Changes in Scientific Careers""; ""Institutional Change and Legitimacy""; ""Biotechnology Industry Setting""; ""Common Narratives Used to Legitimate Biotechnology Industry Work""; ""Assessing the Institutionalization of Legitimacy""; ""Legitimacy and Gender Equality""; ""Notes""; ""4-Coming In on Queue? Women�s and Men�s Entry into Biotech""; ""Segregation�No Girls Allowed""

""Queuing�Ladies Last, Please""""Insiders, Outsiders, and Innovation""; ""Who�s In First?""; ""Girl Ghettos""; ""If Not Horizontal Segregation,Then Vertical Stratification?""; ""Notes""; ""5-Networks vs. Hierarchies in Promoting Women Scientists""; ""The Statistical Sample""; ""Gender Stratification Among Life Scientists""; ""Networks vs. Hierarchies""; ""Innovation and Equality""; ""Equality in Biotech""; ""Note""; ""6-Flexibility, Flexibility, Flexibility: Narratives of Gender Equality in Biotech""; ""Three Things to Know About Gender Equality in Biotech""; ""Notes""

""7-Conclusion: The Knowledge Economy, Innovation, and Equality""""There Ought to Be a Law!""; ""Making a Difference""; ""Organization Matters""; ""IT vs. Biotech: What�s the Difference?""; ""Generalizability of the Biotech Case�In General""; ""Dangerous Liaisons""; ""Gazing into the Future""; ""Good Things Come in Small Packages""; ""Notes""; ""Appendix: Combining Qualitative and Quantitative Methods to Study Scientists""; ""Gathering Qualitative and Quantitative Data""; ""The Research Samples""; ""Data Analyses""; ""Combining Quantitative and Qualitative Methods""; ""Notes""

""References""""Index""; ""About the Book""

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-58826-976-0